Tabby Cat Behavior

My great-great-great-etc. grandmother, preserved for posterity by an ancient Egyptian artist. Image credit: Rama at wikimedia commons

When tabby cats are unable to act on our instincts and emotions, we experience other mental states -- frustration, stress, and depression. Remember, all emotions -- in tabby cats and in humans -- are essentially physiological. They're produced in order to elicit a physical response, whether that response be to fight or flee, to mate or to nurse kittens. And this is where things can really go downhill between Tabby and human.

Frustration happens when we are unable to take action. For example, if our instinct to fight has been roused, we will lash out at the first thing that crosses our path. Addy found this out the hard way. A few weeks after I moved in with her, she tried to pick me up in order to keep me from kicking the sorry butt of a strange cat that had the audacity to come up the stairs in MY BUILDING that led to MY APARTMENT. I mean, can you believe the nerve? MY APARTMENT!

Anyway, Addy thought she was doing me a favor by intervening, just because the other cat was bigger than me, even though I still TOTALLY could have taken him -- and since I was all worked up to fight the other cat, I wound up scratching her. I couldn't help it, my body was telling me to attack something, and she put herself in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Stress happens when we are confronted with an unpleasant stimulus that we can't escape. If something makes us feel fearful, sad, or disgusted, and there's no way we can get away from it, we will experience cumulative stress. We're a lot like humans that way.

Depression happens when stress from emotional causes or physical pain is ongoing. Just like with humans, we react to prolonged stress by shutting down. We withdraw, sometimes losing all interest in our food, water, cleanliness, and our companions. If we stop eating entirely, depression can ultimately be fatal.

Some of the behaviors that humans see as "bad" are, in fact, simply instincts. Take scratching as an example. I scratch on things all the time. Why? Well, because I'm a cat, and my instincts tell me that it's important to keep my claws sharp, and that I need to leave my scent around to mark my territory -- things like that. I can't help scratching on things. It's part of who I am as a tabby cat. I have to do it.

Since scratching is an instinct, I will scratch whatever is available, whether it be the carpet, the drapes, or the new chair. Let's pretend that the only things I have to scratch on are, in Addy's opinion, off-limits. For instance, I know that I'm not supposed to scratch the couch or the bed. If I do, Addy will make loud noises with her mouth and spray me with a water bottle. So now, even though I need to scratch on something, I'm afraid to do it; but I do it because I have to, and the unpleasant consequences make me sad. Pretty soon I'd be one crazy tabby.

Fortunately for me, Addy knows enough to have several scratching toys around the house. They're made of things like sisal and corrugated cardboard, and they feel good on my claws. I have to scratch, but I don't have to scratch the furniture because I've got something better.

Fortunately for us and for you, litter box problems can be avoided. First, make sure that the litter box is in a quiet, private space. If we feel exposed, we'll be afraid to use the box. For some cats, this problem can be solved by covering the box, but for other cats, that can be a deal-breaker. You should be aware that individual preference can be a factor.

Next, make sure that you're using a type of litter that your cat likes. Most of us get used to a certain type of cat litter, and we don't like it if our cat litter is changed suddenly. If it smells and feels unfamiliar, we may go elsewhere.

It's can also be important for each cat to have her own litter box. Now, Piglet and me are from the farm, and when we grew up we didn't have any of those fancy litter boxes. We had to go outside in all weather, uphill both ways, in rain and sleet and snow and dark of night! And when we moved in with Addy we were grateful just to be able to go inside instead of braving the legendary blizzards of the Great Plains! But I digress. Some cats don't like sharing, and it can be the safest option to give everyone her own box from the get-go.

Finally, keep the litter box clean. Remember, you get to flush away your business. What if you had to stand in it? For weeks? You might find a new location too.

Cats may not have invented digital watches or New York City. We don't use tools, and we have giant brains with speech centers. We are nonetheless intelligent, sensitive animals who are capable of feeling bored. If Tabby is an indoor cat, she might be safer from many dangers, but she also misses out on a lot of stimulation.

Why do I bring this up? Glad you asked. It turns out that boredom is another huge culprit when you people diagnose us with "behavior problems".

In the wild, there are plenty of stimuli just waiting to be discovered. There are strange odors to check out, insects to chase, trees to climb. Indoors is a different story. Indoors it's the same old same-old.

How would you feel if you had to live your whole life surrounded by the same four walls? Wouldn't you get bored? Worse yet, what if you were only a foot or so off the ground? What would you do then?

I tell you what you'd do. You'd jump up on the counters. You'd shred the upholstery just to see what was inside. You'd push the china off the shelf to see if gravity still works, because you're a cat, and you don't know Limoges from a Nerf ball.

Now think how much worse it would be if the people responsible for your care were always angry with you. You don't know why they're angry; you're just doing what you have to do. You might get anxious, because you can't exercise your instincts, and if you try to keep your instincts in check, you get depressed.