Expert: Dear Tabbi - 7/19/2008

Question
my male (neutered) cat is 7. we have had him since a kitten. he is very affectionate and has always loved cuddles. but recently when he "pads" he seems to go into a trance and if i move he seems angry and bites me. it is not an affectionate bite and although he drops his ears and hisses he doesnt break the skin. he jusy grabs my skin and pinches really hard. he sometimes does this at night when i am asleep and he has recently bit my face. we moved house 10 months ago but he seems settled. however, there is another cat hanging around our garden and it appears to be trying to move in with us.but he doesnt seem to mind.the behaviour is distressing because i am becoming afraid of having him on my knee or picking him up and this is upsetting him. he is following me around the house meowing to be picked up.

Answer
Marion,

It could be a number of possibilities.

When a cat, especially one that is older (he is approximately 44 years old in human years), has a noticable behavior change it could be a medical issue causing him pain. Following you around and meowing, and biting are common reactions to pain. I would take him to a vet for an exam to rule out a medical problem.

He may have "Redirected Aggression". That happens when a cat sees a strange cat outside and  becomes territorial, but can't get to the strange cat to defend his territory. Normally they will fight with a resident animal, but if there isn't another animal in the house then they can turn on the owners. If that is it you need to block the window that he can see the strange cat out of. If it continues it can cause a permenant personality change.

He can also be smelling a female in heat in the neighborhood and reacting to it, even though he is neutered and an inside cat. They can't do anything physically, but they can mentally. If that is the case, his behavior will stop when the female is bred (unless there are more females in heat).

I hope this helps.

Tabbi