cats jealous of mirrors??

[pamela]

Spike started doing this when I moved into my new apt about a month ago and does this ALL THE TIME now.

Whenever I go into my bathroom to put contacts on, brush teeth or just to look at my ugly mug/face in the mirror, Spikey will jump up on the low bathroom cabinet/sill (old fashioned kind) that's located beneath the mirror. He will proceed to walk to the spot where I'm looking toward on the mirror, block my view with his body and start rubbing nose with my nose. If I move my head to the left so I can see myself, he will back his body up and block my view again with his body. If I move my head to the right again to see, he will move his body again to block my view!!

If I bend down to look in the SMALL mirrors located on the medience cabinet, he'd lay down on the cabinet and start swatting at my face, bending his head over and blocking my view with his paws and head! It can get really annoying

especially if I'm in a rush to get ready for work and can't put makeup on or fix hair due to him blocking my view!

As I leave the bathroom, he will come running, try to block/trip me while I'm walking then when I stop, he'd rear up on his backlegs and try to reach my face with his paws and pull my face down for more noserubbing with his paws placed on my face or behind my neck!

He will persist in blocking/tripping me for about 5 min...

I don't know what the heck that is about!? Is he just jealous of the mirror-that I'm giving the mirror "me" attention or what??

Does any of ur cats exhibit this kind of behavior?? I'd LOVE to hear ur stories about that!

 

[kumbulu]

This a complete guess, so don't laugh OK, LOL. When you're putting make up on or doing your hair etc in front of the mirror, you probably look intently at yourself, concentrating on what you're doing. So, in Spikes eyes, you are staring or looking intently at that person behind the mirror there. In the cat world, staring or looking intently at another is seen as a threat. Spike may think you're fixing for a fight with that other person and is coming to comfort you. As I said, just a guess.

 

[cilla]

That is so sweet. Spike must love you very much Pamela.

 

[littlebigcat]

Well, in this case I think there's always a bit of guesswork, but I think Tania, you're barking up the right tree..oo..sorry about that one..anyhow, the staring intently thing works in the same way that any of us have experienced a cat with extreme "computer jealousy" does. Theres this object that we're intently fixated on, they can see that there's only a few feet of space between our faces and the the object of our attention, and so they intercede. Not, I don't think, because of a threat aspect, but just because we seem so completely hypnotized by it, and they want that same attention. In that same vein, then, I wouldn't call it jealousy really either, more so a call to play. Again just a guess, but it could be that since your move you've just been more occupied and Spike is just the most sensitive of all of the cats in terms of having just a little bit of attention removed? This is the perfect way of letting you know!

 

[jcat]

Spike and Jamie Cat are "partners in crime"!! Seriously though, the above assumptions make a lot of sense. There's also the "bathroom factor" to consider. Go to any cat site, and you'll find cat guardians discussing how their kitties "have" to be in the bathroom with them. You'll find several threads right here in the archives. I get ready for work in the morning with a 13.5 lb. cat draped around my shoulders, cleaning my ears, "combing" my hair, and making sure I don't drop my contacts or smudge the mascara. I've always thought that he wanted to share "private moments" with me (we have a tiny bathroom), though I've read some conjectures that cats are like divining rods and are attracted to the water running through the pipes. JC is strange with mirrors - he knows he can look around corners using them, and does so all the time, but he also "plays" with his image. Supposedly cats don't recognize themselves in mirrors, but I'm not so sure - he generally attacks any cat he sees, instead of trying to play with him/her.

 

[pamela]

Originally Posted by Kumbulu

This a complete guess, so don't laugh OK, LOL. When you're putting make up on or doing your hair etc in front of the mirror, you probably look intently at yourself, concentrating on what you're doing. So, in Spikes eyes, you are staring or looking intently at that person behind the mirror there. In the cat world, staring or looking intently at another is seen as a threat. Spike may think you're fixing for a fight with that other person and is coming to comfort you. As I said, just a guess.

AWWWW!! I like that explanation!!

That does make sense in a way.

It's funny, the other day, I was telling a friend about Spikey doing this and she looked at me

and said "Well, if he gets in your way, why don't you just pick him off the sill and put him out of the bathroom??"

I didn't even THINK of that AND I WOULDN'T do that anyway!

I just put up with it and work around him!

U can tell I am really a SLAVE to these furbabies!

Jcat- Yes, I have noticed that about the bathroom- all my cats LOVES the bathroom whenever I'm in it. Often, 2 would be fighting to be on me (Spike on my lap while Buddy is on my shoulders) while Pepper would be winding around my ankles and Zebra would be sitting there staring pitifully at me!