Things you didn't know about cats until you got one....

[Mumdiva99]

This is just for fun and might be interesting or useful.

I'll start - I didn't know cats played fetch. My beautiful blonde cat plays with a rubber orange bullet and brings it and drops it waiting for me to throw it. This can be a long game....

What have you learnt?

Over the last 8 months they've figured out how to stop me working and play with them / get them what they want.

My cat is a catnip addict, 🐈

@lljkk please tell! Mine scratches at the carpet, we bought thin plastic anti scratch mats but they just moved to scratch another area. They do it right next to 2 scratching posts too!

@Newname12

“Cat privilege” is real.

If you are chosen to be sat on by the cat, you are bestowed with cat privilege.

This means everyone else in the house has to make your cups of tea, or fetch anything you need. This is because you cannot disturb the cat unless absolutely necessary.

Oh yes yes yes !!!!!

They feel the loss of your ddog as much as you! My eldest cat has soaked up many of my tears and put a paw lovingly on my cheek or neck and snuggled in.

We have two cats. Both love DS13!

One without fail will always follow DS up to bed, watch him get ready and into bed before coming back downstairs.

The other is semi feral and not one for cuddles and kisses but she doesn't brace herself for impact or strain away when DS kisses her like she does when we manage to cuddle her! She also loves hanging out sleeping in his bed when he's loudly shouting with his friends while playing on PlayStation

Ours like nerf bullets and ping pong balls. Other than one particular feathery mouse, the basket full of cat toys is ignored.

One of them does like bubbles though, he gets all excited when we get the bottle out and will leap in the air to catch them!

@timeforawine,

There are some good internet pages so worth reading on cats scratching. It's very instinctive for them. The main triggers are eating, sleeping & pooing. Cats will especially tend to want to scratch right after or possibly just before doing those things.

Thus, ideal to have scratch surfaces that are right near where they eat/nap/defecate.

Some cats like to stretch UP to scratch. Some prefer to stretch ACROSS. need to observe which is your type of cat, and give them perfectly sited surfaces at the right orientation. Most cats like edges for scratching, to get their paws around the sides of it. It needs to be heavy enough that cat won't pull it over -- they are easily discouraged by something that falls on them So try to create heavy scratchable things with side edges near where they wake up from sleep or eat, either vertical or horizontal or both.

I made raised scratch boards covered with carpet offcuts because my main carpet killer stretches out to scratch. Carpet-killer cat is compelled to scratch within 1 minute of waking up, so important to have a scratch paid within 2metres of his favourite sleep spot(s). Since the boards have edges, they are somewhat preferable to plain carpet.

This has reduced damage to the stairs. CK-CAt still tears up carpets in one of the bedrooms if he gets locked in there for a nap (cue me tirading at kid who closed the door).

Cats can learn by copying you... I showed CK-CAT how to scratch the boards & he actually copied me. This did not work so well with Cat-2, though Cat2 does use the same boards, but he still scratches stairs. I put towels on the stairs to try to protect carpet on stairs, cats are creatures of habit so it's a job of always trying to nudge them into habit of scratching elsewhere. I have a big piece of carpet above the food bowls which cat2 sometimes uses (because he likes to stretch up for scratching). If I was any good at actually making things I would create some kind of special stair fitting extra-long scratch board that would be more attractive to Cat2 than the actual stairs are. hth

@lljkk Thank you! I seem to have 1 that scratches up and one across, both scratching posts are near where the across one naps so I'll buy a flat scratch mat for her and put it nearer the food

@Purplehatsandflowers

That they love you holding their paws and gently separating and massaging between their pads. All cats.

That they all love their little foreheads being kissed.

That they show love to your little damaged 11 year old son by nibbling his hair in bed and drooling on him whenever he is sad. (Ex feral cat who gives no-one else the time of day).

This sounds like one of my cats - he flexes his pads so you can get in between them more easily. Also loves any touch on his forehead, he'll headbutt you really hard with it and doze off in that position. He loves watching the birds, and makes chattering noises, (apparently this is them practicing the death bite!) He makes the same noises at the dog too, but seems to like him as he's always chucking his toys down the stairs, which makes the dog immensely happy.

They can feel depressed during a moult, and will purr to self soothe (like when injured) and to communicate that they're not a threat. In the wild, they would get their veggies from the stomachs of their prey, which is probably why they enjoy nibbling on grass.

@Purplehatsandflowers that's so lovely. Sounds like the perfect cat for you and your son.

@smismas never heard of cats liking bubbles. Will have to try that.

That they love you holding their paws and gently separating and massaging between their pads. All cats.

Are you trying to get someone killed here??

I’d never seen a cat’s poo before, not sure why but I just kind of thought they’d be like little nuggets (like rabbit poo but a bit bigger)

Got a bit of a surprise when I first cleaned the litter tray 🤣

@Poppins2016 - yup, my boy has better recall than my dog! When he comes bounding up the garden towards me, I’m always (in my head) singing “ booorn free, as free as the wind blows” - actually, I may sometimes sing it out loud!

I knew but had forgotten that some cats love snooker. From our sample of seven only the two toms have been snooker fiends - we’ve had girls for the last ten years but now we’ve got a boy again and he can hear the click of the balls on the telly from the other side of the house and comes running to hunt them.

@notapheasantplucker that’s not squinting it’s smiling!!! All my cats have smiled back at me when I smile with squinty eyes.
Makes them feel safe and content because they know you are too.

Abyssinians don’t mind you playing with and stroking their tails, whereas you need to be very careful with other cats.

@LadyBrienne

They have fetishes - my boy is obsessed with hair bands / ties - he will steal them from the bedside table, lounge, dining table, bathroom etc - where ever they happen to be ... he will even try to pull them from your hair if he notices that your pony tails has a hair band in it ... he runs off with them ... we never see them again ... somewhere in this house is 8 years worth of hair bands

My Boycat is like this! Yelps with joy if he sees a hair band. We had our old dishwasher replaced at the weekend, and when we moved the old one out, lo and behold there was a treasure trove of hair bands underneath it...

@Cindie943811A

Abyssinians don’t mind you playing with and stroking their tails, whereas you need to be very careful with other cats.

Very much depends on the individual cat, like belly strokes. My pair are both very content to have me play with their tails, and also both absolutely adore belly strokes. DSis's ex-cat however, would try to remove your arm at the elbow if you touched the forbidden lands of belly and tail.

No I don’t think it’s an abysinnian thing either.

All my cats have enjoyed having their tails pulled (as in stroked firmly from base to tip, not actual pulling) and played with.

That’s moggies, siamese, bengal, persians. Never had an abyssinian.

Cheddar loves having her tummy tickled.

My kitten will sit on her haunches and put her front legs up if she wants me to pick her up.

The big cat has a shit at 0530 every morning without fail.

The big cat also knows when I am on my way home and will sit in the window watching for me about 10 minutes before I get home.

We have totally perplexed the cat. He keeps setting off the security camera in the front porch, so I open the front door and let him in. He knows if he sits and mieows in the porch that the door opens but he doesn't know why other than that it's him sitting and mieowing. Unfortunately this leads to me finding a whole bunch of recordings of him crying in the porch over night because some how the evil front door is not opening.

I should point out that he has a catflap, he would just have to jump over the fence into the back garden and squeeze his fat arse through it.

My cat has black and white whiskers, she is ginger.
She dunks her paw in liquid and then licks it off.
She will also sit on my bedside table and push everything off until I stick my hand out for her to bump. She is always at the top of the stairs waiting for me when I come home.
If I go into my kitchen she expects me to put some of her biscuits on the surface and stroke her from head to tail once.
She has a plate rather than a bowl because pulling biscuits is less hassle.
If I fuss her chest, when she's sitting up she will melt and rest on my hand, same if I rub her chin, if I fuss anywhere else I take my life into my hands.

That there is nothing as enticing as an unattended bedside glass of water. So enticing they suddenly must have a drink.