Odd Behavior

[Gio]

Burrl,

yeah I do consider myself lucky to have shared my life with my little angel for so long. The vet told me one that in his next life he would like to be a cat in my household since they all seem to reach a grand age . I currently have another 18 year old male cat and two younger females . Also the very first cat I ever had died when she was 14...

Originally posted by Burrl:
Gio ~

They take a piece of us when they go, don't they. You were so lucky to have her for so long. I'm a bit jealous.

I'm with zippy-kat, you had a funny prize kitty to hold down your washing machine when you were washing! I bet she never let even one washing machine get away.

I guess we can understand the pleasure she took in her self-assigned duty. After all, don't they still have vibrating beds in some motels? And she didn't even have to feed it quarters.

A very cute odd-behavior kitty story!

[This message has been edited by Burrl (edited July 14, 2000).]

[trisnic]

My cats will permanently put their balls of fur into their food dish. Rather strange.

My cat Cairo though is extremely strange. She thinks that broccoli and cucumber pieces are prey so she will run around with them, "kill" them (all the time growling at her sister if she gets close) and eventually eat the vegetables to bits. Pounce (my other kitty) likes mushy bananas, strawberries and cat grass but she does not act like a lunatic when she eats these things. I don't give my cats fruits or veggies as treats (other then cat grass) too often though.

[kbf]

I too, have a cat that likes dairy products. She will not leave the breakfat table before receiving at least two spoonfuls of milk(from the spoon). Also she will bug me till I give her some of my yogurt.

[ferret22]

My girl kitty Pandora is a silly one. We live in the country so we let our two kitties out to play during the day. At night, they are both waiting at the back door waiting to be let inside and fed. Our male cat, Panther, runs right in the house. But that silly Pandora sits on the steps and meows. She wants my husband (not me) to walk out on the steps and carry her into the house. And every night, no matter how much my husband fusses, he ends up going outside to pick up the cat. She has trained him well.

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Lisa

[KLEO]

I've read most of the stories about odd kitty cuisine including ice, broccoli, cucumbers, chips, ice cream, milk from the spoon, Wheaties, Jello, etc....

But what about rubber bands, cellophane wrapping, Q-tips and cotton balls?
Once this past Christmas I caught her with an icicle (tinsel) disappearing into her mouth, and no, I didn't get there in time, but apparently no harm done!

Luckily this isn't a steady habit, but it is quite disconcerting when it happens. I mean is she a cat or a goat? Or is she a cat pretending to be a goat, or what?

She loves to lick her feather-toys and I often wonder if--God love her--she's remembering past kittens of hers (We found each other at a shelter when she was about one year old, she's now 2 1/2). She also licks the cotton balls--as if there aren't enough problems with hairballs and such!

She's very finicky otherwise: she doesn't like cheese, haddock, certain types of her brand catfood, and I could go on.

It's not very worrisome at this stage, but I was wondering just how unusual it is????

[Burrl]

Originally posted by KLEO:
I've read most of the stories about odd kitty cuisine including ice, broccoli, cucumbers, chips, ice cream, milk from the spoon, Wheaties, Jello, etc....

But what about rubber bands, cellophane wrapping, Q-tips and cotton balls?
Once this past Christmas I caught her with an icicle (tinsel) disappearing into her mouth, and no, I didn't get there in time, but apparently no harm done!

Luckily this isn't a steady habit, but it is quite disconcerting when it happens. I mean is she a cat or a goat? Or is she a cat pretending to be a goat, or what?

She loves to lick her feather-toys and I often wonder if--God love her--she's remembering past kittens of hers (We found each other at a shelter when she was about one year old, she's now 2 1/2). She also licks the cotton balls--as if there aren't enough problems with hairballs and such!

She's very finicky otherwise: she doesn't like cheese, haddock, certain types of her brand catfood, and I could go on.

It's not very worrisome at this stage, but I was wondering just how unusual it is????

Kleo ~

Texture... It may be all about texture.

I got one of those 3-D jigsaw puzzles of a castle one Christmas. There was a prominent cautionary note included for those proud owners of cats. It warned that cats are drawn to the puzzle pieces because of their texture and were apt to eat them!

I did my best to lock up the puzzle in a room while I put it together. But... wouldn't you know it! Cats will be cats. At the first opportunity they were both stealing pieces away and trying to gobble them.

One piece was ruined but not destroyed. So now that the puzzle sits majestically completed -- one tower has "catapult damage".

There are some things cats can't resist. And a Christmas tree full of dangley "kitty toys" is high on the list!

[barbee10]

I have trouble with the drink, not the ice cubes. My Smeiko loves carbonated drinks. It's better in a cup from McDonalds with a straw in it. No cup is safe in our house. My husband and I always seem to forget too. We are minding our on business and then all of a sudden we hear. Thunk! Splash! There goes Coke all over our carpet. First he likes to watch the bubbles rise to the top. Then he wants to catch them. I love him to pieces though.

[Boingercat]

Originally posted by kbf:
Why does my cat try to bury her food?(she likes the brand) Also why does she drag everything possible into her littler box?

Two of my cats also bury their food (neither were strays or feral) when they've had enough. In fact, my Boinger will cover MY plate too, when he's had enough of my eating. Actually, if I let him, he covers just about everything. When one of my kitties throws up, he covers it with paper or whatever is in his reach. Sometimes it takes a while for me to find it...I think it's just a quirky cat behavior.

[Boingercat]

Pam, I sure can relate. I've taking to locking my two boys (Boinger and Taz) in a separate room at night. Boinger will stand over my ear at 3 a.m., and howl until I wake up. He also bats at my head to get me to turn over. As soon as I do, he leaps over me, and then bats me from behind again to get me to turn the other way! He also does that thing with carrying around a toy while making horrendous noises (he's all black, but half siamese, so just imagine his voice). He didn't start the latter until at least 6 years of age. I finally had to put him away at night, but since he's with his favorite buddy, Taz, he's usually okay with it. If he gets upset and howls, I just go in and sit with him a few minutes and then he's okay.

Hope you find something that works!

Originally posted by Pam:
Thanks for your reply Burrl regarding Andy and his nocturnal (or should I say, early morning) "capturing" of the stuffed mouse! Actually I have tried closing my bedroom door, which doesn't work as any cat owner knows. He simply scratches and scratches on the door to come in and show me his "prize." I find it is just easier to reach down and say "good boy," pat him on his head and then I roll over! That seems to be all he wants!! It is not an "every night" thing but does happen about 2-3 times a week and has just started within the past couple of months. He is such a sweetheart and such an affectionate little guy during the daylight hours, that it's easy for him to wrap me around his little paw!! And he knows it oh so well!!

[Boingercat]

Originally posted by KLEO:
I've read most of the stories about odd kitty cuisine including ice, broccoli, cucumbers, chips, ice cream, milk from the spoon, Wheaties, Jello, etc....

But what about rubber bands, cellophane wrapping, Q-tips and cotton balls?
Once this past Christmas I caught her with an icicle (tinsel) disappearing into her mouth, and no, I didn't get there in time, but apparently no harm done!

Luckily this isn't a steady habit, but it is quite disconcerting when it happens. I mean is she a cat or a goat? Or is she a cat pretending to be a goat, or what?

She loves to lick her feather-toys and I often wonder if--God love her--she's remembering past kittens of hers (We found each other at a shelter when she was about one year old, she's now 2 1/2). She also licks the cotton balls--as if there aren't enough problems with hairballs and such!

She's very finicky otherwise: she doesn't like cheese, haddock, certain types of her brand catfood, and I could go on.

It's not very worrisome at this stage, but I was wondering just how unusual it is????

Hi Kleo! My cats have been into all of those things at one time or other; they stopped being interested at about 3-4 years old. Except my 4-year old Tazzy loves q-tips, and my 10 year old Boinger still likes to eat plastic bags. All of those things are potentially dangerous, and I'm sure you know that dental floss is a major killer, but fortunately they seem to grow out of things in time.

When Boinger was a kitten, he would eat anything with fringe. One day I came home, and he had eaten the entire 2-inch fringe off a wool scarf (he was very particular, and would only indulge in natural fabrics). He would also steal my wool and cotton clothes out of the laundry basket, and drag them under the bed or into paper bags. He tried to eat the fringe off of an afghan, and would take the clothes off of my stuffed bear using his teeth! (He was my first kitten, and as I write this I'm slowly remembering why I swore off kittens after him; of course, I've had 4 since!) The worst was the day I came home and found tampons (unused!) unwrapped and strewn about my aparment--it turns out that the plumber was there that day; I never found out whether he was there before or after....

Sheesh, that Boinger was such a little devil. He would wake me up by standing on my neck and licking my eyelids until I screamed in pain!

The good thing is that he grew into a huge mushcat, who loves to be held, and who takes care of kittens better than most momcats. He loves to lick them and clean them and carry them around by the scruff of their necks. And when it's time for some loving, he thinks nothing of flinging his 16 pound body from the floor to your shoulder. He's a true lovekitty.

Sorry I digressed. I just love my furbabies!
They're better than t.v! Good luck with the weird eating of things....


[This message has been edited by Boingercat (edited August 22, 2000).]

[Boingercat]

Originally posted by trisnic:
My cats will permanently put their balls of fur into their food dish. Rather strange.

My cat Cairo though is extremely strange. She thinks that broccoli and cucumber pieces are prey so she will run around with them, "kill" them (all the time growling at her sister if she gets close) and eventually eat the vegetables to bits. Pounce (my other kitty) likes mushy bananas, strawberries and cat grass but she does not act like a lunatic when she eats these things. I don't give my cats fruits or veggies as treats (other then cat grass) too often though.

Hey, trisnic, my Sale kitty (who died last year of cancer) use to do that to vegetables! Broccoli was her second favorite (asparagus was her first). Unfortunately, she didn't always finish eating them, and there's nothing like stepping on a piece of cold broccoli in the middle of the night. She use to eat the middle out of cooked zucchini slices and would leave the rinds strewn about. And she would make those "killing" noises while she carried them around the house. I guess I should have expected all this--when I found her, she was under a chair at a garage Sale eating canteloupe!

[SilverStorm]

Uh,is it normal for a cat to sleep on the back of the computer monitor and occasionally bat at the screen by hanging down in front of it?

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( * ^_^ * )
=6,~=
SilverStorm,Siamese Lover

[lhg0962]

We always think of dogs as the ones with all the antics. Not so!!! My cat, who is well seasoned, love q-tips and will tip the trash over every morning to find them. But, I will also admit to the occasional glass of chardonay. That cat will seek out a glass of wine in a minute! I have to put a napkin over the glass if she is inside. Otherwise I don't know what would happen to my little gir.!

[lhg0962]

We always think of dogs as the ones with all the antics. Not so!!! My cat, who is well seasoned, love q-tips and will tip the trash over every morning to find them. But, I will also admit to the occasional glass of chardonay. That cat will seek out a glass of wine in a minute! I have to put a napkin over the glass if she is inside. Otherwise I don't know what would happen to my little girl.!

[luvkittycats]

Originally posted by Burrl:
(Note: Too many smilies necessary on this one, so I decided to let you figure out where they belong in your reading of this.)

When we got our second cat at age 8 months from the same litter as our first at 8 weeks we had no idea how different she was to her brother, or from any cat we'd ever known. We hadn't an inkling about her affinity to ice.

We weren't forewarned. But later, too late, we were told "Oh yeah, don't leave her alone with an unguarded drink with ice in it!"

Yeah... She goes fishing! And when she gets a cube out (after a splashy mess) she plays with it like a toy, swatting it around the room and chasing it. When it melts down half way she loses interest in it and complains, like "Where can I get an ice cube that doesn't melt?"

She would even go fishing in the sink after someone dumps ice there. No ice was safe!

After months of guarding our iced drinks I got a notion: Why not just give her ice? Won't that possibly change this bad behavioral tendancy?

So I did! I tossed it across the room... She scampered after it, put it in her mouth and returned it just like a retriever would, laying it at my feet. Then she looks up at me with a meow "Do it again please, please!"

This led to many sessions of fetch the ice until it would melt too much or she lost it under furniture after batting it around before returning it. The most consecutive ice fetches she has ever done (I've counted them for the record) was 21! It's real good excercise for her since she is an indoor cat.

If that wasn't enough, that ice-greedy little girl would beg at the refrigerator ice dispenser every time we were getting ice for ourselves. Of course she would get her heart's desire every time.

Well, then her fettish went to another level: She fell in love with the refrigerator! OK, maybe not love as we know it, but a major infatuation. She watches the refrigerator after we have an "ice session". She knows that the ice maker will kick in and make an ice-dumping sound, then a refilling the ice cube making chamber sound.

This infatuation didn't stop there. She would come running into the kitchen any time the refrigerator's compressor would start or stop... any noise at all! She would lay in watch and fascination for hours as the refrigerator's compressor whurred. She was certain there was something alive in there.

Once I took the bottom grill off for her to see that there really wasn't something alive in there... didn't work. She still wants to know where that thing is hiding every time I open the fridge door or move it for cleaning. There's no convincing her!

OK, get this! She has taken to trying to reach the ice dispenser for herself! Can you imagine? Getting her own limitless ice cubes?

I've been tempted to put a chair next to it so she could actually perform this odd-ball behavior on film for a submission to one of those "Funniest Videos" shows. But I let my senses rule here. It would be like opening pandora's box! Thoughts of stepping barefoot into a lake of melted ice cubes around the refrigerator in the morning dissuade me.

And still -- No iced drink is safe in our house!

Tell me folks... Is this weird or do you have cats with similar behavior? Let us hear your odd-ball stories.

I feel your laughter!! LOL!! We love to put an ice cube in our cats bowl becuz the "baby" cat will actually fish it out of the bowl!! When it comes out~he proceeds to play soccer w/ the ice!! Shoot, as far as that goes he is the same way w/ the dry cat food! If his paw can get it-soccer begins!!