It's clear that my new 10-year-old cat Bella has learned that she sometimes has to use her claws and teeth to defend herself or get what she wants from her human, sometimes even engaging in lightning attacks. We are still learning how to negotiate with each other how we will live in this space we must share. It's harder since we cannot communicate in words, and have to learn from actions.

I guess this is good training for how to deal with people, including some mental health professionals, who have unresolved issues and do not know that that is the case. It can be quite tough.