‘Suspicious’ Cat Spying on Guest Staying in Owner’s House Delights Internet

Cats are famously strange creatures, aloof, suspicious and sometimes aggressive. It’s a wonder we invite them in to our homes.

A woman on TikTok had an interesting experience with her sister’s cat over the festive period. In the video, which has over 806,000 views, Annie is filming her sister’s cat Loki who is cautiously poking just his head around the bedroom door, a concerned look on his face.

“At my sister’s house for the holiday and her cat is so suspicious of me,” reads the text.

Just before the end of the video, the black cat comically removes his head back out through the door, as if he was never there.

“He is still so suspicious of me!” reads the caption.

Annie is the owner of Psychedelic Purr, a cat themed clothing brand that donates a portion of each purchase to cat rescue organizations.

While Annie’s social media is clear evidence that most cats do in fact like her, it is true that there are some people cats just take a disliking to.

Describing cats as “confounding at times,” Beverly Hills Veterinary Associates add that “cats don’t enjoy being crowded. If they see more people in the house than normal, they’ll pursue the most protective cover possible.”

A classic paradigm surrounding cats is that they don’t like people who want their attention, and will cozy up to people who actively don’t, and while it’s easy to apply anthropomorphism and interpret this as rudeness, it’s actually more scientific.

Cats actually enjoy spending time around people who don’t identify as “cat people,” according to a 2022 study by animal behavior scientists at Nottingham Trent University.

The study found that when cats are around people who just let them be instead of crowding them or trying to get their attention, they are actually given the control and independence they prefer.

The scientists found that people who had lived with cats were more likely to pay them more attention, picking them up and forcing them to interact, which cats famously do not care for.

Cats instead gravitated towards people who paid them “passive” attention who let them come to them and offered “minimal touching.” Similarly, people who are less comfortable or familiar with cats tend to stroke them in less risky areas like their ears and chin, which cats prefer, while people more who are more comfortable touched cats in places they famously don’t like, such as their stomach or the base of their tail.

So, don’t despair. If your cat doesn’t appear to like you, maybe they need a little more space than you’re giving them. Try sitting on the floor and letting them come to you.

Users on TikTok loved the video.

“My cat does this. He’ll come sniff people while they’re sleeping and run the moment they wake up,” shared one user. “The way they backed out Omgg cute kitty,” said another.

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to [email protected] with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.