Are some cats protective?

asecretk · Oct 13, 2007

I have had cats all my life and I have never seen one protect his territory other than from another animal.

My ex stopped by last night for reasons that are not important but while he was standing in the livingroom Beastie Bear started creeping up on him. Greg warned him the cat was behind him. He did not want him to back up and accidently step on him. The ex turned and said "oh I see him" and stated "I like cats".

A couple minutes passed and then out of no where Beastie wrapped his front paws around his leg, bit into his jeans and ran away.

I did not witness this but my BF and my daughter did.

My ex was of course shocked but unharmed. Beastie is front declawed and he only got a hold of jean material. My ex even laughed about how strange the cat is.

Do you think he was trying to protect his territory? the BF or my daughter? Maybe all of the above.

catcaregiver · Oct 13, 2007

I have read stories about cats being protective. I had a cat that I once witnessed growling at the door when somebody knocked! I had never seen such a thing before.

siggav · Oct 13, 2007

It sounds like he was just playing.

When cats get into territory battles they usually start with lots of staring and howling and making those hostile meowing type noises in addition to hissing and poofing themselves up to look bigger if they're a bit afraid.

rescuecatsrule · Oct 13, 2007

I know that Phoenix's friend (when he was at Caring for Cats) was rather protective of Phoenix. Evan knew Phoenix was afraid of people and he would hiss if people got too close to them both. If your cat wasn't hissing he wasn't trying to protect any of you because he knew you weren't afraid.

gingersmom · Oct 13, 2007

Originally Posted by Siggav

It sounds like he was just playing.

When cats get into territory battles they usually start with lots of staring and howling and making those hostile meowing type noises in addition to hissing and poofing themselves up to look bigger if they're a bit afraid.

I've had cats play "tag" with me by doing just what you describe, the wrap, bite and run.

strange_wings · Oct 13, 2007

Originally Posted by Siggav

When cats get into territory battles they usually start with lots of staring and howling and making those hostile meowing type noises in addition to hissing and poofing themselves up to look bigger if they're a bit afraid.

Not necessarily. When the other animal/object is not a cat the behavior can be different. And even when it is another cat, there isn't always a lot of noise being made before the attack.

A prime example would be Max (outdoor kitty) a few days ago. The neighbors have a chihuahua that they let run when they are outside. It often comes over into our yard and in typical chihuahua fashion, barks and bluffs at me. Max hates this and will start stiff leggedly stalking the dog. I've not let him get any farther then that, but he was not attempting any warning and was very serious. Unfortunately, I have little doubt that he'll eventually get that dog if they don't start keeping it in their yard.

It is very possible that AsecretK's cat did not like the weird smelling human standing where he was. But after the initial trial attack, realized the opponent was a bit too large to take on. It would depend on the other body language, how tense the cat looked before attacking.

Best lesson here - this is why it might be a good idea to have you cat caught up on it's rabies vaccinations.

buzbyjlc10 · Oct 13, 2007

Oliver's not really protective of space but more of me! I've got a black lab too (she's been around much longer than he, but he started off as my cat at school while the dog was at home with my parents... so they're still not really buddies, but tolerate each other)... if I'm messin with the dog and she's givin me love and he sees he'll either plant himself in my sightline and give me the evil eye, or he'll come right over and bop the dog on the nose or butt like "hey leave my mama be! She's mine!" I've tried to explain that the pup was my sister long before he was even born and that I have enough love for both of them haha

bella713 · Oct 13, 2007

Originally Posted by AsecretK

I have had cats all my life and I have never seen one protect his territory other than from another animal.

My ex stopped by last night for reasons that are not important but while he was standing in the livingroom Beastie Bear started creeping up on him. Greg warned him the cat was behind him. He did not want him to back up and accidently step on him. The ex turned and said "oh I see him" and stated "I like cats".

A couple minutes passed and then out of no where Beastie wrapped his front paws around his leg, bit into his jeans and ran away.

I did not witness this but my BF and my daughter did.

My ex was of course shocked but unharmed. Beastie is front declawed and he only got a hold of jean material. My ex even laughed about how strange the cat is.

Do you think he was trying to protect his territory? the BF or my daughter? Maybe all of the above.

That's hilarious

Maybe he needed to be bit

My Joey protects his house all the time...he growls at anyone at the door or out front

butzie · Oct 13, 2007

I originally posted this in cat behavior but I think it really shows how protective cats can be.

Had a double yellow head Amazon, named Liberty. She was very unhappy when our son was born (He's 13 now). She was even more unhappy when Brownie showed up and adopted us about a year after our son was born. Liberty tried to discourage Brownie from coming in to eat by jumping down from her stand and going after him in full parrot display. Brownie just looked at her as if, your wings are clipped but my claws and teeth are sharp. Liberty backed down.

Brownie saved my son from Liberty. If you have never seen an Amazon's beak, they can really do damage. One day, our son undid the straps on his high chair and fell to the floor between the cat and the bird (son not hurt). It was in the kitchen and I was at the opposite end of the kitchen. Liberty again jumped down and was ready to do harm to our son. Brownie went in to full crouch next to our son and I reached them before anything got out of hand. Liberty retreated. Comforted son, praised Liberty and put that bird in her cage. Gave the cat people salmon, kept the son, and found a nice new home for Liberty.

This is for Brownie, RIP.
__________________

larke · Oct 14, 2007

Not the first time I posted this, but our youngish Maine Coon girl Squeak, who was an absolute ditz normally (if a riot to us) with seemingly no self-protective instincts, one day walked over a hot coil on our stove and burned her pads somewhat (not terribly serious, but required ointment for 10 days). Well, about a year later we had a new kitten (couple of mos. old) and he was about to jump up too (though the stove was off at the time), when Squeak ran over, butted him and shrieked. He ran away and never tried it again, and we just stood there marvelling!

catnip · Oct 14, 2007

Cats really are amazing creatures. I think your cat was trying to tell your ex something, as in you're not welcome!!!

Are some cats protective?

asecretk

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catcaregiver

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siggav

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rescuecatsrule

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gingersmom

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strange_wings

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buzbyjlc10

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bella713

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butzie

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larke

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catnip

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