The person who loves an animal should notice when attention has become too much.

Wanting to be near an animal and the animal wanting it are different facts. The signals of too much are quiet: a turned head, a moved position, a body that stiffens slightly, all easy to read as shyness rather than as a request. Because most animals tolerate more than they enjoy, the point where affection stops being welcome passes without anyone noticing.

Spend a few minutes just watching yours without interacting at all. Learn what they do when they want contact and what they do when they do not. Then let the second one mean something.