Cats

[ishmael]

Watching a film on shy wild cats. A cervil, that is maybe the most shy, just hissed at a jackal. That hiss is universal. I've never heard a wild cat make it, haven't been that close, but I sure have a domesticated one.

Don't tread on me. smile.gif

[Domesticated_Mr. Know It All]

It seems likely that the similarity between the hiss of a cat and that of a snake
is not accidental. It has been claimed that the feline hiss is a case of protective mimicry.
In other words, the cat imitates the snake to give an enemy the impression
that it too is venomous and dangerous.
The quality of the hissing is certainly very similar. A threatened cat,
faced with a dog or some other predator, produces a sound that is almost identical
to that of an angry snake in a similar situation.
Predators have great respect for venomous snakes, with good reason,
and often pause long enough for the snake to escape.
This hesitation is usually the result of an inborn reaction.
The attacker does not have to learn to avoid snakes.
Learning would not be much use in such a context,
as the first lesson would also be the last.
If a cornered cat is capable of causing alarm in an attacker
by triggering off this instinctive fear of snakes,
then it obviously has a great advantage, and this is probably the true explanation
of the way in which the feline hiss has evolved.
Supporting the idea is the fact that cats often add spitting to hissing.
Spitting is another way in which threatened snakes react.
Also, the cornered cat may twitch or thrash its tail in a special way,
reminiscent of the movements of a snake that is working itself up to strike of flee.

[Katherine]

Heck, my cat does all that just laying on my bed. :D

[Stiletto]

That snake theory is interesting, cats here hiss too, and we have no snakes.

[ishmael]

Do you have native cats in Kiwi land?

Cats are characters. Some bad characters. Strong personalities.

Parts of Maine are seeing puma again, though there's some debate if they are truly wild or just feral pets. Can you imagine thinking you were going to keep a puma as a pet? Silly. Watching Minnie with a mouse I would not want to be around a hundred pound cat, thank you very much.

Interesting snake theory. A hissing cat does get your attention. Even a little house kitty can do some serious damage if you get on their bad side and don't intend to fight to the death. smile.gif I remember watching film of an animal control officer trying to round up a wayward house cat. The cat got very upset and took ahold of him around one thigh with all four paws and its mouth and would not let go. He was in serious pain and could not get that critter off him, short of strangling it!

[Peter Malcolm Jardine]

We have three Cats