I've been noticing an interesting behavior with Casper which has me scratching my head.
When I try to play with him or, sometimes, just approach him in order to pet him, he'll run to attack one of his scratching posts. (We have two scratching posts for Casper.)
Casper has always been a skittish cat, especially around me (the man-human) but even around his favorite girl-human. He is the only cat that I have had that is so skittish. I know that this is because Casper was abandoned outdoors by his former humans so I don't blame him for this kind of behavior. (I'd probably behave that way if I was abandoned! )
Casper is the sweetest, most well-behaved cat I have ever known. He rarely makes noise. He is fastidious about using his litter box. He doesn't jump onto the kitchen counter. (The only place that is off-limits to him.) He doesn't destroy furniture. The only thing more that I could want would be for Casper to be more outgoing and playful.
I often get the impression that Casper wants to play but isn't quite sure.
I wonder whether Casper's behavior isn't a form of sublimation for the "fight or flight" response... i.e. He wants to play but is afraid to so he runs away and scratches on his scratching post as substitute.
What do you think?
When I try to play with him or, sometimes, just approach him in order to pet him, he'll run to attack one of his scratching posts. (We have two scratching posts for Casper.)
Casper has always been a skittish cat, especially around me (the man-human) but even around his favorite girl-human. He is the only cat that I have had that is so skittish. I know that this is because Casper was abandoned outdoors by his former humans so I don't blame him for this kind of behavior. (I'd probably behave that way if I was abandoned! )
Casper is the sweetest, most well-behaved cat I have ever known. He rarely makes noise. He is fastidious about using his litter box. He doesn't jump onto the kitchen counter. (The only place that is off-limits to him.) He doesn't destroy furniture. The only thing more that I could want would be for Casper to be more outgoing and playful.
I often get the impression that Casper wants to play but isn't quite sure.
I wonder whether Casper's behavior isn't a form of sublimation for the "fight or flight" response... i.e. He wants to play but is afraid to so he runs away and scratches on his scratching post as substitute.
What do you think?