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Feline Aggression Associated with Human Interaction (view source)
Revision as of 11:38, 8 September 2014
, 11:38, 8 September 2014→Introduction
Some cats will initiate interaction with their owners and then suddenly bite and attack after the person reciprocates contact. Immediately prior to the incident the cat appears to be enjoying physical interaction. There has been some debate as to the possible motivation for these sudden assaults. It has been suggested that the cat’s threshold for tolerance of handling is reduced either due to a '''lack of habituation as a kitten''' or as the result of an '''internal conflict between adult feline behavioural responses and the perpetuated juvenile responses of a domestic cat'''. It is certain that the greeting behaviour of cats is at odds with that of their owners. Greetings between cats are often restricted to a ‘tail up’ approach accompanied with a trill or chirrup and blinking eye contact. Only in a minority of these encounters do cats actually make physical contact; in most cases they will simply sit close to each other for a period of time. Owners often misinterpret the initial feline greeting behaviour as an invitation for physical contact and it is possible that this is offensive or irritating to the cat, especially if it is picked up and carried by the owner against its will. Many owners will also attempt to sustain contact beyond the tolerance of the cat, holding onto it as it tries to get away. The combined effect of this inappropriate owner behaviour is that the cat may become wary of getting close to the owner, or allowing physical contact.
Some cats will initiate interaction with their owners and then suddenly bite and attack after the person reciprocates contact. Immediately prior to the incident the cat appears to be enjoying physical interaction. There has been some debate as to the possible motivation for these sudden assaults. It has been suggested that the cat’s threshold for tolerance of handling is reduced either due to a '''lack of habituation as a kitten''' or as the result of an '''internal conflict between adult feline behavioural responses and the perpetuated juvenile responses of a domestic cat'''. It is certain that the greeting behaviour of cats is at odds with that of their owners. Greetings between cats are often restricted to a ‘tail up’ approach accompanied with a trill or chirrup and blinking eye contact. Only in a minority of these encounters do cats actually make physical contact; in most cases they will simply sit close to each other for a period of time. Owners often misinterpret the initial feline greeting behaviour as an invitation for physical contact and it is possible that this is offensive or irritating to the cat, especially if it is picked up and carried by the owner against its will. Many owners will also attempt to sustain contact beyond the tolerance of the cat, holding onto it as it tries to get away. The combined effect of this inappropriate owner behaviour is that the cat may become wary of getting close to the owner, or allowing physical contact.
==Prevalence and Risk Factors==
In a Brazilian study the commonest situations that elicited aggression toward the owner were when the cat was petted or put onto a lap, during play, when startled, when observing an unfamiliar animal, when in the presence of unfamiliar people and when protecting food or territory<ref name="Ramos">Ramos, D., Mills, D.A. (2009) Human directed aggression in Brazilian domestic cats: owner reported prevalence, contexts and risk factors. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery. 11. 835-841.</ref>, with these findings being broadly supported by data from other studies <ref name="Fatjo">Fatjo, J., Ruiz-de-la-Torre, J.L., Manteca, X. (2006) The epidemiology of behavioural problems in dogs and cats: a survey of veterinary practitioners. Animal Welfare. 15, 179-185</ref> <ref name="Amat">Amat, M., Ruiz-de-la-Torre, J.L., Fatjo, J., Mariotti, V.M., van Wijk, S., Manteca, X. (2009) Potential risk factors associated with feline behaviour problems. Applied Animal Behaviour Science. 121, 134-139.</ref>
. Aggression when petted or put on the lap was the most common. The authors found that aggression was associated with an early traumatic event and outside access. Cats that did not like being stroked or did not get on well with other animals that they had contact with were more likely to show aggression in general. However, a range of other factors, including age, sex, neuter status, accommodation, origin, and social contact with people and other cats were not significantly associated with increased aggression. However, the population of aggressive cats in this study was small (107 cats). A spanish study of 336 cats referred to a behavioural clinic found that 17.2% involved a complaint relating to aggression toward people<ref name="Amat"/>. 43.1% of human directed aggression involved play, and 39.6% involved petting, with a significant overlap. With respect to aggression toward unfamiliar people, 70% of cases involved defensive and only 30% offensive aggression.
==Prevention==
==Prevention==