Attack of the Three Pound Killer

June 12, 2009 8:17 AM

Is my kitten going to kill me?

Lately, my three month old kitten has developed the habit of pouncing at me when I stare directly into her eyes.

She doesn't attack with claws or anything, and it's really pretty cute, but I'm curious about what might have led her to develop this behavior.

Is it just kitty playfulness, or is she trying to establish her dominance? She's a very personable kitten, but I'm curious if anyone has experienced this before.

posted by elder18 to pets & animals (25 comments total)

Cat have a brain the size of a walnut. They do crazy things.

They see ghosts and aliens that may or may not be there.

Explaining their behavior is an exercise in futility.

I'm unaware of any kittens killing any mammals your size.
posted by cjorgensen at 8:22 AM on June 12 [11 favorites]

Because cats perceive prolonged eye contact as threatening.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 8:27 AM on June 12 [7 favorites]

Cats like to kill things: mice, birds, voles, etc. If they can't kill those they'll kill cat toys, socks, bottle caps, the little rings off of milk jugs, etc. They'd like to kill you but you're just too damn big and won't die however much they bite you.
posted by octothorpe at 8:28 AM on June 12 [16 favorites]

Cats supposedly signify trust by sleepily looking into your eyes and doing the slow blink. "I am relaxed enough in your presence that I can close my eyes without fear of attack." Without the slow blink, things can get a little tense.
posted by adipocere at 8:30 AM on June 12 [10 favorites]

You're threatening her. Don't stare at your cat. I was told blinking slowly is a sign of love, or peace, or something nice, and though there are debates about whether cats really want you to stare at them and blink, mostly the cats blink back, and it means good intentions, if not actually love.

Do not try a staring contest with your cat.
posted by jeather at 8:33 AM on June 12 [1 favorite]

She only does it when she's feeling really playful and active. We definitely have our share of kitty cuddle moments, so I thought it was just playfulness.

I guess I should feel lucky she hasn't really let me have it yet.
posted by elder18 at 8:36 AM on June 12

Because cats perceive prolonged eye contact as threatening.

This is true for most animals. In the wild, if a big animal is looking at a small animal, that normal means they are getting ready to attack. For example, next time you're walking past some trees and a squirrel is running around not paying attention to you, try making eye contact with the squirrel (without stopping or doing anything else out of the ordinary). The squirrel will most likely notice and immediately run and hide behind a tree.
posted by burnmp3s at 8:41 AM on June 12

Perhaps...
posted by BlooPen at 8:47 AM on June 12 [8 favorites]

I only give my cats the staredown when they're doing something bad (and it works, because they see and treat me as alpha cat). Your cat doesn't want to kill you (eat you, sure), but I think you're drawing out aggressive tendencies. Keep eye contact brief unless it's the slow, happy blinking.
posted by zerokey at 8:48 AM on June 12 [1 favorite]

One reason I do is in an attempt to establish my dominance (which yeah, I know, if futile).

I feel that if I look away she'll get all cocky and stuff, even more than she already is.

Should I worry about this?
posted by elder18 at 8:54 AM on June 12

One reason I do is in an attempt to establish my dominance (which yeah, I know, if futile).

Cats aren't dogs, and even dogs don't need their humans to be their alphas. If the interactions between my neighborhood cats are any indication, staring usually leads to fighting, whereas ignoring one another and giving one another lots of space is what seems to lead to happy, peaceful interactions.

You don't need to worry about your cat being uppity. All cats come across that way, because they're not pack animals and they're predators. It's not something unique to your cat, and attempts to establish your dominance are just going to make your cat uncomfortable and unhappy.
posted by PhoBWanKenobi at 9:00 AM on June 12 [2 favorites]

One reason I do is in an attempt to establish my dominance (which yeah, I know, if futile).

bwahahaha

this is far beyond futile.

What you want is a dog. Cats do not respect any hierarchy.
posted by desjardins at 9:01 AM on June 12 [2 favorites]

I used to have a cat who liked being picked up and hugged and carried around so much that he eventually gave up on the whole boring rub-self-against-person's-legs-and-miaow-plaintively strategy and would instead sit down in front of you, look up and, on successfully making eye-contact, leap vertically into your arms, purring happily.

He would do this with anyone. It freaked out a lot of guests.
posted by permafrost at 9:06 AM on June 12 [8 favorites]

Should I worry about this?

As others have said, cats basically do whatever they want. You should try to re-enforce good behavior with praise and punish bad behavior though, especially while she's a kitten since that's when cats learn most of the behavior that they'll use later in their lives. So if you're fine with the behaviors your cat developing then just keep acting however you are acting now and the cat will probably keep doing the same sorts of things.
posted by burnmp3s at 9:08 AM on June 12

You should try to re-enforce good behavior with praise and punish bad behavior

I'd amend this to praise good behavior and completely ignore bad behavior, because any attention at all is a reward for a cat. Consequences - like squirt bottles - may deter bad behavior, but yelling, confining, spanking, etc will have little effect on the behavior and will probably turn your cat into a psycho.

Though I don't think that's what burnmp3s meant by punishment, I just wanted to clarify.
posted by desjardins at 9:14 AM on June 12

My wife and I adopted a little ball of trouble in the shape of a tortoiseshell kitten. When she was young, she was insane. Lots of leaping onto and off of things, climbing window screens and the like. One time, she jumped off the bed and onto me, digging her claws into my hip. We were worried she'd destroy the house and/or us.

She's a couple years old now, and she seems to have mellowed out a bit. She's still the crazy one in the house, and she still hates our curtains, but we don't get wounded by her like we used to.

If you survive the kitten phase, you'll be fine.
posted by filthy light thief at 9:47 AM on June 12

I'd amend this to praise good behavior and completely ignore bad behavior, because any attention at all is a reward for a cat. Consequences - like squirt bottles - may deter bad behavior, but yelling, confining, spanking, etc will have little effect on the behavior and will probably turn your cat into a psycho.

Though I don't think that's what burnmp3s meant by punishment, I just wanted to clarify.

Yeah I meant punishment in a generic operant conditioning kind of way, anything that you can do to make the cat associate bad behavior with bad consequences. Squirt bottles do tend to work well because the cat can very easily make the connection that doing whatever ends up immediately getting them wet. Putting bad tasting stuff on wires that a cat tries to chew on works for the same reason, because even after you stop putting the stuff on the wires the cat will have associated wires with the nasty taste. It's definitely way harder to stop bad behavior than it is to reward good behavior though, and cats aren't exactly easy to train to do anything.
posted by burnmp3s at 9:56 AM on June 12

I couldnt find a link to verify this, but I believe that if you want to calm your cat down (or make them feel secure) squint your eyes a little, like a slow half-blink when you make eye contact. I guess that's cat-talk for "I'm safe and comfy with you". Not sure how well that would work with a frisky kitten but I've seen behavior like this many times in older cats.

As for dominance ... yeah right. When my old cat got a little too bitey, I would grab her head and gently knock it a couple times againt the floor/couch etc. She would hiss at me, run away, and then be back in a couple moments for more lap time. Cats. Go figure.
posted by elendil71 at 10:00 AM on June 12

burnmp3s: "Consequences - like squirt bottles - may deter bad behavior, but yelling, confining, spanking, etc will have little effect on the behavior and will probably turn your cat into a psycho."

Quick tip: if you don' have a squirt bottle handy all the time, just blow in the kitten's face the next time she does that. Sounds ridiculous, but there are few things that are worse for cats than having humans huff in their face - it's a very mild deterrent, but one that is handy most of the time.
posted by PontifexPrimus at 10:05 AM on June 12

My cat Sparky used to actually curl his toes under to make a tiny kitty-fist and would very deliberately stride up to me and punch me in the side of the face if I stared at him too long.
posted by Oriole Adams at 10:18 AM on June 12 [12 favorites]

Mine started that when he was a kitten, too. He's a grown cat now, and still he pounces at my head and chest-bumps my face on a routine basis. I'm not dead yet.
posted by fusinski at 11:02 AM on June 12

Be careful...what's cute when she's a kitten might not be so cute when she's double her size and the bites and scratches draw blood. I would avoid the staring contests and start using a spray bottle on her if she ever bites or scratches during the pouncing.
posted by emd3737 at 11:28 AM on June 12

just blow in the kitten's face the next time she does that.

Be careful if you choose to do that. It might work with some kittens but really upsets others -- I have had cats freak out and swat me in the face for doing it. (Shocked the hell out of me. And trained me never to do it again.)
posted by aught at 1:18 PM on June 12

Get that kitten a toy! Remember that you can't stare down a cat. Sounds as if your new kitten could use a pint sized friend to play with. Kittens love to play fight and chase each other around. Perhaps s/he's bored. Nthing the water bottle, but don't overdo it or the cat will start ignoring it and you, or just avoid you altogether. Just be glad s/he doesn't climb your leg, all claws out, like our darling tortie used to.
posted by x46 at 4:14 PM on June 12

What you really want is a good relationship with your cat, which you can develop by doing the following:
1. Don't stare
2. Blink slowly
3. Look away
4. Yawn
All these communicate "I am comfortable with you, I am not threatening you, relax, we're good buddies."
posted by exphysicist345 at 11:27 PM on June 12 [1 favorite]