Firstly, I don't think it's just the 15 minutes outside. I think it's the entire sequence of events, from Tuesday on. Cats don't like change, and change in the pattern of our behavior freaks them out. It took something more dramatic (your accidentally leaving the door up, etc.) for you to notice it, but I bet something was brewing already. Don't know why the change in dominance, though. Hope things settle down for you and them, and they work out their stuff. By the way, one thing that often does something like this in our house is a change in the weather, the likes of which you don't have down there. If for some reason the house gets really cold (10-day power outage, us accidentally leaving the heat off after a particularly warm day), the cats become feral, I swear. They run around like lunatics with little or no notice of what or whom they are running over. It's hilarious unless you're trying to sleep.
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Don't know why the change in dominance, though. Hope things settle down for you and them, and they work out their stuff. By the way, one thing that often does something like this in our house is a change in the weather, the likes of which you don't have down there. If for some reason the house gets really cold (10-day power outage, us accidentally leaving the heat off after a particularly warm day), the cats become feral, I swear. They run around like lunatics with little or no notice of what or whom they are running over. It's hilarious unless you're trying to sleep.