help!

I have a situation with my cat that has me about as perplexed as any of the vets I've taken him too...maybe someone will recognize this situation and respond with any info or inside information that can help me.

I walk my cat on a leash, every day we have been going out faithfully...the problem started about a year ago when he got tangled up in a bush and squirmed out of his harness..I went to pick him up and take him home and he attacked me..now this is a very gentle affectionate cat that has never displayed any type of feline aggresion before...now and again when I am walking him he will look around at me like I am a foreign being and start hissing and trying to run away from me! This is not only stressful for me, but I'm sure for him as well. Every behaviorist I've spoken with say that he is just displaying redirected aggression, but other than drugs have no solution for me other than keeping him indoors at all times. Going outside is a regular thing for him, and taking that away from him after 5 years breaks my heart. Does anyone know anything about this experience? Thanks
tess and little lee

Hi Tess,
Would you say that (with the exception of looking back at you while walking) Lee enjoys his outside jaunts just as much now as he did before the entanglement event?

Does anything in particular happen just prior to him turning around and hissing?

If he overall does not enjoy the walks as much as before, I think he has some level of fear and anxiety about going out. I think that most indoor cats have some fear when they go outside because it is such a new and foreign territory. Then with the bad experience he had, he might associate the walks with scary tangly moments.

To me this sounds like Lee is having some fear aggression -- he is not afraid of YOU or running away from YOU per se. . .he is afraid of things in general when this happens. Look at his pupils -- if they are large, he is having fear aggression.

If you think he still enjoys the jaunts, perhaps shortening the jaunts drastically (like 2 or 3 minute excursions) and repeatedly going in the same familiar territory. Then if he does not show the same fear, very slowly increase the amount of time and distance.

Good luck!

Thanks for your reply! It has been so hard on me not knowing what to do with him. I think I'm going to go up to the state Veterinay Hospital and speak with a Animal Behaviorist about this 'fear' 'redirected' aggression...I just want him to be happy. He always seems to recover after we get back in the apartment, but I still worry about his overall wellbeing after each event. Once again, thanks for your answer, it's nice to know people out there care about animals as much as I do:-)