‘Redirected aggression’ in dogs and cats

Suzanne Hetts and Daniel Estep Special to the Times

Years ago, two dogs in a fenced backyard became quite agitated as we approached while walking our two Dalmatians, Mocha and Katie. One of those dogs jumped on his companion and began growling while biting her neck. At the same time Mocha jumped Katie and did the same thing.

None of the dogs were injured because the biting was very inhibited and both Mocha and the fenced dog calmed down and stopped biting their companions as soon as we were past the yard. Both of these pairs of dogs continued to get along and be friends before and after this episode.

There was a much different outcome with a similar situation involving one of our cat consultations. Two family cats, who despite years of a friendly relationship suddenly could not be in the same room without one attacking the other. This was the result of one cat, Oreo, coming up the basement stairs to see a free-ranging neighborhood cat clinging to the screen door in the backyard. Oreo, unable to attack this intruder, instead launched himself at his friend and housemate, Whitey, who was calmly sitting nearby in the kitchen.

When the owners called us for help several days later, they had been forced to keep the cats separated, because they would immediately try to attack each other on sight. It required three months of careful counter-conditioning and gradual reintroduction for the cats to be able to get along again.

Both incidents are examples of redirected aggression. This occurs when the recipient of aggressive behavior is different from the individual that precipitated it. In our examples, the dogs in the backyard were the trigger for Mocha’s aggression, but Katie was the recipient. Similarly, poor Whitney did nothing to provoke Oreo’s aggression, but was the target of his attack after he became angry in reaction to the presence of the outdoor cat. We’ve even had cases in which cats seem to have become aroused and angry merely in reaction to the smells and sounds of another cat and redirected their response to their housemates or even their owners.

In our experience, it seems more common for cats to experience lasting problems in their relationships after a redirected episode than do dogs. And cats seem to be more susceptible to showing redirected behavior than dogs. We don’t know for sure the reasons for these diff erences, but it’s likely they have to do with the inherent differences in the social behaviors of dogs and cats.

Cats, while they can form social bonds with other cats, are naturally solitary. As a species, they don’t have the group structures and breadth of social behaviors dogs and wolves have. Consequently, their ability to repair relationships is very limited compared to dogs.

Both dogs and cats can redirect aggression to people as well. We’ve seen more cases of redirected aggression from cats resulting in injuries to people than episodes involving dogs.

Depending on the eliciting event, redirected aggression can be very easy to prevent, or almost impossible. In our example above, we could have easily avoided walking our dogs past the yard with the other dogs. A free roaming neighborhood cat can be trapped and taken to a shelter if an owner can’t be identified. The possibility of redirected aggression is another reason to not allow your cats to roam free.

Because cats are so easily triggered by odors, the unfamiliar odors clinging to a cat after a visit to the veterinarian or groomer can trigger redirected aggression from housemates. We advise owners to take preventative steps and separate the returning cat from feline housemates for several hours. Rub the returning cat with a towel that has first been rubbed on the other family cats, and then carefully supervise the reintroduction of the cats to help prevent aggressive encounters.

Dogs can occasionally show redirected behavior to each other in response to a visitor at the door. Such problems can be prevented by better management procedures, by counter-conditioning the dogs’ responses to visitors and by training alternative behaviors to replace running uncontrollably to the door.

Redirected behavior can be the cause of serious aggression problems, so it pays to know what it is, some of the circumstances that most commonly elicit it and ideas to prevent it.

(Suzanne Hetts and Daniel Estep are certified animal behaviorists and part-time residents of the Gunnison Valley.)

Daddy Daughter Dance

Join us for the fifth annual Daddy Daughter Dance hosted by Mothers of Preschoolers (MOPS) and Moms Next on Feb. 4 from 6-8 p.m. at Webster Hall, 107 N. Iowa St. in Gunnison. Tickets are $20 for father and daughter and $5 for each additional daughter. Price includes DJ, desserts, refreshments and photos.

Move the Butte 2023

Move the Butte 2023 returns on Feb. 23-25. The CB Dance Collective’s wildly creative signature production showcases over 100 local adult choreographers and dancers of all levels. This year’s show will happen at the CB Center for the Arts and will feature a stunning variety of dance modalities including tap, lyrical, contemporary, acro, pop, hip hop, ballet, aerial dance and more. Tickets go on sale Feb. 6 on the CB School of Dance website, dancecrestedbutte.org.

Auditions for ‘Silent Sky’

The Crested Butte Mountain Theatre will be holding auditions for its production of Lauren Gunderson’s “Silent Sky” on Jan. 29 from 5-7 p.m. and Jan. 30 from 6-8 p.m. at the Mallardi Cabaret upstairs in the Old Town Hall. Based on a true story, the play is centered on Henrietta Leavitt, one of three women who are credited with breaking the glass ceiling in astronomy at Harvard Observatory in the early 20th century. No prior preparation is required, since it is a cold reading audition. The cast consists of four women (two in their 30s, one in her 40s, one in her 50s) and one male in his 30s. Production dates are March 2-5 and 9-11. The play will be directed by Paul Edwards. For more information call the CBMT office at 970.349.0366 or email paul@cbmountaintheatre.org.

Gunnison Nordic Club

The next Moonlight Ski will be Feb. 4 at Van Tuyl, starting at our wonderful new library.

All of the grooming and club activities are done by volunteers who devote about 3,000 hours per year to keep rails skiable, provide nordic lessons and outings for skiers of all ages. Trail grooming reports, membership information and events can be found at gunnisonnordic. com. Contact Gunnison Nordic at gunnisonnordic@gmail. com. Follow on Facebook and Instagram.

Crested Butte Center for the Arts fundraiser

Please save the date, Feb. 18, for this year’s Crested Butte Ski Patrol Community Fundraiser at the Center for the Arts, in Crested Butte. Will it be a “Wall to Wall” party or will we need to adjust some attitudes? Only time will tell ... But one thing we do know is that this is a great thing for the community and it will be a fun night you won’t want to miss.

World Youth Day fundraising event

World Youth Day will be selling a variety of foods on Jan. 29 starting at 11:30 a.m.at 400 W. Georgia Ave. This event is to help support their trip to Lisbon, Portugal.

Easy Jim in Almont

Celebrate the live Grateful Dead experience with Easy Jim

Briefs

at the Almont Resort Jan. 28 for the 2023 Snowdance Winter Concert series put on by the I Bar Ranch. Local acoustic guitar and bass duo, The Woodshed, opens the show at 6:15 p.m. and Easy Jim takes the stage at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 the day of and they can be purchased at thealmontresort. com/music.

Improv theater

Join us at the Mallardi Cabaret Theatre for “Subject to Change,” an improv comedy bonanza, presented by Crested Butte Mountain Theatre.

Upcoming all ages shows are: Feb. 4 and 11 at 5 p.m. for $5

Upcoming age 18-and-over shows are: Jan. 31, Feb. 4, 7 and 11 at 7:30 p.m. for $10. The Feb. 11 show will be an improv rendezvous featuring Subject to Change and Left Right TIM from CU Boulder. Tickets can be purchased and cbmountaintheatre.org.

National Honor Society

On Feb. 9, the Gunnison High School National Honor Society and Student Leadership Council will host a volleyball game between staff members of GHS and the Gunnison Community School. The game will be held in the GHS gym at 6 p.m. to help gather food donations for the Gunnison Country Food Pantry during this season of giving and kindness.

The entrance fee will be a non-perishable food item or $2. There will also be a bake sale during the game to raise money for the 2023 prom.

Come enjoy some sweet treats and witness the greatest standoff between the teachers of our community.

The Science of Pickles: sauerkraut

In this class on Jan. 28 from 12-2 p.m. you will learn pickling science from the very basics. The class will begin with a half hour presentation followed by a demonstration and finally everyone making their very own sauerkraut. You will go home with knowledge that can be applied to a variety of foods along with a 2L Fido jar filled with pounds of product. Sauerkraut samples will also be provided.

The instructor is Jeff Deutrich and the cost is $80 or $68 for members.

Adults intro to wheel throwing

Join us 5:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m. on Jan. 30 for this one-time wheel throwing class. In this class, students will get introduced to wheel throwing and will focus on centering, pulling and shaping their own masterpiece. Students with a range of throwing abilities are welcome. Registration fee includes clay, tools, slip, glaze, kiln firing and instruction.

The cost is $72 for nonmembers and $62 for members.

Daytime throwing

Join us Wednesdays from 10 a.m.-1 p.m. Feb. 1-22 for daytime throwing. Students will be taught centering, wheel throwing and trimming techniques. All ability-ranges welcome.

The instructor is Abra Karbin and the cost is $230 for non-members and $192 for members.

Homeschool mixed media

In this six week class, Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., Feb. 1 to March 8, students will explore various media including watercolor, sculpture, weaving and more. Instructor: Kit Wijkowski. The cost is $195 and $165.75 for members.

Adults intro to throwing

If you’re a beginner and have been interested in wheel throwing this class is for you! Thursdays, 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Feb. 2-23 students will be taught centering, wheel throwing and trimming techniques. Registration fee includes clay, tools, slip, glaze, kiln firings and instruction. Ages 12+ are welcome in this class.

The instructor is Paige Stewart and the cost is $230 for non-members and $192 for members.