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Cat Behaviour Myths and Facts

Correcting Popular Misconceptions About Felines

Nov 5, 2008

There are many persistent myths regarding feline intentions, most of which stem from a misunderstanding of cat behaviour.

Are cats loners? Will a tom cat kill his kittens if he gets the chance? Why do cats always seem to make a beeline for the one person in the room who doesn’t like cats? Here are the answers to some common cat-related questions.

Myth: Cats Demand Attention When Their Owners are on the Phone Because They’re Jealous.

Fact: The cat hears her owner talking on the phone and because there is no one else in the room, she assumes that the owner is talking to her and responds accordingly.

Myth: Cats Sulk When They’ve Been Scolded.

Fact: Staring is perceived as a challenge among cats. A cat that has been scolded feels inferior and possibly fearful as well. He will turn away and avoid looking at his owner because he doesn’t want to provoke any further hostility. Walking away and refusing to make eye contact is a sign of surrender rather than passive-aggressive anger.

Myth: Feeding a Cat Well will Cause Her to Lose Her Hunting Skills.

Fact: Hunting is both an instinct and a talent. All cats have the instinct to hunt. Cats train their kittens to hunt, and they practice hunting skills with cat toys, household objects, or other animals and people in the household. Some cats are naturally better hunters than others, but this has nothing to do with how much they are fed.

Myth: If a Cat Pees on the Floor, Rubbing His Nose in the Mess will Prevent Future Problems.

Fact: Rubbing a cat’s nose in it will actually increase the likelihood of future accidents because it increases the anxiety that may have caused the problem in the first place.

Myth: Cats Like to Torment Those Who Dislike or Fear Them.

Fact: Those who like cats tend to stare at them, whereas cats perceive a direct stare as a challenge, particularly from people they don’t know well, and whose reactions they can’t anticipate as easily. Thus, the cat makes a beeline for the one person in the room who is not staring at her.

Myth: Female White Cats are Not Good Mothers.

Fact: Many cats with white fur and blue eyes are deaf, and thus may not hear the calls of their kittens. However, deaf cats can be good mothers because they become sensitive to sound vibrations and visual cues in order to compensate for the handicap.

Myth: Cats Only Purr if They’re Happy.

Fact: Cats that are sick or in pain will purr, both to speed the healing process and to appease any potential aggressors. A cat that feels threatened may also purr in the hopes of diffusing the other’s aggression. A cat may even purr when dying.

Myth: Tom Cats Will Always Kill Kittens.

Tom cat behaviour is highly variable. A male cat may ignore his kittens, care for them, or kill them. Often, he’s not given the chance to show what he would do because the mother cat drives him away. However, if he’s allowed to interact with them, a tom cat may actually take good care of his kittens. Tom cats have been observed guarding their offspring and even supplying them with food, and there are a couple of explanations for this behaviour. A tom cat may nurture his kittens because he has feelings for them, or he may do it to encourage the mother cat to become less involved with them and thus go into heat sooner, providing another mating opportunity.

Myth: Cats Are Solitary Creatures.

Fact: Among barn cats and feral cats, cats hunt alone, but usually live in a matrilineal colony that includes a mother cat and her daughters and granddaughters. Male cats tend to leave the clans when they are around 18 months old to go off in search of fertile, unrelated females.

Domesticated kittens that are not taken away from their littermates for at least 10 weeks after birth are more likely to be comfortable living in multicat households as adults. Those taken away too soon often have trouble getting along with other cats because they have been deprived of socialization opportunities with their siblings.

Myth: Cats Use Their Whiskers for Balance.

Fact: Whiskers act as feelers; they have no effect on balance. A cat uses her whiskers to judge whether or not she’ll fit through an opening, so a cat’s whiskers should never be trimmed.