Any cat lovers here? Behavioural experts?

[loosebenz]

Now that it looks like I may not be restoring an econobox, I thought of another hobby: trying to "civilise" an aggressive cat. I hear they get put down fairly quick because no one wants them. I'm thinking of asking one of those shelters to actually put one on hold for me. The psychology of the aggressive cat fascinates me. Essentially, the goal would be to rewire the cat's instinct to remove rage as the go to reaction to any stimuli. Now, such a cat may be feral or a pet. I would imagine the pet variety would be more difficult to deal with. I saw this video, and I would like to give it a try

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF9Pndy7Tho

 

[ZeeOSix]

Better get a thick leather suit and gloves, lol.

 

[MrQuackers]

 

[Skippy722]

I've got 3 cats. Muffin (20lbs of contempt for everything else in the world), Jinx (tuxedo) and Voodoo (all black). Maybe try something easier at first... like TNR. There are usually programs available to make it very very low cost or even free. There is a reason they were wearing helmets and heavy coats and pants (except that one guy)... an angry cat is capable of tearing you open like a razor blade.

As for behavior... Muffin is my "aggressive" cat. She's incredibly territorial... she's okay with us, but when we have company over we usually lock her in a bedroom. She'll lay in the middle of a hallway and growl/hiss at people as they try to walk past. She only swats at the kittens thankfully, and only because they're trying to attack her.

 

[Lolvoguy]

Ya, no. I don't think I'd be tolerating that nonsense.

I've grown up with enough physically and mentally abusive ppl. in my life to recognize it.
(I see that behaviour in these animals). Took me years to escape it.

I ain't gonna put up with that willingly!

 

[billt460]

I've had 2 cats in my life. I'll never have another. The first one was given to me by someone who no longer wanted him. He pee'd everywhere, and I gave him to my mother in law. (A fitting gift I thought). They were made for each other. Between the cats constant crying, and her non stop whining, they made beautiful music together.

The last one we had for almost 20 years. (We fished it out of the pound when it was 12 weeks old). It was never really much of a pet. She bit my wife on 3 separate occasions hard enough to draw blood. I told her if it happens again, it was gone. It never came to that. A few months later it suffered a stroke, and we had her put down.

I didn't feel good about it, because I was so used to her being around for so long. But I can't lie and say I missed her all that much. Cats are just too independent for my liking. They make it too hard to become attached to them.

On the other hand, my current dog is about the most loveable little guy you could imagine. He follows me everywhere. From room to room. Out in the garage. All over the back yard. Home Depot, name it. He goes where I go.

He travels like a champ. When we moved he rode next to me on every trip out here. He never made a sound, or was ever a bother. Most of the time he put his head in my lap and slept. The poor guy didn't know if he was coming or going for almost 2 months. But never a peep out of him. Now he has settled in nicely to his new home, and he loves it here as much as we do.

The one thing out here is you don't see a single stray cat. (In Glendale they were everywhere). Any cats that reside here as pets are strictly indoor animals. The Coyote population eliminates them in short order. Instead, we have Road Runners that keep the mice, snake, and lizard population in check.

 

[Shannow]

my cat Storm,was a rescue,street fighter from 400km away, that the RSPCA had desexed and relocated, and wasn't popular as she "tagged" people who were trying to decide to take her home.

I sat with her a bit,and played, and said we'll go.

The staff were excited, but as we were checking out, one of the volunteers asked the head if I was aware of her characteristics...I showed the tag lines,and said that was why I was taking her.

Most dog like cat that I've ever seen,stays close,hops up on nearby chairs,stays independent.

Have established a few play triggers, which are fun, but can be quite intense, but she'll also walk along the edge of the bath and give head bumps.

Soon as I start meditating in the morning,wherever she is, races through the house, and sits on my chest, purring...great formy vagus nerve.

Catsrespond to the enviorment around them...be calm, they be calm...but they need an outlet

 

[CharBaby]

Yeah, we've had 3 Calico cats.

 

[dlundblad]

I caught one as a kid that was wild. Highly aggressive and would attack the cage and bloody his face.

I locked in him a humane shelter sized caged for about 9 months with food, water, a box, and a bed. He eventually got to the point where I could just pet his head and then his back.

Turned into the best cat we ever had. You could do anything to that cat and he wouldn't care. He loved the dogs too.

*Obviously get them spayed or neutered too.

 

[Linctex]

I have had many good cats in my life. .... ones that are worth keeping.

I have dealt with wild feral cats - - big, thick welding gloves are a MUST.

Cats have a very high power-to-weight ratio.

Unless you have a super-human tolerance to pain, this experiment isn't going to end well.

 

[Fawteen]

Originally Posted by loosebenz
I thought of another hobby: trying to "civilise" an aggressive cat.


Not a good idea in my opinion. Not only are you setting yourself up for a lot of trouble, but I have yet to go into a home with a cat and not know it as soon as I step in the door. They always stink; even the owners who claim their cat house doesn't smell are just used to it. For someone without cats the stench is always there in a house with a cat-always.

We also have a zero tolerance policy regarding cats in all of our rentals. I learned that lesson early on after deodorizing a couple of rental properties after the tenants with cats had moved out. The cat stench gets into everything, and the tenants lost their deposit because of the amount of work that had to be done to deodorize the units.

 

[Cujet]

Been there, done that. There is no question that some animals can be broken of their bad habits. But don't think for a minute that they all become a good natured animal with only love and affection left. What's left can be a skittish shell of an animal, devoid of many of the desirable good qualities, such as kindness, playfulness and affection.

There is a very good reason humans have been breeding out bad qualities for thousands of years. Let's be clear on that one. Get rid of the bad ones and breed the good ones.

 

[billt460]

Originally Posted by Fawteen
Not a good idea in my opinion..... They always stink; even the owners who claim their cat house doesn't smell are just used to it. For someone without cats the stench is always there in a house with a cat-always.

This is very true, and not mentioned enough. As they say, it's amazing what people can get used to. Cat odor is one of them. Our dog gets a weekly shampoo, and loves it. And being a Poodle mix, does not shed. (Try bathing a cat). We have had people come over, and after a while when he comes around they say, "I didn't know you had a dog!"

With a house cat they'll know before they sit down. Not to mention you are blessed with an animal that pee's and craps in the house. Cat urine smells like an Ammonia gas leak. There is no way around it. My wife would change out it's litter box every time it used it. It helped, but you could still smell it. And I don't care how much baking soda you use. That rich, smelly food they eat doesn't help matters much either.

And that disgusting, "saliva bath" they are always giving themselves, has a "protein odor" all it's own. Imagine eating smelly fish in some type of disgusting "gravy", then licking yourself "clean". A bit like giving yourself a sponge bath from a spittoon.

 

[jhs914]

As much as I love cats, I'd have to say no on trying to tame a wild one. I had one cat that was aggressive. I was firm with it when it tried to bite me, but it was unpredictable with others.

My current cat was a barn cat at a farm I hunt at. About 25 cats came out of the barn to be fed and this one small cat came up to me and started rubbing on my legs, let me pick it up and fell asleep in my arms. That was it. You're going home with me. She picked me, I didn't pick her. I think that is the best way to choose a pet, let them pick you.

She is playful and affectionate. She will growl like a dog if someone comes to the door but then runs and hides when they come in. When I go to bed, as soon as I pull the covers up she hops in bed and snuggles with me. But she doesn't with my wife. She snuggles with her during the day. She is a creature of habit and has a routine she goes through every morning when I wake up.

She is now an inside cat but does venture out into the fenced back yard to chase bugs and frogs. I wouldn't trade her for any other cat.

 

[WyrTwister]

I like cats and dogs , but do not intend to have a dog in town . We have 2 cats .

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by billt460
Originally Posted by Fawteen
Not a good idea in my opinion..... They always stink; even the owners who claim their cat house doesn't smell are just used to it. For someone without cats the stench is always there in a house with a cat-always.

This is very true, and not mentioned enough. As they say, it's amazing what people can get used to. Cat odor is one of them. Our dog gets a weekly shampoo, and loves it. And being a Poodle mix, does not shed. (Try bathing a cat). We have had people come over, and after a while when he comes around they say, "I didn't know you had a dog!"

With a house cat they'll know before they sit down. Not to mention you are blessed with an animal that pee's and craps in the house. Cat urine smells like an Ammonia gas leak. There is no way around it. My wife would change out it's litter box every time it used it. It helped, but you could still smell it. And I don't care how much baking soda you use. That rich, smelly food they eat doesn't help matters much either.

And that disgusting, "saliva bath" they are always giving themselves, has a "protein odor" all it's own. Imagine eating smelly fish in some type of disgusting "gravy", then licking yourself "clean". A bit like giving yourself a sponge bath from a spittoon.


Of course dog owners have no problems getting licked in the face right after their little fried just finished licking his arse.

 

[Silverado12]

Tidy Cats litter is the best. We have 2 indoor cats and one outdoor (outdoor cat sprays in the house for some reason). He's actually the best cat but he's basically untrainable. He was fixed early too. Good luck with your cat training.

 

[kschachn]

Why do I get the distinct impression you should meet up with this guy?

https://www.bobistheoilguy.com/foru...h/true/cat-breeding-for-cash#Post4960834

 

[Chris142]

It depends on the cat. Just like people they all have their own attitude. Some ferel cats can become great house cats. Most can't. My " babycat" was about a 4 month old ferrel when he showed up. My mom would feed him until he allowed her to get close enough to touch him. Took a couple of months. Once fixed he calmed down and has been a great and smart cat.

He sleeps on my knees at night. If a stranger visits he won't be found.

But if your thinking of bringing a wild cat home and releasing it in your house you will likely end up blind and bleeding.

 

[BMWTurboDzl]

Originally Posted by loosebenz
Now that it looks like I may not be restoring an econobox, I thought of another hobby: trying to "civilise" an aggressive cat. I hear they get put down fairly quick because no one wants them. I'm thinking of asking one of those shelters to actually put one on hold for me. The psychology of the aggressive cat fascinates me. Essentially, the goal would be to rewire the cat's instinct to remove rage as the go to reaction to any stimuli. Now, such a cat may be feral or a pet. I would imagine the pet variety would be more difficult to deal with. I saw this video, and I would like to give it a try

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FF9Pndy7Tho




ROFL...ok. A couple of things about cats.

No 1: They are not pack animals like dogs, so they don't have that natural desire to be with you. This is a blessing and a curse. It's a blessing because when the cats wants to hang, you know he likes you and it's not out of some desire to latch on to whomever happens to walk by. It's a curse because they don't feel the need to interact with you which makes socializing more difficult.

No 2: Some cats like to hang on you, some next to you, some are happy to be in the same room with you. That's just how they are.

No 3: Cats can hold on to a negative experience for their entire lives. IMO this is what makes them hard to bring down their aggressiveness. I was just talking to a neighbor about one of his cats last night. It's a 10 yr old feral (They picked it up at 7 mo's of age) and it is still a little aggressive, hides, etc.


Best of luck and I think you'll have a better experience if you go in with low expectations. Worst case is that he becomes an outdoor cat which you feed and keep up with his shots.