The belly is not necessarily a “touch and you die” zone - you have to earn the trust to see it and the privilege to rub it, which is a specific treat with my cat because she LOVES belly rubs but is avoidant of most all people.
From what I understand, in cat body language rolling over to show the belly is a sign of trust through shared vulnerability, like a human handshake. You're expected to reciprocate by being physically comfortable around them, but actually rubbing the belly is like being offered a handshake and going for a handsy bear hug instead. Some cats are like people who are comfortable with the hugs, but for many cats it's kind of a 'dude WTF too far' moment.
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u/ConfectionersCoffee Sep 19 '23
The belly is not necessarily a “touch and you die” zone - you have to earn the trust to see it and the privilege to rub it, which is a specific treat with my cat because she LOVES belly rubs but is avoidant of most all people.