Pinch-induced behavioral inhibition

Pinch-induced behavioural inhibition (PIBI), also called dorsal immobility, transport immobility or clipnosis, is a partially inert state that results from a gentle squeeze of the nape, the skin at the back of the neck. It is mostly observed among cats and allows a mother cat to carry her kitten easily with her jaws. It can be used to restrain most cats effectively in a domestic or veterinary context. The phenomenon also occurs in other animals, such as squirrels and mice.