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Fear-Related Feline Aggression Towards People (view source)
Revision as of 11:35, 8 September 2014
, 11:35, 8 September 2014→Investigation
==Investigation==
==Investigation==
A range of information is required for a proper investigation of the cause of aggression toward people, including:
*Information about the rearing circumstances and age of homing of the cat.
*History of the cats reaction to human contact, including any changes that have been seen over time (for example, a switch from avoidant behaviour to defensive and then offensive aggression).
*Detailed description of events in which aggression has been observed (including context, triggering events/stimuli, the cat's behaviour and the owner's reaction).
*Full investigation of health problems, particularly those likely to cause pain.
*Assessment of the cat's physical and social environment (including resource availability and distribution, conflict with ether animals in the home, and the range of opportunities available to support avoidance and escape responses).
'''Fear-related aggression is a motivational diagnosis and it can be associated with a variety of contexts'''. In some cases it may therefore be beneficial to add a contextual label as part of the diagnosis. For example, a cat that is aggressive when handled by the owner may be diagnosed as displaying "aggression associated with handling" that is fear motivated and a cat that is fearful of strangers and shows aggression to the owners when visitors are present may be diagnosed as a case of "redirected aggression", which is motivated by frustration of the fear response. In both cases "fear-related aggression" is the underlying motivational diagnosis and treatment of the cat’s underlying fear is crucial to the success of treatment but the contextual labels help the owner to understand when the behaviour may occur and to take steps to avoid it.
'''Fear-related aggression is a motivational diagnosis and it can be associated with a variety of contexts'''. In some cases it may therefore be beneficial to add a contextual label as part of the diagnosis. For example, a cat that is aggressive when handled by the owner may be diagnosed as displaying "aggression associated with handling" that is fear motivated and a cat that is fearful of strangers and shows aggression to the owners when visitors are present may be diagnosed as a case of "redirected aggression", which is motivated by frustration of the fear response. In both cases "fear-related aggression" is the underlying motivational diagnosis and treatment of the cat’s underlying fear is crucial to the success of treatment but the contextual labels help the owner to understand when the behaviour may occur and to take steps to avoid it.