Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you • Hacker News Board

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#41

Post by walrus01 » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:41 PM UTC

edoceo wrote: post #38

K0balt wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually up to a weight for weight match or even more in the case of lighter humans, a single dog is trivial to defeat in combat unless it is properly trained to never fully engage and only to tear and dash. If a person reacts aggressively and not trying to escape, a dog is easily defeated. Just have to protect your throat and keep facing the dog. Allow it to grab you on a limb , preferably a hand or arm, and you hav…

> Humans have three mouths What?

I'm picturing some sort of lovecraftian horror of human/dog/multi mouth dog hybrid

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#42

Post by jrururufuf666 » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:42 PM UTC

leetcrew wrote: post #19

there's also the obvious fact that a cat isn't a credible threat to a human. there's no point in "punishing" a creature that weighs 15-25 times as much as you do. would you try to "punish" an elephant if you were unarmed? conversely, any creature that a cat can credibly deter is not a lethal threat to a human. I imagine a large dog understands, at least on some level, that it can actually win a fight against a human.…

a house-cat can easily kill a human.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#43

Post by Udik » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:43 PM UTC

The experimental setup seems a rather subtle social interaction, difficult to parse and pretty far away from "a stranger that harms you".

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#44

Post by 252452d » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:43 PM UTC

pestatije wrote: post #3

They don't bring the stick back either

My cat fetches, very consistently. Most days I make him run and leap over things to fetch a throwing toy that he likes. I've known two others that do too.

My cat defends me too, or at least fights off the local strays at the door. But he just likes to fight in general.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#45

Post by WarOnPrivacy » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:48 PM UTC

My take is this. Dogs are pack animals who defend threats to the group. Cats are colony animals who respond to threats to the zone.

I'm fairly sure both consider their owners to be one of their own species.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#46

Post by 252452d » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:49 PM UTC

DiabloD3 wrote: post #17

atkbrah wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Back in the 90s we had a cat that liked to play fetch. Every now and then it would come to you with a bobble (a hairy ball) and you were supposed to throw it and it would bring it back (it would even drop it to your open hand). She also liked to eat cheese puffs.

Every one of my cats liked to play that way. It was like a video game form of play hunting to them. I miss all of those furry assholes.

Yes, many of mine too.

Sometimes mixed in with their usual exercise I'll throw the toy (a piece of a padded envelope wrapped around a plastic straw) into some unexpected places and they seem to like the challenge of finding it. My one current cat that fetches will search for something for a few minutes even and carries it back every time.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#47

Post by theonemind » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:49 PM UTC

edoceo wrote: post #38

K0balt wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually up to a weight for weight match or even more in the case of lighter humans, a single dog is trivial to defeat in combat unless it is properly trained to never fully engage and only to tear and dash. If a person reacts aggressively and not trying to escape, a dog is easily defeated. Just have to protect your throat and keep facing the dog. Allow it to grab you on a limb , preferably a hand or arm, and you hav…

> Humans have three mouths What?

Guessing it's a metaphor indicating that a human hand can accomplish the offensive goals of a dog's mouth, and so can the human's mouth.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#48

Post by WarOnPrivacy » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:53 PM UTC

jrururufuf666 wrote: post #42

leetcrew wrote: post #19

there's also the obvious fact that a cat isn't a credible threat to a human. there's no point in "punishing" a creature that weighs 15-25 times as much as you do. would you try to "punish" an elephant if you were unarmed? conversely, any creature that a cat can credibly deter is not a lethal threat to a human. I imagine a large dog understands, at least on some level, that it can actually win a fight against a human.…

a house-cat can easily kill a human.

Soul killing doesn't count.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#49

Post by AltruisticGapHN » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:54 PM UTC

I’ve been amazed by how playful and responsive some cats are on YouTube. I noticed one thing common in all these videos, or streams also on Twitch : you can see that these cats receive attention and are loved very much, they are treated with respect and get lots of interaction.

Re: Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you

#50

Post by corobo » Sat, Apr 10, 2021, 3:55 PM UTC

jrururufuf666 wrote: post #42

leetcrew wrote: post #19

there's also the obvious fact that a cat isn't a credible threat to a human. there's no point in "punishing" a creature that weighs 15-25 times as much as you do. would you try to "punish" an elephant if you were unarmed? conversely, any creature that a cat can credibly deter is not a lethal threat to a human. I imagine a large dog understands, at least on some level, that it can actually win a fight against a human.…

a house-cat can easily kill a human.

Maybe a paralysed human.. really?

While I'd never want to try it a swift punt would end a cat attack surely