I found out that cats can be as petty as humans

Shadow the cat is intimidating

Shadow is the name my granddaughter gave to a black neighborhood cat who she says acts like a demon. He has a very distinctive growl and stands back watching the cats that come close enough for us to feed. If we don't stand outside with them and Shadow is around he will intimidate the other cats and they will run off and he will eat their food. A few days ago I was sitting on the front porch where the 3 cats who come around had eaten a snack. I was playing a game on my cell phone and when I looked up Shadow was at the .other end of the porch eating what the stray cats had left.

I recalled my husband saying cats were sneaky and realized just how right he was. I have had felines as pets since I was a teenager and never had one just creep up on me but Shadow had. He had silently made his way onto the porch where I was only about 4 feet away and began eating. Just as I snapped a picture my granddaughter came running and Shadow went off into the evening. The nerve of him to come that close when he normally growls and hisses.

Cats hold grudges like humans

The interaction between Shadow and the other cats reminds me of the way humans operate. Shadow watches as Butterscotch, Tabby, and Honey eat and drink water in the backyard. He stands in the alley or the neighbors' shrubbery and sulks as the other cats rub against our legs and we pet them. Shadow sees these kitties romping in the grass in our front and back yards. He has also watched from various areas of the neighborhood as the cats stroll behind me and my two youngest grandchildren when we go for walks.

Just like a human who may be envious of the life of another and take some type of drastic action like bullying, Shadow the Cat has chosen Tabby as his victim. Several times Tabby the orange Tabby cat would stop eating and stand behind me as if he was intimidated and I would see Shadow in the distance. Yesterday things took a bad turn between those two. My firstborn was visiting on his lunch break and said he heard a catfight and went out the front door.

Is Shadow jealous or just unable to change?

At the same time, his younger brother came into the house and said when he got out of the car he saw Shadow across the street and he jumped on top of Tabby and begin viciously attacking him and my son ran him off. Tabby was already leery of Shadow when we first noticed them and my granddaughter began giving them names but now things have gotten worse. We are not certain if Shadow belongs to anyone because he has no collar but the goes through the same yard of a house at the end of the block behind us in the alley.

I want to take Tabby to get his shots and officially adopt him as an indoor cat but haven't had the money. For now, my family will have to be on high alert when they come to visit and I will do all I can to discourage Shadow. Tabby was standoffish at first and he too growled but came around in time and only a few weeks ago he was trying to catch a turkey buzzard but there is something about Shadow that frightens him and gives me the impression that the black cat might be beyond saving.