Trying to bond with any cat can be difficult, especially if it’s an outdoor stray or a traumatized cat. I had a hard time bonding with an adopted kitten once. Even though he wasn’t traumatized and he was well-adjusted to the indoor-only life, it was still difficult.
It can be really difficult to bond with our cats sometimes, but patience and love often do the trick.
A man named Lex noticed a stray cat sneaking around his house… but earning the cat’s trust was a hard job. He didn’t give up, and sometimes not giving up is all it takes…
Patience Brought Us Cinnabon
So, Lex moved to a new home, where he saw a stray cat lurking around. The previous homeowner informed him that there are a lot of cats in the neighborhood and that he should just leave them be.
However, Lex noticed one particular cat that kept coming near his house. The cat was terrified of him, but Lex couldn’t just “leave him be”. The cat looked really malnourished, thin, and sickly.
“At the time I wasn’t really used to cats so I didn’t know what you’re supposed to do.”
Lex left food out for the cat to eat. Once he saw that the cat was eating it and coming back, Lex started leaving cat food out.
“He was still super afraid. He would meow and make eye contact too before he’d run away.”
Months passed and the cat would still come and eat out of the bowls Lex left out for him outside the house.
Still, even if he saw Lex through the glass door, he would run away. But eventually, he got comfortable with seeing Lex through the glass door. He probably realized that he was safe.
“He would just kind of look at me and get back to his food. And he’d be ok.”
Slowly, it gradually got better. Lex was able to leave the door open and look at the cat from a distance. However, he couldn’t get close to him, let alone touch him.
At this point, Lex thought to himself:
“Since I’m feeding this cat, I felt obligated to get him a house, because it gets pretty cold in Michigan.”
So he did; he made a little cat house, secured it, and filled it with comfy blankets. The first night he put it out, Cinnabon came. Lex saw him getting cozy inside.
The first night Lex put the cat house out, Cinnabon claimed it. It felt like they were family now, but Lex was still trying to get him to come inside.
“I remember I opened the slider door and this time he wanted in the house, he was just afraid. He wanted to get the treat, but he didn’t trust me.”
Then for the first time ever, he actually took the treat from Lex’s hand. This was a turning point! Lex was able to pet Cinnabon.
Lex would pet Cinnabon through the slider door, and Cinnabon even started coming inside. Just for a few steps in, but still… Lex would throw him treats and try to get him to come and eat out of his hand.
He would put them on the ground one by one, so Cinnabon would come closer and closer to him.
Then it just kind of happened. It quickly went from Lex not being able to pet him, to Cinnabon coming inside and getting all the cuddles!
This was the key moment when Cinnabon realized he was home.
Lex started leaving him inside the house and letting him get to know the place. He would leave Cinnabon alone even, and he would explore and sniff around.
Cinnabon still loves going outside and playing in nature, and Lex doesn’t want to deny him his freedom.
He lets him be free inside and outside. Cinnabon is one happy cat!
Lex’s friends tease him because he used to claim that he wasn’t a “cat person”, and now Cinnabon is his best friend.
“Definitely changed me as a person, made me a lot more tolerant and kind of understand and learn what it’s like to take care of something else.”
Well, it seems like Lex needed Cinnabon as much as Cinnabon needed him. And I think he knows it.
“They say you never choose a cat, a cat chooses you. And I definitely feel in this situation, he for sure chose me.”
Now their bond is even stronger. You can keep up with their adventures on their YouTube channel or Instagram.
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