Pettish
Does your cat have some quirky habits when it comes to how they receive affection? If you find yourself following your cat around just to sneak in a quick pet, you're not alone! Today on Quirky Cat Nips, we'll delve into some of these head scratching mysteries. Meow Kitties!
Listen to Episode #22 Now:
Transcript:
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Announcer: Pet Life Radio This is Pet Life Radio.
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Announcer: Let's talk pets.
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Announcer: Cat lovers and feline friends, it's time for Adele Park's Quirky Cat Nips.
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Does your cat have a pet-ish?
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By this I mean, does your cat have some quirky response when you try to pet them?
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My kitty, Allison, is affectionate by nature, but you'd never know it if you tried to get in a friendly stroke.
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Allison rubs up the old purr box, lifts her tail to the heavens like a furry form of Jack and the Beanstalk, then promptly prances away as soon as I swoop in for a pet.
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As a result, I wind up tailing Allison around the house like a love-starved stalker.
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My cousin Brenna recently visited and was of course treated to Allison's catch me if you can petting ritual.
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Feeling slightly ashamed, my cat wouldn't honor Brenna's gestures of affection, I explained Allison's puss in boots were made for walking.
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To my extreme relief, Brenna said buttercup, a cat she had for more than 20 years, did the same thing.
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I was so relieved to know this problem wasn't unique to me, I almost heaved a hairball.
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I began referring to this petting behavior as butter cupping.
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This got me wondering, is butter cupping a normal thing?
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Yes, but only because cats aren't normal by nature.
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But more importantly, is there anything you can do about this?
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Uh, no, you got a cat.
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What did you think would happen?
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If you're like me, you're so smitten, you end up following your cat around like a needy dog anyway.
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Then there's cats like Celeste, the feline who owns my sister Peggy.
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Celeste, also known as Dammit Get Down, is a sweet kitty, lovingly treating my sister to pets and purrs, until she doesn't.
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For whatever reason, Celeste, I mean, Dammit Get Down, has a tendency to turn on my sister and strike like a snake halfway through a mutually satisfying petting session.
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A quick internet search reveals my sister isn't alone in this biting the hand that feeds you behavior.
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Cat experts say this is a not-so-gentle way of letting humans know when they've had enough.
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A second theory is that repetitive stroking can create little shocks which can be annoying or even painful to your cat.
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If love bites in your household, or if your cat likes to play follow the leader when you pet them, no worries.
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This is all totally typical.
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All you can do is enjoy the journey following your feline around with your pathetic, pet-impoverished hand sticking out, hoping to touch a snatch of fur.
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In case you haven't noticed, you've been ghosted.
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This is especially bad news if you're a ghost trapped at the Department of Motor Vehicles and the only way out is through the help of a snarky cat.
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Find out what happens next in Quirky Cat Gets Ghosted by Adele Park.
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This quirky audio book is The Cat's Meow.
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Get Quirky Cat Gets Ghosted today on audible.com.
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Announcer: Let's Talk Pets, every week, on demand, only on petliferadio.com.