DEAR PET LADY,
I am the owner of a 3-year-old black kitty. Most of the time he is a normal cat and does normal cat things, but more often than I would like he “acts out” in strange aggressive ways. If someone tries to be friendly to him, he usually meows in an aggressive voice and then lashes out with his claws. He has bitten two friends, much to my horror. They have been kind enough to let this go, as both have owned or own cats. If I try to go out the door with friends, my cat tries to prevent me from leaving by blocking my way with his body and meowing aggressively. It almost seems like something has snapped in his head and he is no longer rational. Needless to say, the cat cannot be left alone with anyone (i.e., someone taking care of him while we are on a trip). I just don’t trust him not to hurt someone while we are gone.
I am very, very worried. I am now trying homeopathic calming drops in his food and water. I love my kitty but am afraid that someday he will really hurt someone, and we will both be up a tree. Please advise,
S. Rayback
DEAR S. RAYBACK,
O, the heartbreak of good pets gone bad. The Pet Lady is reminded of the recent dilemma of the owner of Olive the Couch-Eating Dog [see The Pet Lady, July 5] and must again raise the question of whether some pivotal event has pushed poor little Blackbert over the cat-edge. Has there been some change in his environs? Try to think: If I, S. Rayback, were my small black cat, Moonless Midnight, what would I be so furious about?
Perhaps nothing springs to mind—and indeed, an animal whose “normal” behavior includes scrutinizing thin air for long periods of time, rushing in and out of rooms for no reason, and attempting to pick up the pattern on the Oriental rug with its paw is not bound to rational behavior. However, as is the case with the infamous Peeti [see The Pet Lady, June 28], your cat likely means to defend his territory (i.e., you), and you will have better luck controlling your guests than changing Nature’s Way. If you instruct them that Ebonycat has gone round the bend and that they are likely to sustain a blood-spurting wound if they attempt to interact with him by, say, idly dangling a hand over the armrest of the couch, then you are relieved of responsibility for those foolish enough to think they have a “way” with fur friends such as your little Coalscuttle and, thus, end up needing the Bactine.
If small Pot/Kettle is not rabid, it’s highly unlikely that he is capable of inflicting any fatal wounds. If you’re concerned about being sued in these litigious times, you might have visitors sign a release at the door; and as far as finding a catsitter for your vacation, you could equip just about anyone with enormous quantities of catnip to shove through the mail slot before entering and cans of tuna fish to brandish after with presumably pacific effects, and possibly better results than homeopathic calming drops, which, for a cat, should consist entirely of tuna fish and catnip, should they not? The Pet Lady shall now have a nice martini with a homeopathic calming drop of vermouth, and shall toast to the resolution of your difficulties and cessation of your worry, dear S.
The Pet Lady
Send your pet query and depiction to The Pet Lady, c/o Seattle Weekly, 1008 Western, Ste. 300, Seattle, WA 98104, or e-mail thepetlady@seattleweekly.com.
