To scratch a cat between the ears.

When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. He had him gripped firmly by the arm, since he felt it was not safe to let him loose, and he had no immediate idea what to do with him.

But he suits the group well: their giddy mix of ork pop, jam pop, and extremely white reggae plays shamelessly to fans of cutesy college rock.

a racial slur