Things We May Never Understand About Cats

Our feline pals are full of adorable quirks, which is one reason they just never stop making us laugh. For instance, one kitty may be obsessed with eating wallpaper, another may shred your toilet paper, and one may go bananas over playing with a crumpled piece of paper. While each of these little furballs is unique, they do share a few common quirks. A local Louisville, KY vet lists some of them in this article.

Box Obsession

If you put an empty box down before your feline buddy, there’s a pretty good chance that she’ll immediately hop into it. The official line of thinking is that Fluffy feels safe in small spaces. Fair enough. However, that doesn’t explain why cats will smoosh themselves into boxes that are way too small, or why they are attracted to invisible boxes which are really just an outline of tape on the floor.

Knocking Things Off Tables

Fluffy will sometimes hop onto a coffee table or desk, and then just start smacking random objects onto the floor. This could be a water bottle, a pen, or just anything that’s in range. You may also notice your feline pal looking quite smug when she does this. Our best guess is that this is a rather blatant (and perhaps slightly rude) way of asking for attention.

Clacking

Have you ever watched what happens when Fluffy notices a bird or chipmunk outside? She may immediately switch gears into predator mode, and start making weird clacking noises with her teeth. We suspect that this is a transmission issue that happens when kitties go from ‘pampered pet’ to ‘serial killer’ mode.

Ambushes

Kitties are very playful, which is one reason they’re just so much fun to have around. Fluffy sometimes amuses herself by hiding behind a chair or door, and then racing out at you when you walk past. This is probably your tiny lion practicing her hunting skills … or plotting your demise.

Tail Position

Here’s a fun fact about our feline buddies. There’s no physical difference between domestic, feral, and stray cats. However, only pet kitties walk with their tails upright. Strays and ferals let theirs drop behind them. As far as we can tell, this may be Fluffy’s version of a ‘taken’ sign going up on a cab: she’s letting other cats know that she has human servants. (That would be you.)

Do you have questions about your cat’s health, behavior, or care? Contact us, your Louisville, KY pet clinic, anytime!