I have a 12 year old Calico cat in excellent health. For the past few years, whenever anyone in the house takes a shower, she sits in front of the bathroom door and howls until she’s let in. Then, she sits right next to the tub and meows at intervals. It’s particularly loud if you poke your head out from around the curtain whereupon she will pace, meow, and rub up against the tub. She doesn’t do this at any other time. She’s not interested in the water, and doesn’t want to hop into the tub. All cats are a bit nutty, but this behavior has me puzzled. 
Any ideas?
Umm… she thinks you’re being hurt by all the mean evil water?
If shes like MY cat she just cant stand to be left alone, if my cat finds itself alone in a section of the house it will cry and meow and wander around till it finds someone.
One of my cats does this, too. He actually walks along the edge of the tub, peeking around the end of the curtain to meow.
As soon as I’m out and drying off, he goes to the other end of the tub and starts licking the water off the walls. He loves it.
When I lived alone I used to take baths (by candlelight because I had no electricity–thank god my apartment complex provided hot water) and all four of my cats would sit in there with me. Ding and Milo would sit on the edge of the tub and bat the water with their paws, Sidel would sit on the toilet, and Random would sit in the doorway. This happened every time. I’m not sure why they were so fascinated by my taking a bath… Since then 3 of those cats have died (feline leukemia… horrible thing), but I again have 4 cats. Ding remains, but she is afraid of the bathroom now … and I don’t know what made the difference. Kaia is my bathroom buddy now, but only when I’m going potty.
I would think that it would be fair for cats to watch us bathe and groom, since we do the same to them (sans howling,
in my case). The one cat quirk that really makes me laugh is when I am talking on the phone and no one else is home, the cat gets a confused look on its face because it has no clue who I am talking to.
My Misty also loves to be in the bathroom with people. She’ll sit on the back of the toilet or on the window sill if it’s open, and if you stick your head out, she’ll lick your face. When you get out, she cries and cries for attention. She’s a strange cat.
She and the little ones also play in the bathtub.
Mine does the same thing. I’ve formulated a sort of half-assed theory about it, based on the observation that the same cat will clamber to the top of the kitchen cabinets when I’m boiling pasta. I think it has something to do with the water vapor. A really hot, humid environment might be very stimulating for an animal that’s as reliant on its sense of smell as a cat is.
Then again, the cat might just be irritated that you’re washing off her markings, and is yelling at you to get out of the shower so that she can re-mark you as hers.
I think cats will always move towards any heating source. My cat will sit on top of the computer monitor when I’m using it, or the CD player, and he’ll also sit on heating grates during winter (which, needless to say, makes the entire house smell like ‘cat’.)
Actually, Misty AND Noel will sometimes lay in front of the ducts when the AC is on.
You realize, of course, that this is redundant?
My cat (The Amazing Velcro Cat - long story) will usually come in and check out the shower. I don’t know that it’s steam that does it, since he’s liable to visit me no matter the relative temperature of water and air; he’ll be there on a hot day when I’m having a cool shower for instance. I have no idea why he’s so fascinated, except for the fact that, when I’m done, he tries to chase the last of the water down the drain.
He used to have a favourite perch on top of the toilet cistern until he landed on the flush button one day…
“My God. man, you’re getting WET!”
“Are you ok?”
The look of concern on the face of one cat I had whenever I took a bath was hilarious.
One of my current cats, Moody, likes to get on the ledge behind my tub while I’m taking a bath.
Yup. I’ve got a calico cat that does exactly the same thing. If you have a shower there she is meowing away.
I also have a black cat that when you are about to get in the shower will grasp hold of my lower leg with claws and teeth and try to prevent me from getting in.
Damn strange cats.
thinksnow just described one of my two cats to a T. The other will just hang out until I get out of the shower, and then immediately – immediately! – demand that I pick him up. If I don’t pick him up right away, maybe because I am selfishly trying to dry off, he will fling himself off the bathroom counter or the toilet and it’s up to me to catch him. Then he purrs loudly and licks any droplets he can find off of me. It’s equal parts annoying and adorable, and nothing stops him from doing that every morning.
They’re both the sons of a calico, come to think of it.