Why would a cat DO this??

[Left Is Write]

I've never heard of such a thing.

Twice in the last couple of days I've come across my cat just laying down relaxing.... in his litter box.

Why would a cat do this? Both times the litter box was freshly cleaned (thank goodness), but he did get litter all over himself. He has never done this before. Goodness knows he has plenty of hidey-holes around the house for privacy and relaxation.

This most recent time I lifted him out of the box and brushed all the litter off of him. He then sat down on the rubber scrape mat next to his litter box and lounged there for a while.

WTF?

[graywarrior]

1. No, but mine sits and stares at his.

I have no idea what he see, but he can sit there for 10-15 minutes like he's high on litter.

[liontamer]

2. he might be stressed

shelter cats often do that. Has anything weird(at least to a cat) happened lately?

[Left Is Write]

3. Not that I know of.

He doesn't seem nervous or upset about anything.

[Purrfessor]

4. Maybe he's sending you a message...

that he thinks it's time to vacuum the floor where he normally relaxes.

[giant_robot]

5. Since when do cats need reasons?

That's such a dog thing.

[JVS]

6. Because it's a stupid animal

[Left Is Write]

7. Well, there's a nice answer.

I personally, however, don't think my cat is stupid.

[JVS]

11. Oh come on, you know if your kid started sitting around in a toilet...

you'd probably have some doubts as to his/her intelligence!

[Left Is Write]

12. Thank you.

You've been very helpful.

[JVS]

15. Just doing my job

;-)

[Dangerously Amused]

8. Hate to say it, but

...I would get him checked out at the vet. It may be that he is has a UTI or is constipated or has diarrhea, or even a bowel obstruction (like a hairball; spring is a good time for nasty hairballs since they are shedding their winter coat - but you probably knew that), making him feel like he has to go a lot so he doesn't want to wander too far from his litterbox.

Maybe I am a little trigger-happy on this issue, but I had my little sweetheart kitty die almost a year ago from a small hairball that got lodged just right (or wrong) in her intestines. All the vet tests in the world never revealed the problem. The vet was stumped. We found out from an autopsy.

:cry:

[Left Is Write]

14. Hadn't thought of that...

though he does not seem physically uncomfortable.

He's never had a hairball.

[applegrove]

9. Is it a blocage? Cause that can be serious with male cats.

[vikegirl]

10. What, you don't read on the toilet?

:P

Seriously, though, that is rather odd. I hope the little guy's okay. :hug:

[jukes]

13. there's no figuring cats

they do weird shit sometimes, is all. might have felt warmer/cooler than his surroundings.

might have been just dicking you around...

[WillParkinson]

16. Dot does the same thing...

After it has been cleaned he likes to lay in it. It's clean and fresh.

[Left Is Write]

17. Well...at least Dino isn't the only one.

[wickerwoman]

37. Mine do it too sometimes.

Only if I completely change out the litter.

I read somewhere that cats evolved from desert animals (that's why they have the instinct to go in sandy spots to begin with). Maybe our cats are just a little less evolved and like lying on sandy surfaces. Mine *love* playing in fresh litter. They kick as much of it as possible out of the box and then roll around on the floor in it. :shrug:

[havocmom]

18. Either trying to decide on new decor for his potty box

or dealing with a potty issue. Trip to the vet might be good if you notice any difference in what he leaves behind in the litter box. Is he drinking enough water? Water bowl AWAY from where his food is served up? For some reason, cats generally drink more water if the bowl is NOT close to where the food dish is. :shrug:

Hope he's ok. Is he having any trouble getting around otherwise? When one of our old cats was declining, he had some trouble getting around and wanted to be close to his box for his own reasons. I made him up a nice nesting bed close by the litter box and put more water bowls around so he didn't have to travel far if he wasn't feeling up to it.

We are dealing with a cat who had an adverse reaction to her boster shots yesetrday. She seems to be coming out if it slowly, but she has been feeling really bad all day and worried us something fierce. Vets are a long way away from this place too.

[Left Is Write]

19. He drinks lots of water...

I refill often, so I think he's getting enough.

He's pretty young (two years old) and spry, and I haven't noticed any difference in his bathroom habits. Except the laying in his litter box thing. It just seems weird.

[Dangerously Amused]

30. Drinking a lot of water can be a red flag for feline diabetes.

I've had two cats with diabetes now, it's not as uncommon as one would think. And right up to the time when one nearly went into a diabetic coma (I didn't realize at the time how lethargic he was because I'd had him only a few days and had no prior history for comparison), he never showed any indication of being ill.

I think it would be a good idea to at least call your vet with the information you've provided here.


Good luck.

[Left Is Write]

32. Thank you - I appreciate the help.

[Dangerously Amused]

34. More than welcome!

I hope the little guy is okay.



:7

[karlrschneider]

20. Wanna trade? Our kitty has gone goofy lately: If we pet him on the back

from halfway between his neck and tail, he turns his head straight up, makes weird gurgling purr sounds and squats down while quivering and shivering. And if we do it for more than 15 seconds he'll bite the shit outta our hand. We think maybe he fell out of a tree and short-circuited some nerves to the brain...??? It's impossible to tell whether he loves it or hates it! Yikes.

[Left Is Write]

22. Here's another weird move of Dino's...

He does this every once in a while, for no apparent reason: He'll lie on his back next to his food dish, twist his head almost upside down, and eat that way.

[karlrschneider]

23. That's weird. Wouldn't it be fun to get inside a cat's head somehow?

But then again, I'm not sure I could handle it. :D

[Fleshdancer]

24. well that's just plain lazy

:rofl: The image of that is hilarious!

[uppityperson]

29. that I would love to see.

[benburch]

33. That is actually pretty common!

More often in female cats.

[rug]

21. I have a cat that climbs into his bag of catfood and goes to sleep.

He rarely comes out.

[karlrschneider]

25. Uh, he does come out to poo, I hope...

:D

[rug]

26. That's when he makes his rare appearances.

I'm going to have to switch to cans.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

27. Basically just to mess with your head.

Or just because it is the place de jour that your kitty has chosen this particular week. Don't put too much stock in the psykittychiatrists out there.

[DS1]

28. It could be the coolest part of the house

or maybe he's just showing you he's appreciate of the shit-free box :-)

[Arugula Latte]

31. Kitties like spaces that conform to their body size...

Thus the popularity of boxes and sinks as kitty lie-about areas -- they're nesting-friendly. Could be as simple as that.

[petronius]

35. My big guy went through an episode of that when he was young

It probably lasted for a couple of weeks, then he just stopped (I think he moved on to the bathtub after that). He also went through an episode of obsessive digging in the box - every morning around 5 am, and he'd keep it up until I managed to hit him with whatever light objects I could reach from the bed...

[GoddessOfGuinness]

36. It's cool and dry...

My cats especially like to lie in the litter boxes when it's muggy...