After optimistically writing that post yesterday, I was treated to a display of Emerald's "bad" behaviour. It first occurred when I picked her up and took her downstairs, where she thought that she shouldn't be. So she hissed. I hissed back. She whipped her head around so fast that I think I'd have gotten a bite in the face if she'd been able to reach. I then tapped her gently on the nose, from which she recoiled and which stopped the hissing.

The next occurrence happened, again, when I picked her up. She hissed. I hissed back, and again did the light nose-tap. This time, there was no biting attempt.

That was the end of that for the day. A couple of times things happened that I think would normally have set off hissing, but she thought twice and didn't.

Today, she was lying on my lap, all blissed out, stretched over my arm and preventing me from typing. I decided to get up, and disturbed her, which provoked a gentle bite and a hiss. Repeat hiss back, repeat nose tap. That seemed to deal with it. No more episodes today, so far.

So far I think it's Me 3, Aggressive Kitty 0. The problem is that in her previous foster home, the humans were afraid of her, didn't know how to deal with her aggression, and basically let her do whatever she wanted. She has to re-learn here that the Humans are the Boss Cats, and she is the Much-Loved but Subordinate Cat.

Apart from the infrequent hissy fits, though, she is absolutely lovely. She is very vocal, gives little trilling meows, wants to be in proximity to a human 24-7, loves lap cuddles, purrs a lot, and is the sweetest little bundle of confection wrapped in a small black kitty-skin you'll ever see. I said it before, and I'll say it again, some lucky human is going to get a very special cat.