5 ms·

I feel like teasing isn't exclusive to primates. Cats do it to each other all the time, I feel this is how they learn to stay alert and defend themselves from a

• sambazi 3y ago
  it's also the way to learn about, establish and work with personal boundaries
• freddie_mercury 3y ago
  The article is about the distinction between playful teasing and aggressive teasing. What cats do is aggressive teasing, not playful teasing. The paper talks about how aggressive teasing is well known outside of humans. The question was whether playful teasing exists outside of humans, since it requires a more fully developed concept of the other's mind. They give the example of offer & withdrawal in an affiliative context. It could be done in an aggressive manner: imagine a bully on the playground offering a ball and then taking it away. But it can also be done in a playful way: imagine a parent playing keep away with a toddler with both sides laughing the whole time. That you characterise feline teasing as about staying alert and not about building bonds further reinforces that cats aren't doing the same kind of playful teasing being described in the paper.
  • RugnirViking 3y ago
    Hmm, I think this is interesting. I went and looked at the paper and the distinction here seems very interesting. I always thought of agressive teasing type behavior as a way to probe the percieved hierarchy. Like someone only a bit above you in the hierarchy would get annoyed by it, a stranger would get hostile, someone far above would ignore you, a peer would play back etc. I do think it builds bonds though. If you watch two dogs playfighting you can see them pause occasionally, looking at each other, gauging the other's reaction. They can often go from agressive play to laying in a heap together very quickly.
  • Jensson 3y ago
    Dogs do a lot of clearly playful teasing, they signal that it is playful by wagging their tail. You see it all the time when dogs meet new dogs.
    • circuit10 3y ago
      It seems like there’s a whole thing they go through: go and sniff the other dog to make their presence known, then crouch down and wag their tail, then start running away to provoke the other dog to chase them and see if the other dog wants to and start playing if so At least that’s what I often see happen, and aggression looks quite different
      • ordu 3y ago
        I'm not sure that this is a teasing by definition of the article. Running away dog does nothing surprising for another dog. They just follow a protocol.
        • 4death4 3y ago
          My dog definitely teases me. She’ll grab one of my socks and sit in front of me with the sock laying on the floor. As soon as I go to pick it up, she’ll snatch it and run away.
          • johnchristopher 3y ago
            But is it playful or aggressive ? I often hear the behavior you describe is about the dog asserting dominance, which should be a no-no.
            • 4death4 3y ago
              Dominance theory in dogs is largely discredited.
              • johnchristopher 3y ago
  • james-revisoai 3y ago
    I don't think cats only do aggressive teasing (presumably, you are focusing on how they can treat other cats or rats/mice) Cats can be found playing with weaker animals like ducks or rabbits, and comfortable yet playful in the same nature as puppies with dogs and puppies. Lots of this teasing isn't of agressive nature, but it usually happens within the home/safe place for the animal
  • lynx23 3y ago
    Sorry, but as someone who had a cat for 14 years, I have already read too many scientific claims about cats which were obviously totally bonkers that I am inclined to no longer care what scientists figure out about cats.
    • c420 3y ago
      That suspiciously sounds exactly like something a cat would say...
      • fsckboy 3y ago
        I think we need to do a wellness check on the owner
  • mettamage 3y ago
    Rough and tumble play can still be playful. Playfulness is a state of mind, not a mode of soft play
• lynx23 3y ago
  I immediately thought about my cat as well when reading this. It was fun playing with him. And everyone who has ever been really bitten by a cat (me at the age of 10, went through the hand) knows that 99.999% of cat activities in a typical household are playful.