Petting-induced aggression

Petting-induced aggression



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Let’s set the scene. You’re sitting on the sofa with your cat in your lap. As you watch TV, you affectionately pet him. He seems content and relaxed, when all of a sudden he whips around and sinks his teeth into your hand. Ouch! What happened?

The behavior is referred to as petting-induced aggression. Why did your loving cat suddenly turn into a snapping turtle, and what can you do about it?

It can be due to more than one cause. For some cats, continual stroking crosses from pleasure to over-stimulation. For other cats, it could be that he started to doze off and the touch of your hand startled him, and he reacted.

Although it may seem as if your cat bit you right out of the blue, he probably did offer warning signs. Cats often signal they’ve had enough physical contact. The problem is that while you’re petting him, your focus is either on something else or you didn’t understand the signals.

Some signs that your cat may be reaching the end of his tolerance may include: skin twitching, tail lashing, cessation of purring, change in ear position, shift in body position, hissing, meowing, growling, and tensing of muscles.

How can you correct the problem? Pay attention to your cat’s signals, and become familiar with his tolerance time-frame. If you know from past experience that your cat tends to bite after five minutes, stop petting him at two-and-a-half minutes. Cut the time in half to leave him relaxed. Once you stop petting, you may find his body relaxes again.

In follow-up petting sessions, you may be able to gradually increase your two-and-a-half minute time-frame a few seconds at a time, and then eventually work up to three minutes. Always stop before you think you really need to.

This simple exercise, if done correctly, may help you and your cat once again enjoy those times of affection. Keep in mind though that some cats simply will never have a tolerance for anything more than a few seconds of petting.