Published on January 20, 2006

A few years ago, when I first introduced one-eyed Angel to the rest of my cat-herd, I put her in a large cage under my desk to reduce the stress when the resident cats met her.

The ladies carefully checked her out before they wandered away for a snooze, but my big boy Pan-Pan was not that tolerant. He took one look at the new kitten and jumped up on the fridge, where he moaned mournfully, as in: “We don’t need another cat! You already have me!”

I stood on my toes to reach up to the fridge to comfort him, but in a flash, he leaned over and socked me on the side of my face. Then he hissed at me, jumped down and ran under the sofa. I sported a shiny black eye for days.

Non-cat-lovers recoil when I tell them about Pan-Pan’s boxing career. The idea of a cat injuring his owner is too much for them. Cat-lovers are much more understanding. The whole point, you see, is that, during that swing, Pan-Pan kept his claws retracted. He had actually pulled his punch, his gentle nature minimising his instinct to use his paw and claws to their full extent.

Here is a real difference between cats and dogs. Bella, the friendly pup in last week’s column, offers her paw to you as a sign of trust, a way of telling you that she considers you much higher in status than she is. Pan-Pan, however, would never offer you a paw to indicate status. His instinct, bequeathed to him by those mighty hunters, his ancestors, tells him that his paws (and claws) are his only means of survival. Without them, he cannot hunt. Paws are not for sharing.

As an interesting fact, Pan-Pan used his left forepaw when he hit me. According to one of my cat books, research reveals that out of 100 cats, 40 are left-pawed, 20 are right-pawed and 40 are ambidextrous. Out of 100 humans, only 10 are left-handed, 90 are right-handed, with the number of ambidextrous people being extremely low.

Mother cats use their paws (with or without extending their claws) to admonish their kittens, batting a recalcitrant kid around to teach him manners. It may be that Pan-Pan puts me in this category – a junior feline when I disturb his comfort zone.

I’m not even a top cat when I’m providing him with his favourite food. If I’m too slow dishing out the chicken, that paw comes out and he bats me fretfully on the hand, telling me to hurry up.

Cats, who never form packs the way dogs do, have developed other ways to show status and friendship. Rolling over to show his belly, slowly opening and shutting his eyes in a gentle gaze at me, curling up near me when I’m sick, all these Pan-Pan does charmingly – and he keeps his claws sheathed.

He just doesn’t do paws, unless he’s play-fighting with Angel, who became his best friend three days after they met.

n Questions about your pets? Fax (02) 751 4446 or e-mail laurie@nationgroup.com.

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