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Tip - 37 - Cat bites
during petting
This scenario
has happened hundreds of thousands of times. You're petting a
cat on its head
and back and the cat seems to be in ecstasy. It's purring like
a little motorcycle, looking absolutely content, when all of
a sudden the cat pounces on your hand and takes a bite. It may
even throw in a few paw swipes as well.
Usually the biting and/or
scratching isn't too hard and it rarely breaks the skin but it
still hurts and the recipient feels betrayed. What is going on?
What's wrong with the cat? Is it Demonic? Psychotic? Dumb?
None
of the above. Petting aggression in cats is absolutely normal.
The reasons for petting aggression are not fully understood but
research suggests that it has to do with the fact that the cat
has mixed emotions about the whole petting phenomenon. Most adult
cats that aren't related don't touch each other much except for
fighting and sexual episodes. So even though the cats seems content,
it may realize that this is not normal and an instinctive predatory
response is elicited which results in biting.
Don't
take it personally and don't punish or hit the cat. Understand
and OBSERVE the cat's warning signs. Keep the petting sessions
fairly short and end the session the second the cat exhibits
warning signs. The
best way to deal with this situation is to be aware of the cat's
body language. The cat will always give you signals that
it has had enough of your petting. The key signal to watch
for is a twitching tail and a body that starts to tense up. Ears
may turn or flicker and the cat's head may also turn toward your
hand. This is a classic predatory response and the cat's way
of telling you to IMMEDIATELY stop petting and end the session.
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2007
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