Thieving Cat..

[AbbyBail]

I apparently have a little furry thief! My several months old cat Bailey will take off with anything that's not nailed down. Like my BF's wallet I'm not kidding, usb sticks, pens, she will snatch kleenex, q tips of of the table. I would open up something, put the flimsy cardboard down right next to me, Bailey will jump and just grabs it and jump off the couch with it.

Not only that she'll literally watch me put something down, and wait for me to turn my back to do other things and it never fails!!! When I'm looking for missing things I find them behind the couch or under my rug. lol...

What crazy things do your cats steal??

 

[verna davies]

Is Bailey black and white by any chance. He might think he is a magpie.

 

[di and bob]

The only thing my present cats 'steal' is each other's food! They seem to think the other one always has something better, even though it is the same, there is a lot of 'shuffling' going on at dinnertime!
Some cats are highly amused by possessing, and acquiring 'treasures"! Just as long as she isn't eating or swalling them it should be OK, but you will have to be very careful she doesn't get hold of something dangerous. She may also grow out of her obsession too, several of my cats did. Cats tongues, as you know are very rough. In fact they are 'barbed' by evolution to hold and direct moving prey down their throats. So something like string or floss will get on the tongue and be literally impossible for her to get out. She will swallow it and it could possiblty bind her intstines together as it passes out and if one end gets caught. If she suddenly stops eating, starts acting listless and has any starnge symptoms, get her to a vet right away and ask them to Xray her after telling them about her fetish. I would start checking her stools to see if she ever starts swallowing things. Right now it is harmless and gives her pleasure so give her 'safe' things like cardboard toilet tissue rolls, etc, and pretend to accidently leave them. It's not uncommon for cat's to do this, but may pose a problem if your BF can't find their billfold! Learn her hiding places!

 

[AbbyBail]

Is Bailey black and white by any chance. He might think he is a magpie.

She's a tortie.

 

[Kieka]

My boy likes to carry toys all over in the house and outside. I probably buy him a dozen new fuzzy caterpillars every year and they just vanish. He also likes taking off his collar and carrying it around.

My niece's cat used to bring random things home. Trash really, bottle caps, twigs, a piece of a diaper once, pieces of tubing, anything he could carry really. He'd stack them up just outside the cat door, thankfully.

 

[AbbyBail]

The only thing my present cats 'steal' is each other's food! They seem to think the other one always has something better, even though it is the same, there is a lot of 'shuffling' going on at dinnertime!
Some cats are highly amused by possessing, and acquiring 'treasures"! Just as long as she isn't eating or swalling them it should be OK, but you will have to be very careful she doesn't get hold of something dangerous. She may also grow out of her obsession too, several of my cats did. Cats tongues, as you know are very rough. In fact they are 'barbed' by evolution to hold and direct moving prey down their throats. So something like string or floss will get on the tongue and be literally impossible for her to get out. She will swallow it and it could possiblty bind her intstines together as it passes out and if one end gets caught. If she suddenly stops eating, starts acting listless and has any starnge symptoms, get her to a vet right away and ask them to Xray her after telling them about her fetish. I would start checking her stools to see if she ever starts swallowing things. Right now it is harmless and gives her pleasure so give her 'safe' things like cardboard toilet tissue rolls, etc, and pretend to accidently leave them. It's not uncommon for cat's to do this, but may pose a problem if your BF can't find their billfold! Learn her hiding places!

Absolutely one needs to becareful, trying to keep the house clean picking things up. She's ok though she don't eat anything that she plays with just chews things. The biggest danger are cords she stopped a bit after getting scolded. You're right it may be harmless, but there's going to be something she'll get into and it's not going to be nice. Curiosity kills the cat will be quite literal if she gets into something that will harm her.

 

[vince]

I have one that steals stuff from the bathroom--my razor, my toothbrush, scissors, tweezers. She also likes the wads of fur from the cats' grooming sessions. She grabs them from the wastebasket and runs around the house playing with 'em.

 

[bengalcatman]

Been meaning to try this for awhile... this thread motivated me.

This is a live performance....

We start with June Bug: hardened criminal

Empty snack bag I have been saving...

A quick walk out to my shop, reach into the scrap box under the chop saw..

One very full and tempting snack bag

Leave bait on kitchen island..

I just heard a crinkling noise and then the cat door to the basement opening....

Be right back.

 

[bengalcatman]

Trail of evidence...

Empty kitchen island!

Cat door to basement.... with incriminating ripping sounds faintly heard through the door!

Caught red pawed! June Bug fishes her ill-gotten treasure out of the bag... only to find some wood bits....

In the past she has nabbed a bag of dehydrated milk, a bag of walnuts, a little bag of screws, a partially full snack bag, an envelope full of receipts..etc, etc. She grabs whatever catches her interest, and carries it down to into the basement every time. June Bug is a very predictable outlaw.

The other cats won't take anything from the counters, but June Bug has always had a penchant for stealing things off the kitchen island. 99% of the time it is nothing she wants.

Just heard the cat door open again. Gotta go pick up some wood scraps.

 

[Maria Bayote]

The only thing that was stolen from me by my cat is my heart.

Been wanting to take it back and return to my “normal” life.

Cheesy.