Cat suddenly goes from shy to friendly

Dear Cathy: We have a female cat named Polly who we believe is about 17 years old. She’s always been shy; no one has ever been able to pet her or get close to her. We adopted her with her twin sister Molly.

Last year, Molly, who was our social, loving girl, died from kidney failure. Now, in the last week, Polly has become very friendly and loving and allows my wife and myself to pet her and pick her up. She sits with my wife every night. Should we be concerned with this change is personality? — George and Bonnie, via email

Dear George and Bonnie: Animals living in multipet households often change their behaviors whenever another pet is added or leaves the household in some way. It’s quite possible Molly was protective of you and your wife and kept Polly away with subtle body language gestures.

Don’t worry about the change in behavior though. Becoming friendly and loving is never a sign of a disease or illness, so celebrate Polly’s new outgoing nature — and don’t adopt another cat right now to replace Molly. If you do, Polly could respond by hiding again. Instead, let Polly be the solo cat in your household so that she can enjoy attention from both of you for the remainder of her life. She has a lot of catching up to do.

Dear Cathy: SSSCAT Spray by Petsafe has kept my two cats away from the Christmas tree for years. The motion sensor detects curious kitties and emits a harmless shot of air. They quickly get the hint. It’s available at many online retailers, and costs about $30. — Stacey, Nashville, TN

Dear Stacey: As a motionactivated indoor pet deterrent, SSSCAT Spray actually releases a harmless, odorless and stainless spray to discourage dogs and cats from a particular space. Dogs usually can be trained to stay away from the Christmas tree; cats not so much, so thanks for sharing.