How to get the cat to dislike you

Cats don't like being teased unless we love them. Is the cat being teased by someone they love?

A cat who hides is not having fun

It's easy to tell. A happy, relaxed cat, being gently teased by a good friend, will be lying on their side or back, and will respond with gentleness of their own.

A cat who is not having a good time will be trying to get away, backing off because they feel threatened, and wanting to hide.

A lashing tail, laid-back ears, and stretched eyelids to make the eyes into slits; these are signs the cat is on the defensive.

Often, the teaser will claim the cat is "enjoying" themselves because they continue to defend themselves against the teasing, instead of running away. But that is because the cat is literally afraid of turning their back on the threatening person.

If we think our cat is not having a good time with the teasing; we are right. We should get the offending person to back off on the teasing. If the cat then runs away, we have been proven right.

We should always stick up for our cat. After all, when our cat sticks up for themselves, somebody can get hurt.

And even though it is always the fault of the teaser, they usually don't see it that way.

Find out The Truth about Cat Teasing.

Why our cat is not being naughty

We tend to think our cats misbehave on purpose. Just because they are doing things we don't like.

Are they fighting... or playing?

Our cats never see it that way, though. If they are doing something, it is something they want to do.

And their instincts tell them, if they want to do this thing, it's because they need to do this thing.

We should remember that in our cat's natural world, their instincts were perfect guides to their behavior. If they were hungry or tired or thirsty, their instincts would guide them to what they should do to fix that problem.

In our home, our cats are still obeying the urgings of their instincts. Only, in our world, it doesn't always work the same way.

If our cat is hungry, they race around, maybe knock things off tables or knock their dish around the kitchen. They are trying to use their hunting instincts to get themselves fed. If we get mad at them, we aren't listening to what they are trying to say.

And we aren't stopping their "bad" behavior, because they aren't getting fed, either.

Whenever our cat does something we don't like, we should stop and ask ourselves what they are trying to get with this behavior. Do they need to play? Do they need their dishes attended to? Are they distressed about something?

If we don't like the ways they ask for things, we should figure out how to give them better ways.

Find out more about why “naughty” is a misconception.

What is a cat's favorite toy?

These are the kinds of toys which have a wand to wave, a string at the end, and a toy connected to the string. They can create a lot of excitement with their speed and versatility.

Princess Olwyn tests the new toy

A wand toy has many advantages over other kinds:

• We keep our hands safely on the wand, while the cats pounce safely on the toy.
• It is easier to mimic prey behavior with the flex and movement of the wand.
• We can make more extravagant movements, getting our cat to run and jump to keep up.
• We can use it to make their scratching post, or cat tree, more interesting, by dragging the toy end over its surface.
• We can get our more sedate cats racing around and getting needed exercise.
• We can get our kittens racing around and wearing themselves out... right before bedtime.

We should be careful, though, because with much power comes much responsibility!

We must be aware of where the wand tip is at all times, especially when our cat is racing around. Keep the tip in contact with the floor if the cat is engaged with the toy end, and might try to run away with it.

Don't leave our cat alone with it. They can drag the wand around and break it, or destroy the toy end.

Be sure to put the wand toy away in a safe place when we are done, so our cat doesn't try to play with it by themselves.

Read my review of Bird Catcher PRO, my cats' current favorite!