Many cats have aggressive behavior. Today, we will take an in-depth look at the common causes of aggressive cat behavior and their solutions.

This kind of attack occurs not only between cats, but also when cats attack people.

Moreover, in life, many, many aggressive behaviors are caused by this reason.

If you don’t understand the formation mechanism of this type of aggressive behavior, you have no way to resolve this behavioral problem from the root cause. Wrong handling methods may even cause this type of aggressive behavior to get worse.

　01 Learn about redirection attacks again

The cat may have been stimulated or frightened at some point elsewhere, but it was unable to respond immediately at the time.

After a while, if you change the space and a clear attackable target appears, this target will be hit inexplicably.

It is easiest to understand through examples.

The following uses several examples to explain the formation principles and harm of this kind of attack behavior.

Example 1. “Hostility outside the window”

If your cat Gangdaner is squatting on the windowsill and sees a wild cat jumping into your yard through the glass and engaging in provocative behavior towards Gangdaner.

Even if there is no provocation, Gangdaner may feel uneasy because of the smell of other unfamiliar cats.

At this time, once Gang Dan'er thought of attacking the other party, he could do nothing but hold it in and worry.

And if at this time, your other cat Jasmine passes by the window sill where Gang Dan'er is squatting, Jasmine will probably be attacked by Gang Dan'er.

Jasmine might be confused and not know what happened.

Jasmine might usually get along very well with Gangdan'er, but they are both kittens born in the same litter, so this doesn't work.

Moreover, redirection attacks have certain memory and conditional launch principles.

It is very likely that Gang Daner attacked Jasmine once and Jasmine ran away, but after that, even if Gang Daner found Jasmine again in another place, Gang Daner might continue to attack Jasmine.

Therefore, as a parent, if you do not discover this problem in time, Jasmine is likely to languish and be inexplicably attacked by Gangdaner when you are not at home.

As a result, Jasmine may not eat enough or drink enough, and may eventually lose hair, lose weight, and get sick, which may lead to a series of associated problems.

Example 2. “Ghost in the Kitchen”

Late at night, you have fallen asleep, and suddenly, there is a "bang" and a crisp sound.

You turn on the light and go to see what's going on. You find that whether it's a steel egg or a jasmine, you jump on the dining table and push the fruit plate down. The apples and oranges fall to the floor, and the plate is broken all over the floor. .

At this time, you found Gangdaner hiding under the sofa, curled up in a defensive posture, and Jasmine was gone.

Think about it, don’t scare Gangdan’er, comfort the child.

So you tried to go up and hug Gangdan'er and comfort the little guy. However, who would have thought that before you even touched a hair on it, Gangdan'er, who had never stretched out its claws to you, turned towards your hand. It comes up with a claw.

That’s right, Gangdan’er actually attacked you!

This case is a typical redirect attack on the owner.

Where did Jasmine go? She was probably beaten out of sight by Gang Dan'er.

The above two cases are very typical redirect attacks.

Especially in the case of attacking people, you must not hold grudges against the cat, he is just afraid.

Attacking you is just an instinctive act of self-preservation, not because his relationship with you is no longer good.

When you suspect that the aggressive behavior of two cats is a redirected attack, you must take the correct method to deal with it, otherwise this kind of aggressive behavior will become a daily occurrence.

Just like the miserable Jasmine in Case 1, she may be bullied by Gangdaner.

02 Confinement

So how should we deal with redirected attacks between cats like Gangdaner and Jasmine?

Next, I will explain the processing method in detail based on Case 1.

After discovering that Gang Dan'er attacks Jasmine, the first thing you have to do is to immediately isolate Gang Dan'er and put it in a space where Jasmine will not appear. The purpose is to allow Gang Dan'er to calm down on its own.

Usually, the time to cool down takes a few minutes, but some cats may need several hours, and in rare cases, it may take several days.

After the confinement time has passed, if Gangdan'er is released and continues to attack Jasmine, the confinement will need to continue.

In the above situation, if it is very difficult to control the steel egg, for example, if you want to catch him and move him to another room, it will be difficult, and he will not even be able to control you.It also needs to be beaten. At this time, you can consider using blankets, gloves, and other auxiliary tools that can protect yourself to control it.

In this rather extreme situation, a darkroom needs to be prepared for Gangdaner.

The definition of a darkroom is a room with little light. You can close the curtains, preferably a room with blackout curtains.

A darkroom can calm down Gangdan'er more effectively than an ordinary room. If attacks occur frequently after being released, Gangdan'er may need to stay in the darkroom for a few more days.

When it’s time to eat every day, you can go into the darkroom, turn on the light, and start eating. If Gangdan'er doesn't want to eat, turn on the light for a while, turn off the light, and take away the food.

Throughout the whole process, you must also observe Gangdan'er's health. Generally, if he doesn't eat for more than a dozen or twenty hours, there won't be any problems.

To understand it with simple logic, let it know: it is wrong to hit Jasmine when she goes out, and it is not easy to go on a hunger strike.

In short, in this case, don’t want the two cats to meet as soon as possible, otherwise problems will easily arise. Try to keep the attacking cat as calm as possible.

　03 Some other methods

So when and how should we introduce Gang Daner and Jasmine to meet again?

One principle is that everything must be done step by step.

If Gangdan'er has calmed down through confinement and is no longer hostile to Jasmine, at this time, some actions can be taken to reward and strengthen the impression.

For example, you can play with the two cats with a cat stick, and after playing, reward them with some of their favorite snacks.

For example, you can feed them both cans they like in the same space, when their plates are close to each other, or simply use one plate.

If the method of confinement does not work, then there are other methods that can be adopted.

Let me briefly mention two methods. One method is the sock trick, and the other is a more common method to deal with aggressive behavior of male cats.

Regarding the latter method, you need to prepare a cage.

The method is very simple, let the two cats live in the same space, but take turns living in the cage with each other. One person for a day, or one person for half a day, and so on until they became familiar with each other's scent again.

This method can be used in conjunction with the sock trick.

In fact, the two methods I introduced later can also be applied to introduce a new cat to the aborigines after it comes to your home.

It can also be applied to situations where a male cat mates with a female cat or beats a female cat.

If the above methods still have no effect, some drug intervention may be needed.

There are no side effects. For example, you can buy cat-specific pheromones, which are very effective for some cats.

There are some side effects, such as the antidepressants some people take. For example, mirtazapine, amitriptyline, etc.

If you really need to take medicine, you must consult a doctor or professional for advice, and never take medicine blindly by yourself.

　04 About attacking people

If you have a single-cat household, if a redirection attack occurs, you will be the target of the attack.

So when you encounter this situation, the first thing you should do is to leave Gangdan'er's sight, instead of scolding or fighting with him.

You can't win because you will lose his heart.

If your cat has a personality that doesn’t trust people very much and has a strong defensive mentality, then you need to find ways to block some of the root causes that may trigger its redirected attacks.

For example, add a blind to your home so that he can't see out the window.

For example, don’t put any messy things on the dining table. (You may be more diligent after raising a cat, because many cats cannot see anything on the table or coffee table, you know...)

Or, give the cat a limited but fun space, such as a space of seven or eight square meters, but the vertical space and toys are well designed and arranged.

Overall, redirect attacks should not be taken lightly, especially in multi-cat households. If not handled properly, the entire environment can be filled with anxiety and tension.

In a cattery environment, cats with easily nervous personalities are best not to be used in breeding programs.

No matter how good its appearance is, you must remember that character comes first.