It can seem to us that our cat is trying to sneak in unobserved, but cats are smart enough to know that is unlikely when we are standing there holding the door. It might be something else entirely.
It might be a mind game.
see more Lolcats and funny pictures
My Mostly Maine Coon, Bubby, was a master at sneaking into the basement. From his point of view, anytime my hand touched that knob, something fun was going to happen. Sometimes, it was that I was doing the daily litter changing, which necessitated keeping the door open, and he was free to supervise the operation.
We can widen our considerations and unpack our cat’s motives by considering that our cat wants more than just exasperating us when a quick trip to these spaces turns into a frustrating chase and a source of annoyance.
We can arrange these trips so we can both get what we want.
They might want Satisfaction.
The more something is forbidden, the more curious our cat will be about it. It must be something awesome if we want to keep it to ourselves.
It can be entirely sensible to keep the cat out of the woodworking shop or away from the ceramic kiln. But we may be working against ourselves if we constantly forbid them. The more we bank this fire, the higher it reaches.
When our cat sneaks into a forbidden room right in front of us, they aren’t being stupid about it. They are communicating, the only way they know how, that they would like to be in this room. They are probably doing other communications along these lines, like crying at the door and pawing at it.
Ignoring the request, or telling them No, has not worked. Now we have two bad consequences of the situation:
Remember, wants cannot be extinguished. They can only be redirected.
No good will come of this. So we need to revamp the situation. We should encourage the cat to ask to go in, let them in, and supervise their explorations.
It can be enjoyable for both of us to invite our cat in, explain the different things in the room, talk about our favorite things we’ve made here, and then, when we have bonded over this shared fun, we can take the cat out, promising that we will do this again.
These visits can be even more practical if we try a supervised visit while the dangerous thing is making terrible noises, belching heat, or otherwise discouraging closer inspection. It’s the rare, rare cat who will press things further when they see, and are told, that we were just protecting them from the screaming roaring dangerous monster. It’s because we care!
In my case, it’s Mr. Bond, in the closet, wanting some hideaway time. I’ve been known to show him the timer, set it, and let him lurk in there with the door open. He doesn’t want anything more, he doesn’t damage anything, and we both know he won’t get locked in that way.
Curiosity drives the cat. Satisfaction cures the cat.
For more, see Cats and the Door Fascination.
Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more ways to understand our cat with The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See all of my posts on WHY CATS DO THAT.
Thanks for stopping by! Find me on Facebook. Sign up here and get the FREE eBook, Ten Cat Tricks (Every Human Should Know.)
But what do you do when that door leads to the outside world and you are trying to raise an indoor cat?
You can try convincing the cat that the outside world is not safe. Try the Water Monster.
If I may, Caro one thing I tried is one of those automated air cans you are supposed to put near things you don’t want a cat to go near.
Only I put mine right out side of the open door and let my cat ‘escape’