My cat just wigged out.....

[sunshine's mama]

Hi.

It was the strangest thing. I have an almost 5 year old tabby/siamese mix. He's a pretty docile cat. I can count on both hands the number of times my 2 children, my husband and I have been scratched since we got him as a young kitten.

He's a great cat. Just kinda chills. And comes to you to be loved and petted on......

He's not skittish.....purrs like mad most of the time...a generally happy cat.

I have a small daycare. Very part time kiddos.

Today I have a sweet little boy. He's 4. When his parents came to interview me last week the cat kinda was standoffish and growled at him a bit....very weird.....The parents said not to worry that their cat at home does something similar......so I said Ok. If you are ok. I'm ok.

Today his mom dropped him off this morning and we watched something on tv his mom said he likes and we've been playing with my little one too.

The cat was just chillin....minding his own business.....I'd just finished lovin on him and he was purrin......He had JUST gone under the sofa when J walked by (the little boy...he's 4) and the cat started hissin and growling.....and striking out from under the sofa.....My daughter has just walked by and nothing. J walked by and hiss and he's been scratched pretty decently.....

I feel awful. One ankle has some decent pokes and the other leg has scratches all up it...short ones....I picked J up asap and the cat was still trying to strike from under the sofa from the front but was getting caught in the sofa cover (it's up in the back a bit from the kids playin on the sofa so it was easier for him to strike out)....

It's the oddest thing and I'm still a bit taken aback that it happened in the first place. This is not my cat....and he certainly wasn't provoked....

I've had a daycare in my home since the cat was 6 months old and have NEVER had an issue like this.....and I care for young children....6wks to 4yo. He's just not a growly, hissy cat.

J is so sweet. He's not all rough and tumble inside. Outside, sure, a bit...but inside, he's so nice, polite, just pretty chill.

I feel so bad and have no idea why my cat doesn't like him. It's just completly random.

Any ideas????

Thanks.

[sunshine's mama]

I wanted to add that the kids weren't playing on the sofa when he was under it...he was upstairs then.

I've been doing this for 6 years and this little boy isn't the one who comes from a home with other cats so I don't think it's that....

I just don't know what to do.

He's still under the sofa. We went outside to play and came back in all quiet and such and the cat was out peeking in the door. My daughter and I walked in first and he was fine. The little boy walked in right behind me and the cat hissed, growled and ran under the sofa and is under there now quietly growling.

And lord knows what's gonna happen when his mom sees his leg. It happened so fast and I was right there. I know how I'd react and am fully prepared to refund her the fees she paid for today and wednesday if she doesnt want to bring him here anymore. He said he's ok but still. I can't have a totally wigged out cat everytime he's here.....and he can't go home looking like a wild animal got ahold of his leg.

Nobody has any ideas or suggestions????

[HarperRose]

Oh, the poor little boy! I'd be horrified, too, if my cats acted out of character and hurt a child.

I don't know what to say, other than maybe put my cat in another room/area while the "offending" child is there? Poor kid! And the poor cat, too. Something is setting him off.

[HeatherAtHome]

We had the same problem with our lazy old "scaredy cat". He growls and hisses at my niece... and my sister (her mom) but no one else. We can't figure out why and it's really strange.

Want to hear a *really* bad cat scratch story? Different cat but same niece... she wanted to pet the cat and she had him backed into a corner (bad idea!). He took a swipe at her and scratched her EYEBALL. She screamed like you wouldn't believe. I can't even imagine the pain. *Shudder* It almost seemed like she was going to go into shock, but by the time we got to the hospital she was running around playing and laughing. She was incredibly lucky, the scratch was low on her eyeball in the white area. The doctor gave her eye drops and it healed within a week. DH and I felt soooooo awful. She's better with the cats now but we still run 100% surveillance when she's around. For some reason, she still loves them.

My niece was 2 when it happened, she's now 3.

Good luck with the situation. It's quite frightening when a cat suddenly decides to attack, especially a little one.

[Ellien C]

Aliens!





Clearly these people are aliens and only your cat can sense it.








I'm sorry about the scratches. I have no advice for you.

[ScarletBegonias]

i'm sorry mama!

you know, some people just offend cats. they don't have to *do* anything, the cat just senses something off about the person. their mere presence rubs the cat the wrong way. it may sound weird, but it's true.

cats looooove me, and i have even experienced a totally docile, loving cat hiss and growl at their owner when i was petting/holding it. cats just really like me, i must have some sort of cat-pheromone-energy that they don't want to be parted with.