It’s strange, the things our pets pick up on. Now I realize animals are much more intelligent than most people give them credit for. But it still astounds me to see my cat act so… human.
A recent example was a few days ago. I needed to keep my (outdoor) cat
in the house for 30 minutes, and she was getting progressively more bored
as time passed. And when she gets bored, she entertains herself by
getting into as much trouble as possible. So I went into the bathroom with her
and closed the door.
She was in there maybe 5 minutes, and then she got up on her hind
legs and started to touch the doorknob. Well, not just touch, but turn.
Back and forth she turned the doorknob very slightly, trying to get out.
After I let her out, I wondered. How did she know that turning
the doorknob was realated to opening the door? Even if she didn’t mean
to turn the doorknob, how did she know that the doorknob was related
to opening the door at all? I assumed she just watched me do it enough
and quickly caught on. Other cat owners are probably reading
this completely unfazed, because this probably isn’t unusual for their
cats. But I’m just a little bit amazed that she put those things together just
by watching me. And I wonder what else she learned from watching
me every day.
A recent example was a few days ago. I needed to keep my (outdoor) cat
in the house for 30 minutes, and she was getting progressively more bored
as time passed. And when she gets bored, she entertains herself by
getting into as much trouble as possible. So I went into the bathroom with her
and closed the door.
She was in there maybe 5 minutes, and then she got up on her hind
legs and started to touch the doorknob. Well, not just touch, but turn.
Back and forth she turned the doorknob very slightly, trying to get out.
After I let her out, I wondered. How did she know that turning
the doorknob was realated to opening the door? Even if she didn’t mean
to turn the doorknob, how did she know that the doorknob was related
to opening the door at all? I assumed she just watched me do it enough
and quickly caught on. Other cat owners are probably reading
this completely unfazed, because this probably isn’t unusual for their
cats. But I’m just a little bit amazed that she put those things together just
by watching me. And I wonder what else she learned from watching
me every day.