Every time I go out to weed - especially in the evenings - Tae-Bo comes up for a petting. Tae-Bo is so named because he is a fighter, not a lover. Especially of kids.
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| Seriously scarred and mangy cat |
Bonnie has been attacked simply walking through the yard. Does she look like cat prey? She is a little bird-like, with how thin she is, perhaps. Hmm.
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| The birdie is "perching" on the swing |
Anyway, out weeding again the other evening, and Tae-Bo comes up. Lays next to me. Lays in front of me, where I'm weeding. I give him a perfunctory pat, then move him. Again and again. Finally, I decide to actually pet the bugger.
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| See? I am NOT asking for this. |
And he nips my shoulder, catching only my shirt. Hmm. A love nip? He still doesn't move, standing directly in front of me. So I pet him again. And he attacks.
Not kidding - totally went after my entire arm, with claws drawn and fangs bared. I now have a mark that looks related to a hypodermic needle "pinch". Ouch!
This is why I am not a cat lover. Cats have to reaffirm their ownership over their people. Sometimes by ignoring them. I'm okay with that. Sometimes by attacking them. Not so much okay with that. Bonnie pointed out that if a dog attacked me like that, we would have him put down. Again, hmm. Tae-Bo is a good mouser, though. I'll give him that.
What a silly kitty. I can ask Shannon, my cat-guru about it, but until then, this reminds me of when I'm working on my laptop and Kitty comes up and sits between me and the laptop and just stares at me. I look her in the eye, ask her what she wants, and she just looks at me. Eventually I move, or she gets bored and she moves. Or I pick her up and play with her for a few minutes. In the meantime...
ReplyDeletefirst, yes, she does think Bonnie is prey. Maybe she's big enough that Tae-Bo thinks she's an adult. Maybe he just wants her to play with him. Maybe he thinks she wants to play with him. If she can see him coming, a firm "NO." should deter him. If she can't, have her try to resist the urge to scream or cry out, or worse, attack him back. If she can ignore him, he won't get the reaction he wants and will eventually stop.
Second, when he gets between you and the weeds, you could try just staring him out. He probably doesn't want to be petted, so don't attempt to touch him unless he rubs up against you first. Cats are not dogs, they generally do not like to be touched uninvited. If his eyes get really big and round, get up and walk away. that means he's probably going to attack.
Wow, what a lot of great info! Thanks, Julia!
ReplyDeleteAny time, sis!
ReplyDeleteActually, if you try to stare him down, try to do it in a non-confrontational manner. He's already proven that he will attack, and just because you don't know what provoked him doesn't mean that he didn't have a reason. You can also put out your fist and see if he'll bump it. Fists kind of look like cat heads, and are less threatening than an open hand for some reason (Shannon told me that a while ago)