u/FrogVolence

Hi y’all, I already have a vet appt set up but I’m really confused about my cats behavior.

This week Oatmeal returned home after slipping out my front door and disappearing for 3 days.

Since being home, he has been extra clingy, like EXTRA clingy. He’s also gotten 5x more talkative since being back, he used to just mildly meow and now every time he sees me or seeks me out it’s like he’s panicked screaming/yelling. Ive also noticed he’s been particularly protective over my newborn, even more than he usually was before he got out.

Overall other than some weight loss he’s fine. Ive been monitoring him and nothing seems out of the ordinary. Im just really confused on why he would suddenly become extremely clingy and extra talkative as i know some cats who end up having health problems can get clingier.

Is it simply because he missed me this much? Is it because he needs reassurance? Could someone give me a little insight on this behavior and why escaping to the outdoors for a few days would cause such a big flip in his behavior. I have always had a very deep, tight and close bond with him, he trusts me like i birthed him lol, would having a close bond trigger this?

Since bringing my son home, oatmeal has made it his job to what is essentially- babysit my son.

Anytime i leave the room, set my son down or have to do something, oatmeal will slip into my room and watch my son. While watching my son he now has a routine i closely relate to babysitting until I’m back with my son.

It’s like he has an internal checklist to make sure he does everything he needs to do to make sure my son is fine.

This checklist is:

As soon as i leave he must sniff his feet,hands,head and diaper. If everything seems satisfactory, we do a breath check and sniff his nose to make sure he’s still breathing. If that checks out- sit and stare at him until i return. If my son starts crying, he leaves his side- seeks me out and will proceed to scream at me and stare at me until i follow him and soothe my son.

I was really nervous about bringing my son home to oatmeal but i don’t regret it at all. It’s like it was meant to be. These two are going to be best friends over time.