Cats’ hunting instincts influence how they play with toys, but their play sessions involve more than evolutionary advancements. House cats are predators, and we often assume their behavior is predetermined by genetics. It’s hard to dispute that they love hunting and playing, but most cats are intelligent enough to distinguish between them.
Olga the Hunter
My cat has only hunted and killed insects in my home; a few years ago, she chased down an anole (Anolis carolinensis), pinned it to the floor, and prevented it from scurrying under my dryer. She didn’t bat it around or bite it in half. Olga is occasionally aggressive but doesn’t have a strong prey drive or desire to torture and eat a small lizard.
I’m not claiming that she’s more peaceful than most cats since I haven’t let her outside to chase birds or rodents. She could be a ruthless killer of small animals, but I’ll never know since I think her play behavior isn’t a good indicator of her hunting skills.
Olga hits her toys and attacks them, but she also snuggles up to them and sometimes falls into a deep trance. If I let her outside and she treated mice and birds the same way, the animals would injure her and possibly suffocate after she fell asleep on them.
The Toy-Induced Trance
When she’s purring and stretched out with a toy nestled against her head, I can rub her belly without getting my hand ripped up. She purrs louder when cuddling with her toys, and I think she enjoys it more than petting. Without a toy, she would latch on to my hand and sink her fangs into it. Except for the Siamese cat I owned, most felines hate it when anyone touches their gut.
I used to think that only her plastic plant holder sent her to another world. However, catnip mice, paper balls, and silvervine sticks also calm Olga down and make her less protective. She doesn’t always do it but seems to enjoy sleeping on her toys. In the morning, I sometimes see a paper ball or plush mouse at the foot of my bed.
Olga’s Comfort Blanket
When she was younger, she used to drag her plant holder around the house and drop it at my feet to encourage me to play with it. She acted like Linus with his ragged blue blanket; like him, her favorite inedible object comforted her. When she’s in a toy trance, I can inspect her belly for parasites and bumps, but she eventually gets annoyed and doesn’t allow me to brush her.
After Olga’s dental surgery, I thought about giving her a toy to distract her while I squirted the antibiotic into her mouth with a syringe, but I decided against it. She wasn’t very cooperative when she saw the oral medication in my hand, but I didn’t want her to associate one of her toys with a traumatic experience. She’s happy when she’s in a trance, and since she’s generally a grumpy cat, I like seeing her in a good mood.
- Read his previous article: How Cats Respond to the Television: Olga’s Occasional Reactions