I went to the library today and got a couple of books for Carly:
“Psycho Kitty” Understanding Your Cat’s Crazy Behavior” and,
“Twisted Whiskers: Solving Your Cat’s Behavior Problems”
I was reading through the contents of one of them, looking for what we needed, “Scratching furniture, No…Loss of appetite, not even close….. Old age, she’s only 2“…..Aggressive and Asocial Behavior, There’s my baby!
I’ve already read Carly’s chapter and I think she’s having territorial stress. She’s always been a grouch, but since Svengali arrived on the scene, she has danced with the demons.
I had always wondered why, if she was angry at him, did her kittens and the rest of the world have to suffer her wrath as well.
According to one of her books, Carly’s carrying out “Redirected agression.” It gave me a name for it, but no tips on what to do about it. I’d rather have had the tips and not the name than the other way around. The book said things I already knew, like “Don’t spank the cat” (Never even considered it.) and “Don’t yell” (Considered several times a day but not considered a helpful option.) Both of these approaches would only agitate the cat further.
The main reason I got the books was to rule out any medical problems she might have. Fortunately, she doesn’t have any of the symptoms of any of the diseases. She’s just a mean little girl!
I’d always suspected it was a territorial issue at the heart of the problem., so I recently bought her a soft baby blanket and put it in a special chair for her on the carport. The other cats aren’t allowed to even look at it. She sleeps on her blanket each night, all curled up looking so sweet and snuggly you’d never guess the fury beneath the fur.
She’s lying there now, as a matter of fact. I think I’ll go sit beside her and ask if she’s read any good books lately.
Joi
