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Cat Aggression towards humans
By Frania Shelley-Grielen. All rights reserved.
The top three behavioral reasons for owner surrender of cats to animal shelters are house soiling, problems with other pets and aggression towards people according to a 2000 study in The Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science. Shelter statistics supplied by the ASPCA reports that of the 3.4 million cats that enter the shelter system each year 37% of these cats will be adopted and 41% of them will be euthanized.
Cats are officially the most popular companion animal in United States households. According to The American Veterinary Medical Association as of 2102, over 30% of American households had cats compared to over 36% of American households owning dogs. There are more cats living in a home than dogs, the average cat owning household has 2.1 cats while the average dog owning household has 1.6.
Cats appeal to humans for multiple reasons, their remarkable beauty and form, their grace, their individual personalities and “catness.” Their perceived independent nature offers greater compatibility with our life styles. Cats, we think, are basically low maintenance compared with dogs that require a greater degree of interaction and much more attention and time for training and potty breaks. But would our cats agree? Cats and dogs are in fact both social animals. Cat behavior and dog behavior do differ –think tail movement for starters. Both animals require social interaction to thrive. Indoor cats are fiercely dependent on an enriched environment for maximum welfare. Problems with house soiling and aggression are evidence that the cat’s basic perceived needs are not being met. This affects both the cat’s welfare and can impact negatively on their relationship with their humans.
Helping cat owning families to have more information on behavior problems, and how to apply solutions is one of the most important remedies in keeping cats in families and out of shelters. This article focuses on how to work with aggression towards people. (Articles on house soiling and aggression/problems with other pets can be found under the cats or dogs or cats and dogs tabs on the AnimalBehaviorist.us website.)
The most widely accepted definition of “aggression” is action with intent to cause harm with “violence” being a form of aggression where the intended harm is severe or fatal. When it comes to human beings, we can further define aggressive behavior into “physical aggression” or “verbal aggression.” For all animals, threats and warnings are not aggression as they actually serve to prevent action intended to cause harm from happening if they are communicated effectively, that is “heard” and responded to. Several types of aggression exist with cats aggression caused by lack of socialization, pain aggression, play aggression and fear aggression. (Anxiety is thought to be the cause for abnormal or problematic aggression.)
It is vitally important to realize that we tend to overuse “aggression,” especially when talking about animals, to the point where the word has become a catchall for every behavior we may think is negative or are not comfortable with. This sort of thinking can lead owners to over react as a result. We need to be able to tell the difference between warnings, threats and aggression along with accepting that aggression is a necessary and normal response when a cat is threatened or in a dangerous situations.
The aggressive cat communicates clearly through body language discomfort with the circumstances and readiness to defend themselves if flight is not possible or if the threat does not stop. They employ highly ritualized threat displays and have a wide range of warning vocalizations. Konrad Lorenz captured the unique expression of aggression in cats and the fair warning given in the following passage:
“The threatening attitudes of a cat are extraordinarily expressive, and are entirely different in their manifestation according to whom they are directed against, whether they apply to a human friend who has “gone too far,” or to a feared enemy, perhaps a dog or another cat. They are different too, according to whether they are made purely in self defense or whether they imply self-assurance in the animal and predict a forthcoming attack. Cats always announce their intention of attacking…they never bite or scratch without giving previous unmistakable warning to the offender. Usually, indeed, the gradually increasing threatening gestures are suddenly exaggerated just before action is taken. This is evidently an ultimatum, “If you don’t leave me alone at once, I shall unfortunately be obliged to take reprisals.”' (Continue Reading Below.)
"our cats are supreme masters at reading our body language so the more comfortable we are the more comfortable they are."
What do these “threatening attitudes” look like? The fearful cat has the head pulled close to the body, the eyes are open and pupils fully dilated, the ears are pulled back and flattened, the whiskers are pulled back. The cat may shaking, still or crawling, lying on the abdomen or crouched over all paws. The tail will be close to the body. Sounds the fearful cat may be making are none, mournful meowing, growling or yowling. The defensive cat appears similar to the fearful cat with the head positioned lower on the body, the hair is usually raised on end and the cat is crouched on top of all four paws, the defensive cat may also hiss in addition to plaintive meows, growling or yowling. The offensively aggressive cat will have constricted pupils and may swat, scratch, bite. Serious fights are launched when the cat rolls on to the back or side in order to be able to use all sets of claws and fangs. Remember, cats only fight when a standoff is unsuccessful, they are attacked or cornered and when all other options to avert fighting have been exhausted.
Cats that have not been socialized around people or have been improperly handled by people will utilize aggression for self defense. How to work with this type of aggression with feral cats is discussed here. Biting and scratching in play is discussed here.
A cat that is in pain needs to be handled appropriately. Understanding what a painful cat looks like and how to approach and handle these cats will lessen the stress. Veterinary terminology labels a cat "fractious" that reacts aggressively to handling as if the cat came into the practice in a bad mood as opposed to an appropriate response to being manipulated so she is immobile against her will, injected with sharp objects, subject to the insertion of foreign objects in her rectum, etc. The fractious cat is not a personality type, rather a reaction to a history or intense fear of over restraint and aggressive handling on the part of veterinary workers.
The late Sophia Yin pioneered low stress restraint and handling practices for animal care workers and The American Association of Feline Practitioners launched “Cat Friendly Practices” to address the need for humane handling of stressed and painful cats. When working with veterinarians make sure to patronize those veterinarians who institute either of these practices. And do know more on cat body language and handling as a cat owner.
Another source of pain for cats may result from de-clawing. A study published in May of 2017 by the Journal of Feline Medical Surgery compared the behaviors, including inappropriate elimination, excessive grooming and aggression, of cats that had been de-clawed compared to cats that not been de-clawed. The de-clawed cats significantly demonstrated more of these behaviors. 63% of the de-clawed cats were found to have bone fragments left in their digits, these cats were more likely to have back pain, inappropriate elimination, biting and aggression. De-clawed cats without retained bone fragments, were found to have increased biting and inappropriate elimination.
More common types of aggression towards people are then play aggression and fear aggression. A more in depth discussion of play aggression and fear aggression follows along with strategies to work with them:
With cats we see play aggression when normal cat play behavior such as chasing, pouncing, the use of feet, etc., happens out of context or inappropriately. In genuine play, when one cat lets another cat they do not like what is happening by shrieking or freezing, the other cat stops what they are doing. With play aggression the stop signals are ignored and can sometimes trigger even rougher play. In true play aggression, the play behaviors are not typical, welcome or appropriate. When looking at this it is very important to rule out any rough play that the cat may have learned from other cats or from humans. Similarly, if the cat has been taught to play with a human hand or foot or to chase than this is then how the cat has been taught to play and it is not fair to call it play aggression just because the cat may initiate it and not the human.
It is also important to rule out attention seeking behavior as being play aggression. Attention seeking behavior like grabbing, swatting or biting usually works for cats because the human whose attention the cat wants pays attention. The difference between attention seeking behavior and play aggression is that it is possible to redirect the cat from the behaviors.
Fear aggression in cats can be identified by behavioral signs such as withdrawal and passive and active avoidance. Fearfully aggressive cats hiss, yowl, arch their backs, raise their hair on end. If the cat can hide or take flight they will. If the cat is pursued with no escape possible, the cat will stop moving, pull his head over the body, crouch, growl and roll over with the feet over the belly. This posture is a posture of true defense where the cat has exhausted all efforts at escape from the threat, in this position the attacked cat can use all set of claws and teeth to defend herself. Fear aggression is in response to trauma. It can be a direct threat or a response to a person, environment or situation that is threatening. Fear aggression can also be in response to people, situations or environments that have been threatening in the past.
When dealing with any form of aggression it is essential to first and foremost to steer clear of situations or circumstances that trigger aggressive behavior and fear responses. All behavior has a setting context, a history and an antecedent, what the animal is responding to. It is important when identifying what the trigger is to view from a perspective that is significant to the cat given the history of the cat and the context of the environment. For instance, if a cat reacts to having his body stroked by scratching, stop stroking the cat’s abdomen. If the cat hisses at the dog when the dog chases the cat, control the dog’s behavior so she does not chase the cat. If the cat sees feral cat colonies out of a window and is stressed by them, lower the window shade so the cat cannot see the cats. If the cat does not like when children pull on her tail stop the children from pulling on the tail. And if the cat does not like children because in the past they have pulled on or her tail –whether you are aware of it or not- keep children away from the cat. And so on.
Never fight with an aggressive cat. Humans can severely damage if not kill cats and hurting a cat will only increase fear and aggression in a cat. If the cat is displaying threatening behaviors such as growling, hissing or yowling and it is possible to distract the cat use a high level distraction like a laser pointer to redirect the cat (avoid any contact with the cat’s eyes). This can work remarkably well if employed correctly and in time. If a situation has already escalated to contact the best response is to get up lowly and calmly and walk away. If possible leave the cat in the room where the situation occurred to settle. Do not yell. If necessary place an object as an extension of the body such as a pillow between the person and the cat. Never pull on a cat that is physically engaged as it will exacerbate the situation. In extreme cases, an application of seltzer water will cause the cat to disengage. Highly aroused cats can also be contained in a towel. Exercise caution and remain calm (your excitement will add to the reactivity) when applying these techniques.
The second tenet to remedy aggression is to remove all punishment (including anything the cat finds punishing such as spraying with water bottles, shaking cans full of rocks, scolding, abusive tones or language or physical force of any kind). Punishment is highly stressful, causes intense discomfort and fear, creates negative associations with humans, destroys relationships and interferes with learning. Punishment often, if not always makes things worse and not better. This is not saying to remove all negative reinforcement-negative reinforcement introduces something that rewards the cessation of a behavior-using double sided tape on a couch to deter cat scratching is an example. The cat does not like the sticky tape and is rewarded by not scratching it. (Placing a scratching post next to the couch rewards the behavior of scratching that along with the intrinsic satisfaction of scratching a great scratching surface.) This kind of association is with the environment, the tape on the couch and not a human. With punishment there is no reward system. The end of punishment is not a reward it is an associative learning process that signals it has stopped for now.
The third principle is modifying the behavior by working with directly with the cat and the environment to enable the cat to learn different responses and to benefit from an enriched environment that offsets the need for those responses. Changing the physical environment can often be the first and easiest step we can take in lowering anxiety, arousal and aggression. Our interactions with the cat are part of their environment as well as a valuable social component of their world.
The following recommendations are effective when working with play aggression and fear aggression:
- Manage the environment: avoid situations and circumstances that trigger fear, anxiety and aggression.
- Cease all punishment. Cats have a unique biology and are highly reactive when stressed. They remain in a reactive and stressed state longer when stress hormones are activated. Punishment is highly stressful and floods the body with stress hormones such as cortisol and epinephrine. Stress is greatly taxing on the body and an animal in a highly stressed state cannot learn or benefit from new associations.
- Modify behavior through learning, interaction and environment: Interacting with a cat through play, appropriate petting or grooming when it is not in an aroused or stressed state allows the production and flow of neurochemicals such as dopamine, opiods and neurotensin. Opening and developing new neural pathways associated with play and pleasurable activities are highly beneficial for welfare and quality of life. This also allows the cat to develop the experience of being in a more contented state on a regular basis which offsets anxiety. To accomplish this, the single most important exercise to do is interactive play with a person. This is beneficial when dealing with all types of anxiety and aggression.
Begin interactive play with all its attendant benefits with the use of a fishing wand toy every day in the morning and the evening for at least three minutes initially and up to five minutes after a week. Any form of rough play or chasing humans and body parts going forward should be discontinued immediately.
There are a variety of fishing wand toys on the market. Try them all. Identify which toy the cat likes best by offering them for play and gauging the response, make sure to drag the toy away from or across the cat’s line of vision so the cat can follow it. Adjust your speed so it is not too slow or too fast, with faster being better than slower- studies suggest cats are less able to focus on objects that move very slowly. The best feedback for knowing the right speed is whether or not it solicits a response from the cat. With cats that do not respond at all and who have not “learned” to play, work up to engaging the cat by presenting the opportunities for play on a consistent basis. When even a preparatory reaction is displayed –the cat monitors the movement of the toy, follows the human when they take the toy out to play, etc., it is important for the human not to overact by speaking loudly or getting excited and scare the cat. Keep offering the opportunities to play regularly. Even with thinking about play and watching the human there is benefit from stimulating mirror neurons in the cat’s brain. This exercise intensifies bonding, repairs relationships and is fun and satisfying for both human and cat.
- Praise and reward all good behaviors all the time even if they are accidental (you didn't ask for them) or normal like sleeping or grooming. Cats like dogs will benefit from positive reinforcement of behaviors that are expected of them. This builds in a structured reward system, positive association with humans and intensifies the intrinsic reward of performing these behaviors. Remember verbal praise with the use of a cat’s name and petting counts as a reward too.
- Know how to pet and brush your cat and incorporate time for both. Continue to nourish new and existing neural pathways with pleasure hormones like oxytocin that are associated with love and friendship. Cats groom each other (allogrooming) to strengthen bonds between affiliates and to provide maternal care. Petting our cats to approximate cat greeting behavior –touching nose to nose and bunting, confines our touch to the face of the cat primarily the sides of the head, along the muzzle, behind the ears and between the ears. Brushing can be a wonderful stand-in for allogrooming when done with cat consent and strengthens the human animal bond and is pleasurable for cats.
- Breathe and relax. We may not be aware of our first human inclination in a stressful situation is to tense and hold our breath. Be physically aware of your body language and breathing and take a moment to inhale and exhale to release your own body tension. Remember that our cats are supreme masters at reading our body language so the more comfortable we are the more comfortable they are and vice versa.
- Enrich the environment by providing for things for cats to do without you. Domestic cats living indoors are subject to when and what their owner decides they should eat, where they sleep, when they get to interact and with what, where on what they eliminate and what they are able to do or not do to fulfill their natural behaviors. Keeping play sessions and feeding times on schedule can provide a sense of control over events and allow for positive anticipation without frustration. Look to a cat’s natural behavior to fulfill their needs.
- Provide for object play with “fur” mice that rattle, tennis balls and other toys the cat displays a preference for. Remember to place toys in every room.
- Cats need to scratch both to stretch muscles and to strip nails as they grow. Scratching posts and boards are something fun to do and allow for necessary stretching, encourage the right places to scratch and are satisfying. Place one in more than one location. The corrugated cardboard scratchers that offer an incline are particularly attractive when rubbed with catnip or valerian root.
- Use puzzle food feeder eggs or puzzle trays with either a morning or evening meal if the cat is a kibble eater or supply with cat treats. This is another rewarding activity for the cat to combat boredom and to satisfy necessary, natural and enjoyable hunting behavior.
- Cats need vertical resting spaces as well as places to hide. Experiment with cardboard shipping boxes placed on the floor. Cat trees and cat shelves are ideal ways to add vertical resting spaces. Consider placement when adding spaces from a cat point of view. Towers and shelves should be ideally be placed next to a window, be accessible and not being overly exposed. Adding a cat house to the top of a dresser or a credenza is another great way to integrate a hiding space onto a vertical space which is very attractive and necessary for cats.
- Classical music has been shown to have positive benefits for both cats and dogs. Leaving a classical radio station on with the attendant soothing voices of the human announcers has an added benefit of counter conditioning.
- Add a window bed, shelf or access to raised surface next to an interesting window so the cat can benefit from the visual stimulation of outdoors. Make sure windows are screened and the view is not on neighboring cats which may cause anxiety.
- Consider catnip or valerian root to add value to toys and beds. Both plants are members of the mint family and enriches interaction and heightens attraction with toys, beds, etc. You can purchase it in dried form remember to crush it between your fingers when using it to release the oils. Cats ingest it and it is perfectly safe. You can also purchase it in liquid form. Apply it to scratching posts and beds and even toys (especially the chew toys).
Lastly, allow for time and consistency of applying solutions to remedy behavior problems.
References
Martell-Moran, N.K., Solan M., Townshend H.G.G. (2017). Pain and adverse behavior in dewclawed cats. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, (published online May 2017)
Salman, M.D., Hutchison, J., Ruch-Gallie, R., Kogan, L. New, Jr.College , J.C., Kass, P.H., Scarlett , J.M. (2000) Behavioral Reasons for Relinquishment of Dogs and Cats to 12 Shelters. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science , 3(2), 93–10
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