She stares at the fridge, not wall... but she STARES.

[fenya7]

Recently my two friends lost their cats to cancer. They told me that by the end, the cats were slower than before and stared at the wall for a long while.
My cat's behavior seems OK, I don't see any changes, but lately I noticed that she occasionally sits by the fridge and looks at it. (Her food is not there)
Maybe I over react?.. but I am worried. She eats, poops, and pees normally, her appetite is OK, she plays, and all seems OK. I touch her entire body and cannot find any lumps and she allows me to touch her. I plan to go to the vet in June, however, vet care in Uruguay where we live last three years is not good.
She is an indoors 10 year old cat. Thank you all for your advise, I always get excellent hints here.

 

[verna davies]

Cats have wonderful hearing so maybe she can hear a beetle or small insect under the fridge. Some cats just sit and stare for no reason. As you are planning on a vet's visit next month maybe ask the vet if she can have her bloods checked to put your mind at rest. As she is eating, using the litter tray and everything else seems normal maybe she is just being a typical cat.

 

[Timewarpcat]

Cats do this because they're cats. Many of my cats through the years have done this. (I've been with cats for 50 years).

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. I think she is hearing something you cannot. Maybe the motor in your fridge is just a tad louder than it used to be - something you might not notice, but you can bet a cat would pick on the difference. I also want to point out that a couple of cats - one of which was mine - died from cancer and never did the 'staring' thing at all.

 

[lollie]

When the refrigerator compressor kicks on, my cat will run into the kitchen, even awaken sometimes from a dead sleep. She does not always do this, so I don’t know what triggers it. However, she also attempts to attack the dvd tray when it has the gall to open on its own, so maybe she’s just weird. It is interesting what noises seem to bother them, while others don’t.

 

[neely]

Honestly from your description of her activity I don't think you have to worry. But since you mentioned you have an upcoming vet appointment and she is 10 years old I would ask about doing a senior exam. Here is an Article that discusses some things to look for as your cat ages: What To Expect As Your Cat Ages – TheCatSite Articles

 

[Caspers Human]

I agree with others. Cats can hear in the ultrasonic range, above the frequency range that humans can hear.
Some scientists believe that cats can also see ultraviolet light.

With those two things in mind, it's easy to imagine that your cat sees, hears or smells something that you can't. (Maybe all three.)

As others say, your fridge might be making an unusual sound that you can't hear. There could be something that you can's see or smell.

What if there is a mouse hiding behind the fridge? Mice do like to hide under refrigerators. Your cat might see, hear and smell the mouse and wants to catch it.

It's not reasonable to assume that, because somebody else's cat behaved a certain way before something bad happened, the same thing will happen to your cat. That's just grabbing at straws.

Remember: Correlation does not always equal causation.

 

[Tigger's Mum]

A few years ago one of my cats kept staring at the fridge and would sit in the meat loaf position infront of it for long periods of time. Then one of my other cats joined in, then another and I decided there was something under the fridge. A day or two later, the object of their interest was revealed - a mouse, a very dead mouse as one of my cats had caught it. Our house backs onto woodland so it must have snuck in. I didn't hear it but the cats did - and took care of the problem. Coming into my house with at that time 11 cats, it was a mouse with a death wish!

 

[Purr-fect]

Dont worry. Both our cats stared our stove for 2 days. Sure enough, there was a mouse under it.

 

[Tigger's Mum]

Dont worry. Both our cats stared our stove for 2 days. Sure enough, there was a mouse under it.

The patience cats have is really quite remarkable. Unfortunately the mouse doesn't think so...

 

[Antonio65]

It can even be a ghost?

 

[lorie d.]

My cat Sweetie passed away several years ago. He always had an interest in the refrigerator because he knew that's where my food was kept. So it could be your cat is doing the same thing.