Cat Vs.Commoner, Part II

[Homicidal_Squirrel]

Are you saying that a cat's temperament is chaotic crazy?

Hardly; however, they really haven't been domesticated, at least to the extent of dogs. They still have that wild animal part, and as such, you should tread carefully if you think you're going to just abuse a cat. Additionally, males cats tend to be a bit more aggressive than female cats, and if they aren't neutered, they can be even more likely to be aggressive.

 

[Scott DeWar]

Ah, I see what you are saying. It is all true too. I have seen cats go feral in one generation where dogs might take a couple or more

 

[Kramodlog]

Neutral-I-do-not-give-a-, sounds more likely.

 

[Scott DeWar]

*snort* I have seen neutral 'I-wee-keel-you-evil in cats as well as the aforementioned chaotic-I-have-caffinated-catnip-in-me crazy rather often as well too.

 

[Umbran]

Ah, I see what you are saying. It is all true too. I have seen cats go feral in one generation where dogs might take a couple or more

Okay, I talked to my wife the veterinarian about this. Let's clear some things up.

Someone yanked the cat's tail, then kicked it. It became aggressive. This is somehow surprising and needs explanation?

If someone yanked your hair, and then punched you in the face, might not you become aggressive in reaction? Well, does that mean you were abused in your past, or are "less civilized," or something? No. It means that you were justifiably pissed off! Someone just hit you!

If you bring a raccoon into your home, you might say it is "less domesticated" than your family dog. But, there is no numerical metric for domestication. It isn't like dogs measure 10 on the domestication scale, and cats only 4, or something. Both species have been with humans for thousands of years, so that the difference is not really discernible at this point. Dogs behave differently than cats because they are different animals, not because they are more domesticated.

Moreover, while anecdotal in a sense, my wife deals with a lot of animals. In over a decade of practice, my wife has never had to euthanize a cat for aggression issues, but has had to put several dogs to sleep for attacking people. The only animal to attack her without apparent provocation has been a dog. Dogs are not particularly safer than cats, in terms of aggression.

 

[Zombie_Babies]

Yeah, I was also surprised at the surprise in both of these events (the other was the outdoor 'attack'). In both cases the cat was struck first. What do people expect when they attack a predator? I don't like cats all that much myself but I'm happy these cats acted the way they did.

 

[athos]

Yeah, I was also surprised at the surprise in both of these events (the other was the outdoor 'attack'). In both cases the cat was struck first. What do people expect when they attack a predator? I don't like cats all that much myself but I'm happy these cats acted the way they did.

Only an idiot would be happy that an animal attacked people.

When we had our daughter, my cat thought she could attack the baby. First time my daughter got clawed, the cat got herself a one way ticket to the shelter. I was not going to put an infant, especially my daughter, at risk of being hurt, just wasn't going to happen.

I like animals, including cats, but attacking people is unacceptable behavior in an animal. No one was ever mean to or hurt my cat, she just decided she didn't want to share her house with our baby. Or maybe she was establishing dominance, who knows... attacking a person is not permitted though.

Saying you are happy that a cat went bonkers and probably had to be killed is just sick.

 

[Umbran]

I like animals, including cats, but attacking people is unacceptable behavior in an animal. No one was ever mean to or hurt my cat, she just decided she didn't want to share her house with our baby. Or maybe she was establishing dominance, who knows... attacking a person is not permitted though.

But that makes it an entirely different case. In the cases we are discussing, the animal was a victim first. The new article above notes the cat only scratched after the baby pulled its tail - this is a common reaction for the cat, and not itself a sign of major aggression issues. The gent of the house then *kicked* the cat. This was no simple matter of not wanting to share the house. And, even with all that, there were no major injuries.

Saying you are happy that a cat went bonkers and probably had to be killed is just sick.

The cat in this case was, as of a few days ago, still alive, and there was no sign it needs to be killed. If I recall correctly, its owners were looking into working with a specialist to learn how to change their own and the animal's behavior. And even if it ends up that the cat isn't good for that home, it may well find another home.

 

[tomBitonti]

What I don't understand is that, given the option to retreat, the cat didn't retreat.

An immediate riposte seems normal. But to press an attack?

Also, was this a full on attack, or something lighter? I've gotten light bites from cats, but they are nothing compared to a full on hard bite. That happened to me once, when I tried to break up an intact male and another male cat that I had. The intact male gave me a hard bite on the wrist. I was lucky and only got a few small, inconsequential punctures, but the pressure of the bite was rather a lot harder than any other bite that I've gotten from a cat. The bite hurt much more from pressure than from the punctures.

That all taught me that mostly, when cats bat or nip at you, and you get light scratches, or the nip wasn't forceful, the cat really isn't giving its all.

Thx!

TomB

 

[Zombie_Babies]

Only an idiot would be happy that an animal attacked people.

When we had our daughter, my cat thought she could attack the baby. First time my daughter got clawed, the cat got herself a one way ticket to the shelter. I was not going to put an infant, especially my daughter, at risk of being hurt, just wasn't going to happen.

I like animals, including cats, but attacking people is unacceptable behavior in an animal. No one was ever mean to or hurt my cat, she just decided she didn't want to share her house with our baby. Or maybe she was establishing dominance, who knows... attacking a person is not permitted though.

Saying you are happy that a cat went bonkers and probably had to be killed is just sick.

Speaking of idiots ... bro, did you happen to notice that I'm talking about two cases where the cat was attacked by people before it went nutso? Care to try again?