Jinx Yengst likes to read about the cardinals, finches, and other birds in his dog- (eh, cat-) eared Golden Guide: Birds.
Not only does he like to learn about them as he watches from his favorite cat seat, but he also likes to chirp—or is it chatter? chitter? trill? Or is he reading aloud to his fine feathered friends?
Not according to Jackson Galaxy, the cat behaviorist, author, and media presence, who also goes by Cat Daddy.
Of all the unconventional behaviors cats exhibit, Galaxy says this phenomenon is one of the most curious.
While his Cat Daddy Dictionary series covers a multitude of feline behaviors, the entry on Chattering is a solid yet humorous examination of this uniquely feline comportment. If nothing else, the illustrative videos that Galaxy includes in his lexicon are worth the 18-minute, 24-second watch.
According to Galaxy, all cats—big and small—are first and foremost predators. He attributes what he calls ek-ek-ek-ek-ing to three aspects of the feline hunting strategy, all related to the killer instinct.
They are:
Excitement. Having located potential prey, the adrenalin rush cannot be contained. In what is known as Pavlovian Conditioning Response—like our mouths watering when we see something delicious—chattering teeth may be the closest the cat can get to catching prey and vicariously snapping its neck.
Frustration. Unable to reach its quarry, a cat may chatter in defeat. But this seems unlikely, since most hunts are unsuccessful. It is more likely that the behavior is initiating a prey sequence. Because the most exciting part of the hunt is the chase, the chirping may activate the feline brain’s reward circuitry.
Mimicry. Imitating the sound of a bird, squirrel, or chipmunk may lure the prey closer. Researchers in the Amazon have found that the margay cat successfully mimics tamarind monkeys to achieve its hunt. The sound may also mask the predator’s movement.
They may be predators, but cats have also been entertainers at our house. We call the ek-ek-ek-ek phenomenon Cat-holio, in honor of The Great Cornholio, a Beavis and Butthead episode that first aired on MTV in Season 4 (1994).
Having devoured 27 candy bars and drunk a six-pack of root beer, Beavis chatters nonsensically like a prey-watching cat, hikes his shirt hiked over his head, and shouts, “I am the great Cornholio!”
No, Jinx doesn’t do Cat-holio. He doesn’t yank anything over his already furry head or read anything aloud. Nor does it matter what his guide to the birds might say.
On the contrary, he’s simply prey-ing.
What is your cat reading?
Send book reviews, feline adventures, and cute pictures to Pat@PattiMWalsh.com
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What the Cats Are Reading 