I like cats, I do. I mostly get along with them.
My friend has a cat, and he’s a good cat. I help take care of him. I feed him, I clean his litter box, and I give him pets. I’m a good cat servant.
When it comes to the pets, the problem is that as I’m petting him, the cat will suddenly turn around and sink his teeth into me. Or his claws. Very rarely he’ll hit me with both.
It’s not just my friend’s cat either. There are several neighborhood cats that come around for attention and pets. I can pet them and there will come a point where they turn around and sink their teeth into me.
My friend thinks there is something in my blood, or some scent I give off, that felines like, or makes me tastier to them.
I’m of the opinion that they are just making sure that I remain a good cat servant by biting me to make sure I keep in line.
Either way, I just want the little buggers to stop biting me.
In writing news, I’m working on a short story I hope to submit to an anthology entitled Grumpy Old Gods, Vol. 5. The deadline is rapidly approaching (Dec. 1!) so I need to get going on it.
Why? Because while you do have a great deal of empathy for cats, and indeed all animals in general, deep down inside you’re a dog person, so there is still much about cats that you don’t understand. One thing you don’t understand, apparently, is that with cats the threshold between “you’re pleasing me” and “you’re annoying me” is very, very, very slight.
Biting you is the cat’s way of saying, “You stupid dolt! You should have stopped a whole 3 seconds ago!”
You’re most likely right. I am much more of a dog person than a cat person. I am apparently not perceptive enough to detect that fine turning point in the cat’s mood. Although today Malachi did make it clearer while I was petting him that he no longer wanted pets by raising his paw in ‘warning mode’. See, I get that. He should realize that he needs to lower his expectations of me and make his intentions clear. Not likely to happen again, but ….
No, no. Your hopeless. ‘He should realize…’? ‘He needs to lower his expectations…’? You are completely clueless about the essential nature of the basic relationship between cats and lower life forms (i.e., non-cats). Completely, totally, absolutely clueless. The only thing he has to do is be a cat. If you want any sort of relationship, everything else is on you.
Take my advice and stick to your fawning, sycophantic dogs.