![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Shuri attacked me tonight, but it wasn’t her fault.
We were in the kitchen and I was swinging her light-up squeaky mouse teaser and she was laying down grabbing and chewing it, when I spotted a huge (to me) spider about the size of a quarter and not a house spider crawling across the floor. I immediately went into kill-it-before-it-escapes-and-jumps-on-me- when-I-least-expect-it mode. I picked up a cardboard tray Purrsimmon sometimes sits in to squish it and failed the first time, and then all of a sudden felt claws ripping my calf and shin. Shuri had wrapped around my right lower leg and was clawing the helll out of it.
I looked at her and I don’t know if I cried “Shuri!” or “Stop!” but she let go and jumped back and I continued trying to squish the spider before it crawled under something, but I felt blood running down my leg and squishing in my slipper, Still, I was undeterred from my murderous quest and on the third or so try, I successfully squished my frightening foe. Poor thing--I am sorry for my defensive predatory ways, but can’t shake them, and don’t feel the need to against larger than small house spiders inside my home.
Breathing hard, I then assessed the damage on my leg--there was so much dripping down my leg into my slipper making an astonishing puddle! She got those claws in there deep. I proceeded over to the sink and got a paper towel and checked out the many bleeding spots on my leg and started to wipe and press at the ones that were still streaming and got them under control. Then walked over to the bathroom, my right foot sodden slipper squishing as I went--it was a lot! I took it off and cleaned up.
During this time Shuri was darting around and looking at me with her big eyes looking astonished. I gave her a good look to see if she was hurt, but she didn’t seem to be. It’s possible I stepped on her tail or foot as I was hunting the spider, but I don’t think I did and she showed no signs of it. And she would have screamed if I did so, I am sure. She just looked astonishedly at me and around.
I think what happened is that when I saw the spider, I must have started giving off a strong predatory scent or pheromones, straight from playing with her, and so she went into totally alarmed self-defense mode and attacked the scent she picked up of the hunting predator before it could get her. I don’t think she was aware that it was me--she was attacking the bigger predator she could smell before it could get her, being a proactive aggressive-in-play kitty. She didn’t act afraid of me at all afterwards, so I don’t think she realized she attacked me and was mystified at where the danger she smelled was and what happened and didn’t know she had made those wounds on my leg, as she sniffed my leg.
I’m glad she doesn’t know. We were both caught up in our instincts. I was cognizant of what I was doing and could have stopped if something more urgent came up or had other reasons to do so. But her little brain doesn’t have those reasoning brain folds, just the same emotion centers, as we both attacked what scared us.
But it was an impressive amount of blood that poured from my leg into my slipper. Since I didn’t get to see all the blood I shed from when the car hit me, I hadn’t seen that much blood since I had menstrual hemorrhages on heavy flow days. The deep claw pricks sting and will sting on and off for a day or 2 and are still bleeding a little, but I am otherwise all right, and so is my Shuri, thank goodness, but that big damned spider is no more.
How we both looked, which isn’t much different than any other day of 2020:
We were in the kitchen and I was swinging her light-up squeaky mouse teaser and she was laying down grabbing and chewing it, when I spotted a huge (to me) spider about the size of a quarter and not a house spider crawling across the floor. I immediately went into kill-it-before-it-escapes-and-jumps-on-me- when-I-least-expect-it mode. I picked up a cardboard tray Purrsimmon sometimes sits in to squish it and failed the first time, and then all of a sudden felt claws ripping my calf and shin. Shuri had wrapped around my right lower leg and was clawing the helll out of it.
I looked at her and I don’t know if I cried “Shuri!” or “Stop!” but she let go and jumped back and I continued trying to squish the spider before it crawled under something, but I felt blood running down my leg and squishing in my slipper, Still, I was undeterred from my murderous quest and on the third or so try, I successfully squished my frightening foe. Poor thing--I am sorry for my defensive predatory ways, but can’t shake them, and don’t feel the need to against larger than small house spiders inside my home.
Breathing hard, I then assessed the damage on my leg--there was so much dripping down my leg into my slipper making an astonishing puddle! She got those claws in there deep. I proceeded over to the sink and got a paper towel and checked out the many bleeding spots on my leg and started to wipe and press at the ones that were still streaming and got them under control. Then walked over to the bathroom, my right foot sodden slipper squishing as I went--it was a lot! I took it off and cleaned up.
During this time Shuri was darting around and looking at me with her big eyes looking astonished. I gave her a good look to see if she was hurt, but she didn’t seem to be. It’s possible I stepped on her tail or foot as I was hunting the spider, but I don’t think I did and she showed no signs of it. And she would have screamed if I did so, I am sure. She just looked astonishedly at me and around.
I think what happened is that when I saw the spider, I must have started giving off a strong predatory scent or pheromones, straight from playing with her, and so she went into totally alarmed self-defense mode and attacked the scent she picked up of the hunting predator before it could get her. I don’t think she was aware that it was me--she was attacking the bigger predator she could smell before it could get her, being a proactive aggressive-in-play kitty. She didn’t act afraid of me at all afterwards, so I don’t think she realized she attacked me and was mystified at where the danger she smelled was and what happened and didn’t know she had made those wounds on my leg, as she sniffed my leg.
I’m glad she doesn’t know. We were both caught up in our instincts. I was cognizant of what I was doing and could have stopped if something more urgent came up or had other reasons to do so. But her little brain doesn’t have those reasoning brain folds, just the same emotion centers, as we both attacked what scared us.
But it was an impressive amount of blood that poured from my leg into my slipper. Since I didn’t get to see all the blood I shed from when the car hit me, I hadn’t seen that much blood since I had menstrual hemorrhages on heavy flow days. The deep claw pricks sting and will sting on and off for a day or 2 and are still bleeding a little, but I am otherwise all right, and so is my Shuri, thank goodness, but that big damned spider is no more.
How we both looked, which isn’t much different than any other day of 2020:
Tags:
From:
no subject
My least favorite part of October is the sudden appearance of spiders. They traumatize me too.
*massive hugs for you*
From:
no subject
Thank you--I forgot that is an October thing as they seek shelter from the chill. Sigh. You, me, and Claudia need to stick together in the fall then. I really do appreciate how good and useful and interesting creatures spiders are, but even if I was all rational--spider bites can turn into pretty frightening health events, even not particularly poisonous ones, so there is method in this irrational fear, right?
*hugs back* Thank you. Shuri has seemed a little bit more distant today, so I’m a little concerned she may still be getting over it, but it may just be the change in temps.
From:
no subject
She is such a beauty!
From:
no subject
She is, isn’t she? Her many colors--huge blue eyes and pink, pink nose, and her amazing tail you can’t see there! Not that I’m a proud mama or anything . . .
From:
no subject
haha, a lot of predators going on right then! I'd go into predator mode if I saw a big spider scampering across my floor, too!
I've never seen Helo or Merlin go on full-on attack mode, but once when I had Helo at the vet in his carrier, someone was walking past with a dog on a leash. Unfortunately, the owner wasn't paying attention and it was one of those leashes that expand easily, and the dog ran right over to Helo's carrier before the owner noticed and pulled him away. Helo went into full on "fight" mode. I've NEVER heard that sound of fury come from him before or since. Poor baby! Then he was purring really really loudly in the vet room (I think self-soothing) and he hissed at the vet (which he never never never does! The only human he ever hisses at is M. when M. is being over-the-top handsy with him).
Oops, meant to say, I hope your owie heals up soon!
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
From:
no subject
I know that look in her eyes all too well--yess, that's the 2020 terrified-and-overwhelmed stare.