Overheard someone say cats only knock stuff off tables for attention

I was at the vet's waiting room yesterday and this guy starts going on about how his cat is just being dramatic when it pushes his coffee mug off the nightstand. My cat does the same thing but I watched her do it once right after I fed her and she just stared at the broken cup like she was testing gravity. Now I'm wondering if it's more about instinct than trying to get me up at 6am. Anyone else think there's more to this than just acting out?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_ruby6d ago

Is it possible that cats are just naturally wired to explore their environment with their paws? I've read that batting at things is part of how they learn about objects and their surroundings, like a tiny scientist poking at stuff. The attention thing might just be a bonus for them, honestly.

wren_rodriguez6d ago

Yeah, that tiny scientist thing makes so much sense. My cat once spent a solid 10 minutes batting at a piece of lint on the rug (just staring at it like it held the secrets to the universe). @the_ruby, I think that "bonus attention" theory holds up because my cat will knock my phone off the table, then look at me like "well? react, human." It's all part of their grand experiment in cause and effect, really. Plus, that paw thing is how they test if something is alive or just boring, so even the quietest batting is a little investigation.