Expert: Dear Tabbi - 2/15/2009

Question
i love my cats very much, i would never hurt them, but lately i find myself gritting my teeth trying not to smack one of my cats, Damian. he has become very naughty and it is deliberate, i had a bonsai tree that i have tended to for years, one day he sat on the counter watching me while i was watching TV, he then vocalized and ripped the tree out of the pot in front of my eyes and then looked back at me to see my reaction, we also have a collection of miniature toys above the counter in an alcove, he gets up on the cupboard next to them and will knock one off and look at me, if i don't react he will knock off another and look back at me. i had an important brochure that i left on the table , i had just gotten home from work and heard him vocalizing. when i found him he was on the table having chewed the brochure to almost unreadable, what worried me the most wasn't the brochure it was the fact that he was deliberately being rebellious and naughty. and he looks at me while he's doing these things. he also has a water addiction, i know this must sound crazy but he loves water. if I'm having a shower he will sit and poke his paws in and grab some water, if i am in the bath he will dip his hands and tail into the water before studying his paw. he plays in his water dish till theres nothing left in the bowl and i cant leave a drink with out a lid unattended because we will play in it, at first i thought it was cute and i laughed but its become quite annoying. what is happening with my cat, what have i done to make him behave this way, out of my 3 cats he probably gets the most attention from me i don't understand why he is doing these things... please help

Answer
Courtney,

You have a smart cat. Cats that are more intelligent than normal need a lot of brain stimulation to keep them amused. They, like really smart kids, get bored easily. He is doing those annoying things to keep himself amused...and getting a reaction from him amuses him!

Also water amuses him. Put his water bowl in a larger low-sided plastic container so when he splashes it just goes in the container and not on the floor. Leave the bathroom sink faucet with a small drip or small stream (taking any sink strainers or plugs out so he doesn't step on them and close them flooding the sink). My cats LOVE to drink from the sink. It is fresh cool water, and if they play in it, it doesn't make much of a mess.

You may want to get him some cat videos to watch. My cats love them!
Here is a link for them: (copy and paste the link)
http://petsittervideos.com/index.html

If you want more work, get him an aquarium, a cage with some white mice, etc. for him to watch and try to catch.

Get a pet laser light. Cats love to chase the little red 'bug' on the ceilings, floors, and walls. you can get them at PetSmart/Petco/etc. It is great for burning up excess energy.

Put a couple of ping pong balls in the bathtub (cover the drain though because they get stuck). The cat can slip and slide chasing the balls and they don't lose them.

These are some suggestions. I hope you get the idea. Stimulate him and give him ways to burn off energy. If he wasn't happy and healthy he would act like he does. He's a special cat...love him for the annoying little monster that he is and learn to put up things he can get into.

Tabbi