Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: Cat Circles

This is topic Cat Circles in forum Film-Yak at Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE.

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 02-17-2016, 12:42 AM:

Anybody have any ideas as to why circles on the floor attract cats? I've been looking around to find out why. Lots of people have theories but nobody really knows for sure.

What's a cat circle? Make a circle on the floor out of anything you have handy. A piece of string. Random objects. Tape. Draw a circle with chalk. Almost anything. Within a few minutes after the cat notices it, he'll be sitting inside the circle. Weird... and funnny!

Make a circle on the floor...

A few minutes later... there's the cat!

It works with almost anything...

Any theories?

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-17-2016, 11:31 AM:

Cats like to feel comfortable, and when they are enclosed in a circle they feel comfortable? Just a guess.

Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 02-17-2016, 12:13 PM:

Sounds plausible. [Smile]

Some have said that circles offer some sort of a feeling of protection but nobody can explain how a circle of tape can be considered "protection." I don't know... I'm not a cat. [Wink]

The theory that I go for is "Territory." Cats are territorial.
If you put a piece of newspaper on the floor, a cat might sit on it as a way to claim it as his territory. Possession is 9/10 of the law. Right?

Cats think in terms of imperatives. Right?
(Ex.: "You shall pet me." "I require food." "This must be killed." "This is mine.") I'm guessing that sitting inside the circle is a cat's way of saying, "Mine."

Posted by Jim Cassedy (Member # 4115) on 02-17-2016, 12:17 PM:

quote: Randy Stankey
Any theories?

Cats know that things like this drive normally sane human beings crazy
trying to figure them out. While our attention is diverted, they are secretly
planning to take over the earth. They've already taken over the internet.

Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 02-17-2016, 12:35 PM:

Why do cats freak out if you stick a cucumber next to them?

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-17-2016, 12:50 PM:

I've had friends try the cucumber thing with their actual cats and it never works for them. The cat just sniffs the cucumber and walks away. I wonder if people are startling the cats some other way in some of those videos.

Posted by Martin McCaffery (Member # 37) on 02-17-2016, 01:00 PM:

So, if I carry a portable circle with me when I go to cat lovers houses, and put the thing on the other side of the room, will the damn cats leave me alone?

How long do they stay in the circle?

Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 02-17-2016, 01:05 PM:

I feel pretty certain that the reason for cucumbers startling cats is the element of surprise. If you sneaked up behind a cat while it was eating and placed a ball of wadded up newspaper on the floor, I'm sure it would have a similar effect.

I'd bet that, because the cucumber is long and thin like a snake, the cat might think that there is "something" trying to get him.

Our cat has stayed inside a circle of yarn for ten or fifteen minutes. We came downstairs, yesterday morning, to find him just sitting there. He looked up at us as if to say, "You gotta' problem?" [Wink]

I think cat circles are some kind of "possession" thing. Casper will do the same thing if you leave a sheet of newspaper on the floor, too.

Martin, if you don't care for cats, a cat circle might be a way to buy ten minutes of peace. You might also get some cred from somebody you visit who owns a cat as you "demonstrate an interesting phenomenon." Most cat people like it when you fuss over their cats. [Wink]

Posted by Mike Blakesley (Member # 26) on 02-17-2016, 01:41 PM:

About the cucumber thing - I was thinking maybe a cat probably is aware of its surroundings and has taken note of what's "there" before it starts eating, so if it turns around and spots a cucumber (or whatever) it would jump. The key would be getting the cucumber there without the cat hearing anything happening -- which would be kind of tough!

I had a great cat while growing up. He would NOT drink water out of a bowl, but WOULD jump into the bathtub and wait for somebody to come by and turn on a trickle of water for him. One time I got out of the tub and forgot to drain it, and the cat went in to wait for his nightly drink and ....SPLASH! I never saw a cat move so fast as him blasting out of that tub. I never thought a cat could look embarrassed but he sure did that time.