Pulling tails

Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?

Leah Lidtorf wrote:

Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?

"Like it"? Are you sure? My guess would be that it depends upon how
hard you pull! (A gentle tug is one thing, grabbing the cat and
suspending it by its tail is another.)

Think the difference has a lot to do with how the cat was handled when they
were kittens. When we had Mugglesworth as a kitten we didn't know or think
to get him used to his tail and paws being touched or clipped (well, we
didn't think to do it often, was more the thing). So he hates it, and will
sort of make the motion of unhappiness, hissing and struggling if we clip
his claws or touch his tail.

Kid and Inky had very different upbringings because we had a little
experience with how difficult Muggles is, so we mads sure to get the other
two used to it. We can touch/tug/rearrange their tails and clip their claws
with no problem now. In fact, we even take Inky's tail and bap him in the
face lightly with it saying "why you hittin' yerself? why you hittin'
yerself" and he just sits there or starts chasing his tail like it's a fun
game. This is because we really "manhandled" them from the beginning so
they don't mind anything being touched or clipped - seem interested in the
occassion more than anything.

Dunno, but that's just us... I'm sure there are other cases where the cats
just hate it anyway from the get-go. I think it's normal for cats to dislike
the tail being touched.

Jen.

"Leah Lidtorf" wrote in message
om...
Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?

Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?

"Like it"? Are you sure? My guess would be that it depends upon how
hard you pull! (A gentle tug is one thing, grabbing the cat and
suspending it by its tail is another.)

Well Muggles doesn't like it being touched at *all*, wherase Kid *loves* it
when I stroke her right down her back and continue down the tail with a
slight pull. She comes back for more, & gets her motor runnin!

Quite obviously not a single cat would choose to be suspended by a tail -
how dangerous!

Jen.

I don't exactly pull Jazz's tail, but I very firmly run it through my hand
from his back to the tip. He seems to like it.
Jazz & his mama

--

Irulan
from the stars we came, to the stars we return
from now until the end of time


"Leah Lidtorf" wrote in message
om...
Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?

Gizmo has a kind of a threshold....she'll'' let you tug on it...to a certain
point at which time she'll look at me as if to say "now now, I'm not made of
plasticine".

And I read somewhere that since their skull is attached to their tail it can
be quitr painful (don't know how true this is but it kinda makes sense.

--
Typed by Angela

Dictated by Gizmo (who is above the menial task of typing)

"EvelynVogtGamble(Divamanque)" wrote in
message ...


Leah Lidtorf wrote:

Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?

"Like it"? Are you sure? My guess would be that it depends upon how
hard you pull! (A gentle tug is one thing, grabbing the cat and
suspending it by its tail is another.)

(Leah Lidtorf) wrote in message . com...
Some cats bite when you pull their tails, some seem to like it.

Why?


Aren't you the same person with the cats that won't "obey"? Are you serious?
------
Krista

On Sun, 2 Nov 2003 22:32:06 -0500, "lrulan"
wrote:

I don't exactly pull Jazz's tail, but I very firmly run it through my hand
from his back to the tip. He seems to like it.
Jazz & his mama

When I groom TuTu I always include the tail -- but gently. Hard
pulling can injure the spinal cord. I use a fine comb, love glove,
or brush -- she enjoys all of them. MLB

On Sun, 2 Nov 2003 20:39:07 -0800, Gizela wrote
(in message ):

Gizmo has a kind of a threshold....she'll'' let you tug on it...to a certain
point at which time she'll look at me as if to say "now now, I'm not made of
plasticine".

And I read somewhere that since their skull is attached to their tail it can
be quitr painful (don't know how true this is but it kinda makes sense.

Well it is attached to the spine. I know from my paratrooper days that
falling on the end of our spine is extremely painful. Bruiser is not the
least bit sensitive about his tail. But as fluffy and long as it is it
is, it has drawn a lot of attention from people since early kittenhood
and he flaunts it shamelessly. I doubt he can feel much through all that
fluffy hair. Maya is pretty protective of hers.

My pet theory on why some cats will not allow their tummy to be scratched
is that they are simply ticklish.

jen.d wrote:

Well Muggles doesn't like it being touched at *all*, wherase Kid *loves* it
when I stroke her right down her back and continue down the tail with a
slight pull. She comes back for more, & gets her motor runnin!

Yeah, Roxy seems to interpret a gentle tug on her tail as an invitation,
and she usually turns around and walks toward me when I do that. She seems
to like it, or at least, she doesn't dislike it.

(I think she knows I'm writing about her - she has just marched in here and
jumped up for a cuddle - no tail-tugging necessary!)

Joyce