The loose skin around the nape of a cat's neck is called "scruff." Picking up a cat by this slack skin is called "Scruffing."
Scruffing could also be painful and dangerous for the cat. Since the animal is raised off the floor or table by her neck skin alone.
A strong hold of skin at the base of the cat's neck is surely painful. Suspending a person's weight from the nape of their neck can be painful.
Scruffing can trigger the sympathetic (fight or flight) response, which heightens feelings of anxiety and tension.
Being restrained and unable to move might lead to the cat "associating that surroundings, person/people, and circumstance with fear."
Scruffing can make a cat nervous. When that dread reaches a particular level, the kitty will most likely defend herself by biting or scratching.
In addition to being uncomfortable, scruffing can cause injury if the handler is not careful. Cats may respond with fear, causing a person to inadvertently drop a cat.
Scruffing effectively immobilizes a cat and is an unpleasant sensation. This causes felines to acquire unpleasant feelings toward the person who is scruffing them.