Cats can be so different at a shelter or even at a foster home than they will be when they get settled. I remember my sister was told the cat she got was "a little playful" like if you made an effort, but twenty minutes after the cat settled in she was flipping her shit over a string toy. Even years later, sick, tired, and elderly, she'd dredge up some energy to bat at a toy.

[–] dejected_warp_core@lemmy.world 12 points 13 hours ago

It really can be like night and day. My cat was so incredibly stressed out when we brought her home that she kept "fawning" all over us for the first two weeks. Lots of excessive side rubs and a general clingyness to every interaction. She needed constant touch.

After that she began to settle in and became much more herself: playful, independent, and only sometimes in the mood for a lap or a cuddle.

[–] HeyThisIsntTheYMCA@lemmy.world 5 points 16 hours ago

mine was a big cuddler and lap cat at the shelter. got her home, she's an occasional cuddler but is hyperactive when you get a scarp of papre for her to play with