It’s practically a reflex. When people tell me why they don’t like cats, it won’t be long before that word comes up. “Treacherous.”

That’s why they don’t like cats.

What is going on here? Do they really think cats are going to embezzle from their bank accounts, hide their car keys, and post their naked snapshots on the Internet? What on earth are they talking about?

see more Lolcats and funny pictures

They are picking up a sense of what cats are all about… and drawing the wrong conclusion.

What they are trying to express is that cats give them the impression that the cats are up to something. And that’s true.

Cats are usually plotting.

What makes Catphobics uneasy is that they don’t know what the cat is plotting. Because they don’t know, and don’t like cats, they assume the worst.

Even if they can’t say what that might be.

The cat is plotting things that aren’t that frightening. They are trying to figure out the squirrel they can sometimes see from the windows, and when it might appear again. They are alert to when someone is headed for the bathroom, so they can drink from the faucet. They are wondering what they can do to remind us about dinner, and when they can reasonably start doing it.

None of this is unreasonable, unnatural, or frightening. In fact, it’s not that different from what a dog does.

The difference is not significant in purpose. The difference is significant in how they do it; and how they are perceived.

The ways dogs fulfill their needs tends to be cooperative. They ask. They humbly point out that they can’t do these things themselves, so won’t we please please please do this thing for them? They would be so grateful! They will be loudly happy!

Cats, on the other hand, assume we want to do things for them. It’s obvious that’s why we are all here. Cats would rather take care of it themselves, but since they can’t, let’s get on with it.

Of course cats are grateful and love us for taking care of them. They are simply, to those not used to interpreting Cat, less obvious about it.

We not only have to be able to perceive it. We have to believe it’s there at all.

Mr WereBear is still at the amazed stage of cat appreciation. As he says, “The cats I knew before did all these same great things. I just didn’t know it.”

Cats are intelligent, intuitive, independent… and just as capable of becoming a puddle of goo over us as a dog is. They express it in a different way. Instead of bouncing around and wagging their tail, a cat will roll over on their back and squint at us.

It means the same thing.

Catphobics are able to pick up on the cat’s silent intensity as a form of focused thinking. But they fail utterly at understanding a cat’s mood. Once they add in their cat apprehension, they are predisposed to assume the worst of the cat.

The closest word they can come up with to express this mixed bag of impressions is to claim cats are “treacherous.”

Even though it doesn’t make any sense.

[Composed with ShapeWriter -- www.shapewriter.com]

Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more ways to get our cat to be affectionate in The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See all of my CAT AFFECTION posts.

Thanks for stopping by! Find me on Facebook. Sign up here and get the FREE eBook, Ten Cat Tricks (Every Human Should Know.)