Mary Allen
Luckily, cats rarely attack humans. It is usually a defensive reaction when an animal feels threatened. But sometimes attacks can hardly be explained.
Cat bites are painful and dangerous because the wounds they leave can become infected quickly and severely. And scratches don’t just hurt — they make people suspicious and even fearful. Fortunately, much of what seems unpredictable about cats can be explained. And the attacks do not usually take place unannounced and from behind, but with advance warning. The kitties almost always send out clear body language signals when they feel uncomfortable or afraid in a situation. This applies both to the classic, grabbing at the stroking hand, and to attacks while grooming or clipping the claws. However, the threatening and defense signals are sometimes sent so quickly that humans overlook them and unsuspectingly exceed the individual animal boundaries – despite the warning.
“Many cat owners are exceptionally tolerant when dealing with their cat and endure aggression that would not be tolerated in a dog,” says Marianne Furler, a veterinarian and behavioral doctor from Aathal in the canton of Zurich. “But of course, that’s not a good living together in the long run.” She examines each home and living environment and examines possible factors for aggression through stress or frustration, says Furler. Sometimes unpleasant experiences or experiences of fear, which the animal associates with certain movements or processes, also play a role.
Pain Can Make You Aggressive
“For example, a cat would attack its owner whenever she wanted to pick up the food bowl or clean the litter box,” says Furler. Animals that turn the bedroom into a battleground and bite the feet or hands of sleeping people also belong in this category. According to Furler, the cat owner should change their behavior or the environment in such cases. For example, the bowl will no longer be filled in the presence of the cat and the cat will be locked out of the bedroom.
But what to do when a cat turns into a wild tiger in a matter of seconds and for no apparent trigger or reason? When she stands in your way and “sings at you” menacingly? Furler is also confronted with such cases again and again.
According to Furler, if a previously gentle cat suddenly turns into an aggressive fury without the living conditions have changed, there are some indications that there are physical problems. “It can be a painful illness, an accident, a viral disease, an overactive thyroid or another organic change, such as in the liver,” the veterinarian lists just a few of the possibilities. In older cats, signs of wear and tear in the joints often lead to the animal reacting sensitively to touch in certain areas. And neurological changes could also lead to aggression. In such cases, however, other neurological symptoms would usually also occur at the same time, explains Furler.
The Influence of the Fathers
However, aggressive cats often have a history in which aggressiveness plays a role. Then they are passed from owner to owner and the problem worsens. “Most of these animals have not experienced appropriate socialization with humans,” explains the behavioral doctor. “Or they didn’t learn how to deal with aggression when they were young because they were separated from their mother and siblings too early and raised by humans. Such animals often lack self-control.”
Another factor, according to Furler, is a genetic heritage. «It seems that fathers have a great influence on the philanthropy of offspring. Unfortunately, the tomcats are often not known and so we don’t know how much wildness the puppies carry around with them as a genetic rucksack.”
If there are situations in which the cat is excited, for example when it comes to feeding and the hunger is great, it is possible that the human will be attacked. “Something like this can be managed, for example, by not only offering food twice a day, which is not species-appropriate for a cat anyway, but by always having food available, but you have to work it out yourself,” advises the behavior expert.
According to Furler, hunting for food, employment, in general, plays a major role when it comes to aggressive cats. For example, animals that live purely as apartments are often underutilized and under-challenged, and therefore frustrated. “If, for example, the location of the apartment does not allow cats to go outside, the owners must be aware that there are cats that cannot bear life in the apartment and develop behavioral disorders or suffer from diseases such as urination disorders and obesity.”