Sudden Temporary Aggression

Question
Hello Tabbi,
We have an approximately 7-year old Orange Tabby cat that we adopted from the animal shelter 4 years ago.  He has been a total sweetheart and has always had a mild temperament, spending his days lounging around & always happy for a lap to sit on.  Recently though, he has had moments where he will unexpectedly attack one of us.  He hisses & snarls, his fur stands up, and he'll try to bite and scratch at our legs.  It is completely unprovoked and has happened to my 6-year old daughter twice now and myself maybe 3 or 4 times.  He is de-clawed on his front paws so he doesn't do much harm, but it scares my daughter and this behavior is starting to worry me.  Do you have any ideas or suggestions as to what might be causing this odd behavior?

Thank you,
Lori

Answer

Lori,

If there is a sudden change in temperment, don't assume your cat is misbehaving. Sometimes a cat will suddenly act aggressive from pain or for medical reasons. Any abnormal behavior or sudden change in behavior should be checked out by your veterinarian as soon as possible.

Another reason a cat reacts like that is if he can see a stray cat out the window and can not get to him to protect his territory. The cat will then attack an animal or person in the home. It is called Redirected Aggression. The window needs to be blocked to prevent him from seeing a stray cat or permanent personality damage could occur.

I hope this helps.
Tabbi