Your Cat Hates When You Do These 7 Things

Cats are often portrayed as cantankerous, grumpy animals who prefer ignoring their owners, but the fact is that cats are loving, caring pets who can form lasting bonds with their chosen humans.

While there’s certainly no doubt that cats have unique personalities, the idea that all cats are standoffish and easily angered simply isn’t true.

However, there are some things that humans do (or don’t do) that cats hate. Whether you have one cat in your home, or you’re surrounded by the love of a pack of felines, you want to do everything you can to keep your pets as happy as possible.

Today, learn more about seven things that humans do that cats hate and how you can avoid making life more stressful for your beloved pets.

Making Loud Noises

Cats have incredibly sensitive hearing that has evolved over the years. If you could peer into your cat’s genetic history, you would see that its ancestors developed a level of hearing that goes beyond what humans can comprehend because they needed to hear predators coming before they became victims.

Over the years, this level of adaptation has led to cats having hearing just as sensitive as dogs, even if canines are more widely known for their hearing.

This means that your cats hate when you make loud noises. For instance, even if you’re not yelling at your cat, your pet doesn’t like when you raise your voice.

Slamming doors, playing loud music, and turning the TV up too much all serve as annoyances to your cats that actually hurt their ears.

In the same way that you wouldn’t want someone sitting in your living room blasting an air horn, your cat can’t rest or relax when there are loud noises going on.

Litter Box Failure

One of the most important aspects of owning a cat involves litter box management. Experts agree that you need one more litter box than you have cats in your home.

For instance, if you have three cats in your home, you need four litter boxes. Even if you only have one cat in the house, invest in two litter boxes.

Cats don’t want to use a dirty litter box, which is a great reason to invest in multiple options. Cats are generally very picky animals when it comes to their personal hygiene, so stepping in a litter box that is filled with urine and feces puts them under stress.

In addition to making sure that you have one more litter box than you have cats, be sure that you’re cleaning those litter boxes out regularly.

Generally, you should plan on scooping out the litter boxes in your home every day. If you notice that your cats have an aversion to using the litter boxes, you may need to adjust and scoop them out more than once a day.

Your cats’ litter boxers serve as a source of comfort for your cats because of the familiarity they provide and the smells they give off. Taking care of the litter boxes and making sure that your cats consistently have a clean place to relieve themselves is one of the most important parts of cat ownership.

Making Sudden Changes

Cats are creatures of habit, and once they get used to something, it takes them some time to adjust to change. This concept includes everything from the type of food they eat to the layout of the furniture in your home.

Cats having a natural aversion to change doesn’t mean that you never buy new furniture, change the layout of your home, or make other changes, but it does mean that you need to keep your furry friends in mind when you do.

Try to look for ways to lessen the shock associated with newness for your cats.

For instance, if you’re moving into a new home and you have access to the property while you’re still packing your belongings, consider taking your cat with you when you’re moving items into your new home.

Giving your cat time to acclimate to the new layout, sounds, and smells can help reduce some of the shock that they’ll feel once you get moved in.

Change is an inevitable part of life, but as a cat owner, you should try to make changes as easy as possible. Easing your cat into new scenarios takes time and careful consideration, but it’s worth it to help your cat live more peacefully.

Going Overboard with Odors

Just because you’ve never seen a bomb-sniffing cat working with a police officer doesn’t mean that cats don’t have a keen sense of smell.

In fact, a cat’s sense of smell is 14 times more sensitive than that of humans. With this in mind, one of the worst things you can do for your cat is to overload your home with strong odors.

Things like scented candles, strong air fresheners, and even body sprays can bother cats because of their sensitive noses.

This doesn’t mean that you don’t put on any perfume before going out, but it does mean that you should avoid going overboard with scented cleaners, air fresheners, and personal hygiene products in your home.

Make sure that you’re using strong scents sparingly while taking care to avoid things that are toxic to cats that generate a strong odor.

Rough Petting

If you’ve ever owned dogs, you’re probably already aware of how much puppies love to play rough and enjoy a good, enthusiastic belly rub. This type of petting may be fine for canines, but cats generally hate it. In fact, most cats don’t like having their belly rubbed at all.

While there are some exceptions to this rule, the fact remains that cats don’t like aggressive petting. Cats generally prefer a calmer environment than their canine counterparts, and this includes how they’re petted.

Don’t assume that you can play rough with your cat. While there may be some exceptions to the rule, most cats don’t enjoy it at all.

Declawing Your Cats

Unfortunately, many people believe that the best way to protect their home while they have a cat living inside is to declaw the animal. Your cat hates this on multiple levels.

First of all, declawing involves a painful, surgical procedure in which the cat’s toes are amputated to the equivalent of the first “knuckle.” Many vets around the nation now refuse to declaw cats because there are simply no medical benefits.

Declawing leads to lifelong pain for your cat, as walking and jumping become problematic after the procedure.

If you want to protect your furniture, walls, and other finishes from your cat’s claws, invest in some kitty nail caps that you can get at your local store or online. These plastic caps attach with pet-safe glue that wears off over time.

Declawing cats is ultimately an elective surgery that puts the animal in harm’s way for no good reason other than personal convenience. Don’t put your pet through surgery just to make things more convenient for yourself.

Bathing Your Cat

Finally, cats don’t want to take baths. In fact, it’s a universal fact that cats do not like water. While you may see a dog running and jumping into a lake, pond, or pool, you’ll probably never see a cat do something like that.

Cat tongues are used for bathing, and that’s typically enough to keep your cat clean. Cats are incredibly obsessive about their hygiene, so they’re not going to let themselves stay dirty.

There are instances in which you may need to give your cat a bath. If your cat has something dangerous on its fur, a bath may be necessary. If you’re preparing your cat for a show, you may want to give it a thorough bath.

However, bathing should not be a standard part of your cat care. Trust them to handle keeping themselves clean without a lot of human intervention.

Your cat can serve as a constant companion for decades.

However, to get the most out of this relaitonship, it's important that you don't do things that stress your cat out. Avoiding these seven behaviors ensures that your furry friend lives a happy, healthy life by your side.