There is nothing more relaxing than stroking a furry one, right? And less when he looks at you with those sweet little eyes so pretty. But if we have never lived with a feline before, we may not know well when to pet a cat.
This behavior shown in a bad situation can cause us harm. To avoid it, it is very important to know our dear four-legged friend well to be able to anticipate their reaction.
When can you CAN pet a cat?
First of all, let's see when we can spend a few minutes caressing our furry without having to take any risk. Well, these situations are actually several, as we explain below:
- When he is sleeping by our side peacefully: this is a very special moment, because the furry one is relaxed. Of course, the caresses have to be soft and slow.
- When he's sitting next to us and watching us curiously: at this time we can caress him without problem, although perhaps he is more interested in what we hold by the hand.
- When he approaches waving: for example, if we are working with the computer and it approaches with a »meow».
- When it looks calm: if our furry looks calm, we can caress him without problem.
When can you NOT pet a cat?
Although there are few inappropriate situations to caress him, we have to respect them since otherwise he could scratch us. They are as follows:
- During a fight, or if you are angryIf he growls or snorts, we do not have to treat him as if he were a human baby, but what we will do is leave him alone and let him go somewhere to relax. In the event that it is fighting or that it is going to do it, we will try to scare both animals by making a loud noise, or going at a fast pace towards them.
- While eating: there are many cats that do not like to be petted while they eat, and can react aggressively.
- While in the sandbox: of course, if he is using his litter box we don't have to pet him either, unless he is a kitten who is learning to use it, in which case we can give him caresses as a reward.
We hope this article is useful for you 🙂.