Why do domestic cats 'chatter' when looking at a bird through a closed window?

The infographic provides my answer to the question in the title. I don't think that you will see a better answer to this much asked question. If you have some thoughts please comment. Thanks.

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P.S. please forgive the occasional typo. These articles are written at breakneck speed using Dragon Dictate. I have to prepare them in around 20 mins. Also, sources for news articles are carefully selected but the news is often not independently verified. And, I rely on scientific studies but they are not 100% reliable. Finally, (!) I often express an OPINION on the news. Please share yours in a comment.

Why do cats seem to like uncomfortable positions?

Obviously, the question has been asked by a human with human perceptions. That I think is the point. To humans, cats can seem to enjoy snoozing and resting in uncomfortable positions and in uncomfortable ways and on uncomfortable substances. But to the cat they are not uncomfortable otherwise they wouldn't do it.

Here is a famous picture now in the public domain of a cat seemingly in an uncomfortable position where he is fully asleep! It is on an associated website - click here to see it.

I believe his name is Tigar.

So, cats are more tolerant of these so-called uncomfortable positions or they might even find them comfortable. In fact, that is likely in many instances because if a cat is sleeping and resting in what appears to be an uncomfortable position to a human it has to be comfortable to them. If it wasn't they'd get up and change their position.

For example, initially it surprised me that my cat, Gabriel, likes to sleep across cables that are on my duvet. The duvet is very comfortable for him. It keeps him warm and it's soft but if there is cabling for my computer on the duvet he will sleep over the cabling and not select a part where there is no cabling. Very strange. Or is it? He just doesn't feel it or care about it.

One obvious factor is that the fur on a domestic cat creates a nice buffer or barrier between irregular surfaces and their skin. This must help to iron out any wrinkles on the surface which makes them less noticeable.

What about this? Should make you smile. From Twitter X.

And I'm going to speculate and say that one reason why domestic cats don't care about sleeping on a regular surfaces is because they've inherited this trait from their wildcat ancestor. Wild cats must, by default, sleep on rough surfaces sometimes such as stones or twigs and rough ground. They have to accept it. They might have found a nice den which is safe but the ground is rough. They prioritise the safety of the den over the rough ground and accept it.

The domestic cat has inherited this trait I would argue. And another reason why cats appear to be in uncomfortable positions because they are inherently very flexible. This once again goes to their wildcat ancestor. The wildcat has to be flexible to be a good hunter which requires being highly manoeuvrable, a good climber, able to keep balance well and being able to wriggle around and over obstacles. Flexibility is built into the domestic cat so when they look as if they are distorting themselves in a very uncomfortable way, it isn't uncomfortable for them.

Perhaps another reason why cats might accept uncomfortable positions is because the place where they have taken up the uncomfortable position is particularly warm. For example, cats sometimes sleep on computer keyboards. The computer gives off heat and maybe the keyboard is not particularly comfortable for their head but they accept it. Cats are very tolerant actually of many things. There brain processes input information differently to humans.

Image in the public domain. He is perfectly comfortable than you very much.

I believe this is another factor in this discussion. The tolerance of the domestic cat. They tolerate cold very well and of course heat. Cats like it warmer than humans because their body temperature is higher than that of humans and once again, we have to refer to their wildcat ancestor, living in dry, arid conditions in North Africa.

Domestic cats are inherently inquisitive as well which is part of their hunting skills and mojo. When investigating things, they have to be flexible and agile. I'm back to agility and flexibility here which makes them more accepting of contorted positions.

All in all, cats don't mind being in uncomfortable positions as perceived by humans because they are not uncomfortable to the domestic cat.

This is about human perceptions. There are many instances where human perceptions can misguide the human about cat behaviour. And sometimes humans project onto their domestic cat companion their own thoughts and attempt to read their cat in a misguided way. This is all normal actually and to be expected. Domestic cats are often a member of the human family and treated as an equal. It's no surprise that they are sometimes regarded as little humans resulting in expectations that they should behave like a human!

Cats don't want to gender transition

This is a discussion. The title sounds mad. It might be. But I don't think it is. The point of the title is that there are no signs in behavior to tell us that some domestic cats think they are in the wrong body and want to transition from male to female or female to male. Gender transitioning is big human news. But it is exclusively about humans. It is a human condition. The desire to gender transition can only come from a higher non-instinctive intelligence. 

Cats don't want to gender transition. Image: MikeB

Animals behave instinctively. Instinctive behavior does not provide an avenue in which thoughts about gender transitioning emerge.

Thoughts about gender transitioning requires the intelligence and social pressures that only humans enjoy or submit themselves to.

Instinct is natural. It is a part of nature's way. But we should all respect people's thoughts and desires. If a woman wants to be a man and human society can help, we should help. 

But human society should make damned sure beforehand that the woman genuinely wants to transition because the transitioning process is irreversible in truth and young people pass through phases when their thoughts change frequently.

They are in the process of finding their character and ideas. They can be influenced by others and society's pressures.

I'm not against gender transitioning. I'm just for doing it with extreme care. That means doing it when the person is more mature and emotionally settled. What age might that be? Not sure. Thirty maybe. Yes, much older than is currently the case. And there must be neutral, unbiased advice available.

Bethany

Bethany feels that she was rushed into taking testosterone and having a double mastectomy. She is now in the process of 'detransitioning'. She said:

I do regret the loss of time. I am 26 and think 'what have I done?' I wish someone had advised me to properly explore my feelings when I was 19. I was offered no psychotherapy. It is only now, at the age of 26, that I feel I am a mature adult, and it is no coincidence that it is now I am realising that transitioning is no solution.

She now knows that she is gay and not meant to be a man.

She is one example of a number of individuals who are detransitioning. Not good. Too rushed. Too many societal pressures and 'experts' with their own agenda to push onto others.

Human minds can be fragile and fraught; more so in the 21st century with tons of stuff on the internet.

Humans are more intelligent than cats. They are more vulnerable to misleading thoughts that are not instinctive. Cats rely on nature's instinct. It is rock solid.

4 things you should NEVER do to your cat

This is Jackson Galaxy's list of 4 things that you should never do to your cat but it could equally well have been my list or the list of any one of millions of excellent cat caregivers. Actually, my list would be longer but Jackson was limited by the length of the video. 

It is wonderful for me that at the top of his list is declawing. He's American and millions of Americans declaw their cat. He is alienating these potential supporters by criticising them which is the right thing to do and it is wonderful to see. It proves that Jackson set high standards.

Although he has to say that declawing is very bad because it is bloody well exactly that. He says declawing should be banned in the US. He's right and it is banned in 2 states and around a dozen cities but there's a long way to go. Across the rest of the world around 38 countries specifically ban it. In other countries general welfare laws would effectively ban it. Or no one even thinks about declawing in nearly all other countries.

Declawing is a big NO NO. Screenshot from the video.

His next pet hate is punishing your cat. Right again. That's number 2 on his list of things that you should never do to your cat. Cats do not understand punishment as it is a human concept, activity and process that is solely for humans. It requires understanding social norms and morals. That is not the domain of are precious feline friends.

Punishment alienates your cat if it achieves anything at all. There is a subtle modification that Britain's celebrity cat behaviourist, Dr Bruce Fogle, recommends and he calls it 'divine intervention'. 

Jackson mentions the squirt bottle. If your cat cannot see that the squirt is coming from their owner but just arrives as if by God's will, it will not alienate the cat but simply tell the cat that what they are doing results in an unpleasant experience. This should stop them doing it.

Personally, I'd never do this but there is a difference. There are better ways of dealing with cat behavior that a cat owner does not like: training through positive reinforcement or accepting it (modified human thinking).

Yelling at your cat is a form of punishment and is also a No, No. I can understand when this might seem acceptable or happens because the owner loses self-control but it isn't a good idea.

His fourth point of not giving up is, I believe, a reference to not abandoning your cat to a shelter or in a much worse place. There are always ways to resolve problems many of which are actually relatively straightforward.

Five cats make a supermarket their home. Is this a problem?

NEWS AND COMMENT-WALES: It has been reported that five cats have made an Asda store (a UK supermarket chain) their home. They stroll into the foyer of the supermarket and sit there. Clearly, they are coming in out of the cold seeking some warmth. 

Some might be also seeking some company. These must be domestic cats because they're not frightened of people. They probably live nearby, and their owners are away all day, so they saunter into the store as a way of passing the time in relatively warm conditions during the winter.

Five cats make an Asda store their home after they stroll in and get comfortable. Image: Asada. Dan Roberts/Pwllheli Store Manager

That's my assessment. Initially there was one who routinely started to visit the store. That cat became a feature of the store, and it appears that the vast majority of shoppers accepted him or her. Some actually found his presence charming and I guess some fed him.

It appears that some of the staff tried to discourage the cat from visiting but he returned, and his presence has encouraged for others to join. On the face of it this presents a problem to the store manager because some customers will think that the cats are unhygienic.

There is this mentality about distancing domestic cats from the kitchen counter in the home. The reason behind that is because people don't want the cat to bring pathogens onto the counter which can contaminate food. I get that but this is an overreaction because domestic cats are no more likely to introduce pathogens to food than are humans.

So, these five cats are completely harmless in my view to the customers' welfare. They remain in the foyer in any case. Any disease that they might have will nearly always be not zoonotic. This means that nearly all feline diseases cannot be transferred to humans.

There is no genuine problem but there is a presentation problem in that it doesn't look good to have a group of cats in the foyer and I understand that. It's a presentational thing which goes against the culture of a well-run supermarket store.

But people shouldn't be worried about it except for the fact that if a gaggle of cats habitually start to gather in the foyer of this supermarket on a regular basis it is going to cause a problem. Some people won't like it and the manager won't like it. It depends if it can be contained.

Ciara Faulkner, the 'ambient manager' at the supermarket said that they tried to encourage customers not to feed the cats, but they can't monitor them constantly. They encouraged the cats to leave but they come back.

Fortunately, Ciara Faulkner reports that: "We have had one or two customers who aren't very happy, but most people think it's cute. They just sleep there really; they are not causing any harm."

That I think is the attitude to take. Leave them alone provided the existing maximum five cats don't encourage another five and so on! Then it will be a problem, not of disease transference but in giving the wrong impression that the supermarket has become a cat rescue centre!

Confident cat is a happier cat

A confident cat is a happy cat. Why? Why is it good to live with a confident cat? Before I tell you why I think it is a good thing, I would like to say that I am drawn to cats that lack confidence. I see their vulnerability and I want to make them stronger. That sentence gives a clue as to what I am about to say.

Confident looking Bengal cat enjoying himself. Picture: Pinterest.

You can apply the same rules to people and cats when it comes to discussing confidence. A confident person is less likely to be anxious about the sort of things that are around him and which affect him/her. As anxiety makes you unhappy, less of it makes you happier or more content. Also, a confident animal is more able to deal with what is thrown at him or her. This is good.

The same rules apply to cats. A confident cat is a happy cat. They are able to express their views and natural instincts and behavior. This is shown in positive vocalizations in asking for food, for example. A cat that asks for food in a positive way is a cat that feels at home and that has become a part of the family. 

Vocalizations are good. They might irritate a bit from time to time but they are a sign of a contented cat that is part of the family. It means the cat feels like an equal, which is what we strive for as concerned cat caretakers.

When you select a kitten from a breeder, pick out the confident cat that comes to you. On second thoughts, why not try this: pick out the timid cat who is frightened, adopt them and take them home. Love them and fill them with confidence to allow them to be happier. This is my preferred choice as an adopter.

Of course, it perhaps goes without saying that a cat's character is dictated by their genetic inheritance and the environment in which they are raised and live. You can't change the former but you can improve the latter and therefore improve their confidence.

The point is that some timid cats can be drawn out and made more confident but they will always remain somewhat timid. There is, though, a great charm in a timid cat and there are advantages. One springs to mind immediately: they are less likely to roam if allowed outside and get into trouble and as a consequence be injured.

It is the foolhardy, young and confident male cats who are more likely to be hit by a car on the road. Confidence can lead to unhappiness sometimes.

'Clingy cat' - an alternative viewpoint

If you do a Google search for the word “clingy", Google throws up a list of possibilities for what you are searching for.  Google extends the search term and finds searches for information on "clingy babies", "clingy girlfriends", "clingy toddlers" etc..  When Google adds to your search term it bases its information upon what people search for. Obviously, people are searching for information about clingy toddlers etc.. The word "clingy" proceeds a human but not a cat.

Clingy? Insecure cat needing reassurance or a loving cat who likes to be with her human?
You decide.

This reinforces my beliefs about articles on clingy cats.  I don't believe there is such a cat as a clingy cat or if there are clingy cats, they are rarer than people believe.

I believe that cats who want to be with you a lot and who wish to interact with you when you're at home simply want to do that. They want to be with you, close to you and interact with you and why not? This is why people look after a domestic cat, isn't it? Some cats will be more independent-minded than others and they won't be so "needy", to use a human expression, but some cats will in human parlance demonstrate that they are needy but in my opinion they're not.  They simply want to have some fun with their human caretaker.

This may come about because, as is often the case, the cat's owner is out for a large part of the day. If that is the case then it is completely natural that a domestic cat will want to be with their human companion more than usual.

Sometimes, the cat may make a nuisance of himself with his owner by pestering her. Once again, I do not think that this is attention seeking or a cat that is needy or clingy. I think this is a cat that either wants to play or be with their human companion, or want something else.

On occasions, you may see a cat that is genuinely clingy meaning insecure in the same way that a person who is insecure may seek attention and be needy. However, I believe these cases are relatively rare and I also believe that cat behaviourist can and often do mistake the behavior of insecurity in a cat with a cat who likes to be around their human companion.

If a cat does interfere too much with the activities of their human caretaker, I believe that the onus is on the human caretaker to resolve the matter by looking at what they are doing to see whether they can improve their performance in relation to their cat.

What I mean by that is are they interacting with their cat enough from the cat's standpoint?  And are they feeding their cat enough?  Those sorts of things should be a priority and if they are all dealt with satisfactorily, perhaps look at the possibility that the cat is genuinely insecure and figure out ways to make the cat feel more secure.

He’s 60 years old in cat years but clings to me like a new born child. Why?

A Reddit.com user, Faris-Hilton said: "He’s 60 years old in cat years but clings to me like a new born child". Why is this? The man was impliedly asking a question. It appears that he couldn't understand why. I think I know why. And I am using the knowledge of Dr. Desmond Morris a world-famous zoologist and animal behaviourist. 

His theory, and I totally agree with him, is that we keep adult domestic cats in a state of mind where they believe that they are kittens for the simple reason that we provide all their needs. We are their surrogate mothers. This suspends their growth in terms of their mentality. It doesn't stop them developing as adults but it is suspended until they bring home a mouse at which point, they believe that we are their kitten and they need to train us how to kill a mouse.

Reddit user Faris-Hilton says his middle-aged cat is 60 in cat years but a child in his behavior. Photo: Faris-Hilton.

This might not happen every time but in the wild, the wildcat trains her kittens by bringing home prey animals which are still living. She might kill them in front of the kittens to teach them how to kill. Eventually they follow her outside the den to watch her preying on animals. In due course they become independent.

It would seem, therefore, that domestic cats can flick a switch from being a kitten to being a mother and in their minds, we can be the mother and a kitten. But to get back to this gentleman. He says his cat is 60 years old in cat years but behaves like a kid, in his mind he is a 60-year-old kid 😂.

There is another reason why he clings to him like a kid. He loves to be near him and in contact with him. Cats like to physically connect with their caregiver and other animals with whom they are friendly. Just like humans. It is a natural consequence of a close relationship. And it emotionally and phyisically warm.

Do male cats eat kittens?

I've read various attempts on the Internet to answer the question in the title and I am not convinced by any of them. Remember, the question refers to any cat of any species not just the domestic cat. It also refers to eating kittens not just attacking and killing them. 

F1 Savannah cat. Photo: Kathryn Stucki.

It seems to be a question which is reminiscent of the behaviour of incoming male lions taking over a pride at which time they tend to kill the cubs in order to force the lionesses into heat so that they can procreate themselves to ensure that their genes are passed on. But when this happens the lions do not eat the cubs that the kill. They are simply killing them for the purposes mentioned.

It is a well-known fact that females sometimes killed their offspring and I'm referring to the world of feral and domestic cats. There are five reasons for this on my research and I have written on this topic before which you can read by clicking on this link. But the reasons are specifically related to the mother-kitten relationship. It's about survival ultimately.

But does a male feral or domestic cat kill a kitten in order to survive? I don't see that happening. I really don't and over 14 years of reading about domestic cat behaviour it has not once been mentioned to the best of my knowledge. That does not mean, of course, that it does not happen but it does mean that it is unlikely to happen.

There may be exceptional circumstances when a male feral cat eats a deceased kitten in an act of survival when food is short. That makes sense and in fact it might not be that rare and occurrence. But this would not be an act of killing and eating but of scavenging and I think that is quite an important distinction. Under these circumstances the male cat is simply eating available food in a coldhearted way.

In an earlier post I suggested that male cats do not recognise the kittens that they have fathered which would certainly facilitate eating a deceased one. I think that we have to apply some common sense to the answer because you don't get good scientific answers on this sort of topic.

Finally, a series of accidental events may result in a male cat eating a kitten. a male cat might try to mate with a kitten and kill it accidentally. And then instinctively the cat might eat the kitten. It would be a series of instinctive events which led to this rare occurrence. This is suggested by Dr. Desmond Morris in his book Cat World.

Does your cat circle the food bowl as if scavenging from a dead animal?

Perhaps my cat is unusual but I don't think he is. There is one aspect of him which is a little unusual in that he was raised for the first six or so weeks of his life as a feral cat by his mother in the urban environment of West London. Therefore perhaps he has a little bit more of the wild in him than is typical of domestic cats. 

Picture: MikeB. He behaves like a North African wildcat.

Nonetheless, he sometimes likes to circle a food bowl when I put the food down as if he is gingerly and cautiously approaching the carcass of an animal that he has found in the wild and which he wants to scavenge from. He is unsure about food in the bowl even though he has been fed it countless times before. He sniffs the food carefully before consuming it. This is also part of an instinctively cautious approach to feeding which must be a throwback to his wild cat ancestor, the North African wild cat.

It is another reminder that domestic cats are a whisker away from their wild ancestor. Doctor John Bradshaw says that one of the big differences between domestic cats and domestic dogs is that dogs are more fully domesticated. And they've been domesticated for far longer than cats.

It is estimated that dogs have been domesticated for around 20,000 years although the experts are unsure. In contrast, it is believed that cats have been domesticated for half that time at around 10,000 years.

Can we speculate and argue that in a further 10,000 years domestic cats will be behaving more like dogs!? It is highly plausible. Domestic cats are on a road of domestication. It is an ongoing process. The journey is not over and I would expect the character and behaviour of the domestic cat to evolve through future domestication to one which is quite different to today.

Cat Behaviorists Should Be Scientifically Qualified

Cat behaviorists should be scientifically qualified because cat behavior is a science. There has to be a good knowledge of the behavior of animals generally and specifically the wild cats. The cat behaviorist should ideally be a zoologist and an ethologist (scientific study of animal behavior). Ideally they should have a good academic qualification in zoology and ethology. I am thinking of a doctorate from one of the world's top universities.

The problem for me is that nearly all cat behaviorists dispensing advice on the internet are unqualified academically in a relevant science.

I know that years of observation of cat behavior is great training and is almost enough but a hard, scientific background from a university where the undergraduates have to think out the box and post-doctoral researchers create something new is the best training for a cat behaviorist.

These sorts of people don't necessarily follow the crowd. They decide for themselves. You'll see that internet cat behaviorists nearly always follow the same arguments. That is not necessarily a poor thing but an open, enquiring mind is better placed to provide the best answers.

Vets are often not best qualified to discuss cat behavior. General animal behaviorists may not be sufficiently experienced to advise accurately on cat behavior. Not all information on the internet, which is where most people do their research, is reliable.

I'd advise a good book by a well qualified author over casual internet research although the latter can add to the former.

UK Version of Jackson Galaxy

In the UK, according to the Daily Star, we have an unknown cat expert who wants to become an recognised feline behaviourist with his own television show just like Jackson Galaxy in the USA. His name is Louis Denver, 29, and I have a feeling he has been watching Jackson Galaxy in action on his website.

He calls himself a “cat man" and says that he has built up his skills as a cat psychologist over time.  He lives in the north of the country in Lytham St Anne's, Lancashire.

Regrettably, he says things which tell me that he does not know enough about cats to be the UK's version of Jackson Galaxy.

Louis says the main problems facing cat owners are inappropriate elimination, loud meowing at night and spraying around the house. These are not the main problems.  Very few domestic cats spray around the house because spraying, as I'm sure Louis knows, is a form of territorial marking but although some rarely do this, 95% of domestic cats don't, especially if they are neutered.

Also, meowing at night is not in my mind a major problem.  You can see a list of the reasons for cat relinquishment on this page and they tell us what the major reasons are for a breakdown in the relationship between person and cat.

Louis says if a domestic cat misses the litter tray it is because the cat is territorially insecure and keen to mark his territory. Marking territory through spraying horizontally is not the same as peeing into a litter tray. The reasons behind both actions are completely different and unrelated.  You can read about how to stop peeing outside the box on this page.

Louis also states that cats try to be naughty. I would certainly dispute that especially as he implies that it is the reason for not using the litter tray which is completely incorrect in my opinion.

Louis claims to have learned everything he knows about cats from TV programmes and online tutorials. With respect to Louis, you cannot substitute actual cat caretaking over a long period of time with YouTube videos. To learn about cat behaviour solely from the Internet from words written and videos made is not enough.

He does have a good point when he says that cat caretakers need to play with their cats more often. And he doesn't like the mistreatment of cats which obviously tells us that his heart is in the right place.

I am not sure that the actually cares for a cat. That has not been stated in the article in the Daily Star.

Daniel "DQ" Quagliozzi Cat Behaviorist

Daniel "DQ" Quagliozzi is a cat behaviorist who didn't always like cats. He was one of those people who squirted water at cats to shoo them away. He learned that from its parents I suppose but then he learned something different from a huge black cat who wouldn't go away; in fact he came back every day despite what Daniel was doing and thereby he gained Daniel's respect which turned to love. A nice story for a cat behaviourist.

Daniel ended up working in cat rescue (SPCA) and it seems he learned a lot about cat behaviour there but he wanted to go into people's houses and deal with specific so-called "cat behaviour problems" in a hands-on practical way rather than simply discussing the matter at a theoretical level.

He appears to have wanted to make a change, make a difference and he probably learnt quite quickly that in order to make a difference almost every time he has to change the attitudes and behaviour of the cat's owner not the cat himself.

Cat behaviour is really all about people behaviour. We know that. And there lies some inherent problems because a lot of people have entrenched ideas about domestic cats and they may also have entrenched lifestyles both of which present barriers to Daniel in his work. Many people for instance don't have the time to commit to change.

In speaking about his work, Daniel hints quite strongly I think about some of the frustrations of his work which is the reluctance of some cat owners to adjust their ways in order to better accommodate the natural drives and instincts of the domestic cat.

You can't impose your will upon a cat. You simply have to adjust and find ways whereby both the cat owner and the cat can live in harmony and both can express natural behaviour as near as possible within the human domestic environment. That is easier done for a person than a cat.

Daniel has a television programme coming up in the autumn, called Animal House, which is about improving facilities at animal shelters as I understand it. The team go into a shelter and do a makeover. That's my interpretation of what is going to happen. Daniel obviously knows a lot about animal shelters but then again if you know a lot about cat behaviour you know what sort of facilities fit with that kind of behaviour.



The information about Daniel comes from the Catster + Seresto® page on Catster.

Lux Suddenly Snaps While Being Assessed by Jackson Galaxy

“It blew my world apart.” Galaxy talking about Lux

Jackson Galaxy with Lux. Photo: Animal Planet

Jackson Galaxy gets a surprise while assessing the behavior and character of his latest "patient", Lux, the notorious so called "cat with a history of aggression"

Jackson Galaxy has been assessing Lux in preparation for his television show “My Cat from Hell".

Like many of us, his initial assessment was that this cat had been provoked in some sort of way perhaps by the child of the family against the background of an environment that was not calm which caused Lux to become aggressive on occasions.

Jackson Galaxy admits that his initial assessment was incorrect.  He says has had to rethink the way he goes about dealing with cat behaviour problems. This is because Lux has thrown up new challenges.  It is the most difficult case he has dealt with in 20 years he states.

During Jackson Galaxy's six-week assessment, living with this cat, he fell in love with him.  They were getting along like a house on fire.  Then suddenly Lux showed him something unexpected.  He snapped and became aggressively violent, he says.  I have to presume that this outburst of domestic cat violence was totally unprovoked unless Jackson Galaxy was testing Lux to see how far he could go with him to check how well balanced, or not, Lux's character is.

In any case, he says that Lux blew his world apart, meaning, I presume, it changed his attitude towards cat behaviour problems.  We will have to wait and see what he says in his television programme scheduled for 8 p.m. Saturday, June 14 on Animal Planet.

Has anyone said if Lux has been declawed. If so that is a potential cause.

Having read what he has said about his relationship with this celebrated cat, we can pretty confidently say that 90% of all cat behaviour problems are to do with the environment in which the cat lives together with the socialisation of the cat but clearly some behaviour issues are inherited and some are caused by chronic discomfort or pain suffered by the cat. Perhaps the latter two factors have played a part in this instance.

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Note about the photo: I have taken the liberty in publishing it here in exchange for this link to the Animal Planet website and in promoting Jackson Galaxy's work and this important example of feline behavior.