Thread: Why can't we be friends, why can't we be friends?

Hello, everyone!

I come to you, like many, for advice. I read through the forums trying to find a similar topic, but I didn't have any luck. I am generally neutral toward cats, and they're generally neutral toward me.

Until this one. Here's my story:

Back in July, I started dating a woman who owns an eleven year old Maine Coon. She assures me he's very friendly, and at first blush this appears true. So, we get on as I usually do with cats - a pat here, a pat there, but we generally ignore one another.<br><br>When I first started staying over her place for the night, the cat would not leave us alone. He would meow, constantly, while we were in bed trying to sleep, wherever he was in the room; sometimes by the door, sometimes on the bed, sometimes on my chest, directly into my face. This is not typically how I like to be woken at 3 am, but I've been more or less civil. I did shove him off the bed once.

During the day, it's the usual routine; he doesn't run from me, try to scratch me, hiss at me, or otherwise show signs of fear/discontent. I pat him if he comes over, ignore him if he doesn't. But once we try to go to sleep, he apparently has quite a bit to say. Girlfriend says he doesn't do this when I'm not around, and he's never done it around anyone else before.

Aren't I special?

So anyway, we start spending the night at my place more often, thinking we'll give him a break and sorta introduce me more slowly. It's not very often, though. He was fine for the first couple of times we did this, but recently he's taken to peeing on the carpet just after the foyer when she's gone overnight. I think he's done it three times now. The meowing at night is annoying, but this is rather problematic.

I'm not sure how much I am contributing to the peeing problem; as I said, I'm generally indifferent toward him, and obviously I'm not there when he pees. But, if there's anything I can do to help her out, I would like to at least try.

Any advice you can give is greatly appreciated.