How Does a Normal Cat Behave?
Most cat owners will say that having a cat is very different from owning a dog or other animal. Typical cat behavior can be very “cat-like” in the way they behave towards humans and towards one another. Some normal behavior that your cat may exhibit are stalking, pouncing, or exploring their surroundings. Vocalization, walking on a leash or chasing sunbeams across the floor are some behaviors that make your cat unique.
In order to understand cats, you should learn normal cat behavior if you are thinking about adopting one of your own or if one of relatives or friends have a cat.
Most people don’t understand that cats think they are superior to all animals, including humans. Cats hate their routine being changed and can act out or misbehave, which drive us humans crazy. When their environment is to their liking, they coexist with humans very well.
When cats exhibit bad behavior it is typically due to owners not being aware of cues send out by the cat beforehand. An example of this would be your cat has just nipped or bitten you. Your first response would be to punish or shout at the cat for being bad or aggressive. But actually what happened was the cat gave you a warning sign when you where over stimulating him with petting and you didn’t recognize this as a cue to stop.
A few to the warning signs a cat may exhibit are:
- The cat’s body may tense up
- The tail starts to quiver or twitch
- The ears become pinned back
When you observe any of these signs while petting or interacting with a cat, it would wise to stop. These are signals in his body language that he has had enough petting. If you don’t stop and continue to pet the cat even though the cat is trying to communicate with you, his only way recourse is to bite or nip your hand to get your attention. That usually gets you to immediately stop petting him!
Cats are natural born hunters. Their stalking and pouncing behavior comes from this and it is something that you are not going to get your cat to stop. Younger cats are especially fond of stalking any prey they can find even if it large than them. This includes their owners who find the cat attacking their ankles or feet without warning. When they are in the mood for hunting it is better to distract them with another form of play activity.
Though dogs are usually known for their digging activity, cats also have an instinctive need to dig. Litter boxes and house plants are victims to this digging behavior. Cats hate the smell of citrus,, so one way of keeping them from digging is to use a citrus (orange, lemon or lime) product on or around area that is off limits.
Cats are very territorial and will claw to mark their territory, visually and by leaving their scent. This behavior can be distressful when it furniture or that expensive oriental rug! Clawing increases when there other cats in the house. The best way to discourage this is to provide plenty of scratching posts or boards scented with catnip. This gives the cat an appropriate avenue for clawing without destroying valuable property.
