orphan cat behavior

Question
My cat is now 1 yr old.  We fostered her from about 1 week old, and she has had very little interaction with other cats.  Husband says no to getting another.  She is sweet, but does not like to be held or petted.  She will come & sit by me or ask to be petted, when SHE wants.  We gave her tons of attention & love since she has been 1 week old, is there anything we can do to help her be a little more friendly towards others? If she is standing there & thinks you are going to reach down & pet her,she will take off.  She just does notlike anyone to touch her or hold her. We have no young kids - they are over 18.  Any thoughts?

Answer
Well you certainly have had her long enough and early enough to have made her human friendly, but every cat does have their own personality and some just have different quirks or take longer to become more affectionate. I have a one year old and he tends to take off from being petted fairly often but not all the time. For one thing, they are still quite hyper at that age and so its not that strange that they run. Also, it is possible you are approaching fast and that sends her off. Try bending down and talking to her until she comes to you - she may not do it but try. Point is trying a slower approach. Also you say you gave her "tons of attention & love" - maybe too much? Sometimes we want to touch and hug and cuddle when they as kittens don't really want it but they are youngs and don't know how to resist. If so, later in life they may shy away from too much contact. Cats don't all love to be overly touched and while we think its love they don't care for it. That could be the cause of her only taking affection on her terms now and again I would say the best thing is to just go along with her, approach her slowly and don't react if she shies away. Letting her have the freedom to choose is best and once she feels she is in control she may become more amicable to you initiating affection. Anyway, its still an issue of personality really and each cat has their own, but personalities in cats can change over time in my experience. I have a ten year old cat and she used to always run. Then she quieted down, around age 2, and liked to be petted only on her head and behind her ears. If you tried to touch her back further down, she ran. Now as she has aged and mellowed even more I can touch her more and she seeks it more and she even sleeps cuddled to me with my arm around her. Point being her tolerance for affection changed over time and its not due to anything I had any control over. Its her right - and cats do exercise their rights - to have her own personality. Frankly you could have it go the other way too and have a cat who as a kitten loves cuddling and then matures and starts to be more aloof. BTW, you mention hubby said no to more pets and that's OK. Cats don't really need companions and may even fight if another is brought in. If she did like a newcomer and got close, she may become less affectionate with you since she has her cat companion instead, and that isn't what you want.