Defensive Hissing Friendly Cat
For me, a cat hissing at every opportunity is a sign of chronic, defensive behavior. I had not seen this before. One of the tabby cats who visits hisses constantly. It is so engrained into his behavior that he will rub against you while hissing 😉 In the video he puts his head into my hand and hisses. Sweet but contradictory behavior. It is like a switch turning on and off rapidly because it is not working properly. He is friendly to me and head butts my face, which is a strong sign of friendliness, and hisses pretty much simultaneously.
It was a bit unnerving, at first, for me because a cat that is hissing should be treated with caution and respect. This is because he could lash out if approached. Common sense tells us to keep away and respect what he is telling us with his hisses.
Head butting is a sign of friendliness. Hissing is a signal that says, “stay away, I am dangerous”. The two signals conflict as far as I am concerned. Yet, they can happen at the same time, more or less.
To me it indicates a cat who has some manageable psychological problems. I could be wrong on that assessment but it looks like that.
[In the video you will hear a plane going over. It is landing at Heathrow about 6 miles away]
If I am correct, how did this cat end up in this almost perpetually defensive state? My theory is that his owner is not around enough so he roams and visits other houses. Entering a strange house is dangerous for a cat. So, he developed the super hiss to protect himself in these strange places.
His hiss is like a beacon. It is switched on a lot of the time sending out a warning signal to stay away.
I would call this cat problem behavior to an owner if he does it to his caretaker. A person does not want to live with a defensive cat. The ideal cat companion is confident, outgoing and friendly.
His sibling is similar but hisses less. You can see her in the video at the beginning. There may also be a problem at their home. I have wondered if the woman who owns and cares for them has a husband who does not like them. A wild guess. Alternatively, the owner is just not there and has an irresponsible attitude towards her cats. She also lets them wander across busy roads and such like.