# So, the cats are addicted to Evercrack. But they try not to be. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 2, 2006, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066 "2006-01-02T09:24:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 9:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/1 "2006-01-02T09:24:28Z")
My oldest cat has recently taken to leaping (heaving herself) to the top of my computer chair, and sleeping (draping) across the narrow edge. I don’t think much of it, except when she first jumps up and I am startled (jolted) for a moment, and I try not to lean back too often so I don’t throw her off balance (dump her heavy ass onto the floor). The youngest cat likes to sit in my lap while I play Everquest II and bat at my little character, or the various bears, birds, and big bad guys I “fight” onscreen. I guess she’s been telling her older sister how interesting it all is. Tonight, after I was initially startled (jolted), and the oldest cat settles down and asses out on the top of my chair, my husband glances up at some point and whispers for me to turn around. I see [this](http://img308.imageshack.us/img308/4353/hookedoneq4qe.jpg). She’s staring, fixated, on my screen. Since then, if she’s not on the back of my chair, whenever she hears the startup music, she leaps (_heaves herself_!) onto the back of my chair, momentarily startling (_jolting_!) me, then pretends she’s going to go to sleep. But she continues to look like [this](http://img308.imageshack.us/img308/4353/hookedoneq4qe.jpg). The arm hanging down is a nice touch. I’m convinced. Sure. Great. The cats are addicted to Evercrack. Now I’ll have to pay for their subscription fees, too. ---
**Author:** ![conurepete](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e57/32.png) [@conurepete](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/conurepete)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/2 "2006-01-02T11:56:05Z")
I understand. My parrot George is a Doper. He wants to sit on my lap, lean over the keyboard, and help me type by bashing his face onto the keys. He has no concept of grammar or spelling, and tries to hijack threads to subjects like “jkhy” and “saxc z”. Furthermore, he never provides cites. But still, if I am here, he wants to be, too. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/3 "2006-01-02T13:28:57Z")
My Jack Russel Terrier loves to type. He sometimes hops up on my lap while I’m on the Dope and whacks the keyboard with his paws and nose. Henceforth, I am blaming any incoherent or bone-headed posts on him. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BoBettie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@BoBettie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BoBettie)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/4 "2006-01-02T15:38:03Z")
My dog Foster loves him some computer time. Move over, it’s MY turn to update my LJ! [![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v497/suzette100/fostercomputer2.jpg) ](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v497/suzette100/fostercomputer2.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/5 "2006-01-02T17:42:53Z")
Heh. My rats love running on my computer desk. I recently lifted Bettina’s ban on this (see [here](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=301117&highlight=coffee) for explanation) because she was getting sulky watching Cookie have all the fun. They have a “no going on the keyboard” rule, for obvious reasons (pee), but sometimes a paw manages to sneak down and type “y” or “l;” or sometimes even “3”. ---
**Author:** ![LeeshaJoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e8cbc/32.png) [@LeeshaJoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LeeshaJoy)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/6 "2006-01-02T17:47:00Z")
My cat Macavity has taken to sleeping on the computer chair whenever it’s not occupied. I have yet to see any evidence that he’s actually using the computer, though. ---
**Author:** ![Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_With_a_Cat)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/7 "2006-01-02T18:01:12Z")
Cuervo cannot help but walk across the keyboard when I’m on the couch. But let a [football game come on TV](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a39/keylimepie630/cat%20pictures/footballkitty.jpg) and he stops whatever he’s doing and will sit and stare until the next shiny thing distracts him. ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/8 "2006-01-02T19:16:00Z")
> [@Mr Bus Guy](#): > > Cuervo cannot help but walk across the keyboard when I’m on the couch. > > But let a [football game come on TV](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a39/keylimepie630/cat%20pictures/footballkitty.jpg) and he stops whatever he’s doing and will sit and stare until the next shiny thing distracts him. Watch out for the bear!.. ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/9 "2006-01-02T19:17:42Z")
> [@Mr Bus Guy](#): > > Cuervo cannot help but walk across the keyboard when I’m on the couch. > > But let a [football game come on TV](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a39/keylimepie630/cat%20pictures/footballkitty.jpg) and he stops whatever he’s doing and will sit and stare until the next shiny thing distracts him. I SEE SEAHAWKS! Who’s side are you on? :dubious: If a Seahawk fan, goooood Cuervo, goood! Didums hewp Shaun Alexander get hims touchdown wecord? GOOOOD KITTY! And what about hims wushing title? GOOOOOD KITTY! We kicked them Giants that day, didn’t we shnookums? Whaddaya mean, “Feely fucked his kicks?” Well, that’s good enough for me, pretty kitty! Ahem. Yeah, I’m a 'hawks fan. What of it? 😛 (Cuervo’s a cutiepie!) ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/10 "2006-01-02T22:07:19Z")
> [@LeeshaJoy](#): > > My cat Macavity has taken to sleeping on the computer chair whenever it’s not occupied. I have yet to see any evidence that he’s actually using the computer, though. Say, did you still want everyone to send catnip and tuna fish over to your place? 'Cause that MPSIMS thread you opened had an invalid ZIP code with your address. ---
**Author:** ![Kiminy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Kiminy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiminy)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/11 "2006-01-02T22:26:09Z")
We had a cat who was addicted to TV for a while. When I was in the last trimester of my first pregnancy, I had the summer off, and we lived in a top floor apartment with nominal air conditioning. I spend a lot of time simply sitting on the sofa reading or watching TV, trying to stay comfortable. I’m not much of a TV watcher, but I discovered that our cat LOVED to watch shows with small mammals or birds, so I would simply channel-hop from one nature show to the next, looking for shows she wanted to watch. When I found one, she would be _glued_ to the TV, drooling and chirping the same way she did when she saw birds at the birdfeeder outside the window. One day, we were watching a TV show about birds, and she was sitting next to me on the sofa paying _much_ more attention than I was. A bird swooped across the screen, appearing from the upper-right-hand corner of the screen, and zooming out toward the back of the TV. The cat was so engrossed in this that she made a flying leap over the TV, apparently hoping to catch the bird as it came out of the back of the box! She ended up sliding down the back of the TV in a completely uncontrolled fall, landing flat on her back. She was perfectly all right, except for her ego, but she refused to watch TV again after that. ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/12 "2006-01-02T22:56:20Z")
Both of our cats have only recently discovered the joy that is television, since we recently got rid of the old bubble-screened one and bought a flatscreen. TV suddenly makes sense to them. The little one particularly enjoys the Discovery channel, the older one likes anything about forensics and football, and they both enjoy the Cosby Show. They curl up on the couch together when Bill comes on and watch the entire show with half closed eyes, sometimes looking at each other when the audience laughs. I swear, in their own kitty language, they’re laughing. Or they’re rolling their eyes at each other, thinking Bill was really being sophisticated, and those canned laughing humans just don’t get it. When the show is over, they go to sleep. But until it ends, they both stare straight at the television in utter contentment, often purring. Sometimes the older one will get a snack during a commercial. Make of _that_ what you will. ---
**Author:** ![Elza\_B](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Elza\_B](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elza_B)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/13 "2006-01-02T23:10:20Z")
My girl is a TV watcher. Right now, she loves watching _Farscape_ DVDs with me, especially if Rygel or Chiana are on - she has a thing for Muppets and grey people. I also caught her staring intently at _Monarch of the Glen_ a couple of weeks ago. I think she likes their accents. E. ---
**Author:** ![Queen\_Bruin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e274bd/32.png) [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2006, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/14 "2006-01-02T23:19:09Z")
Rubicante loved the Evercrack too, right up til I canceled my subscription. Then we were both back into Diablo II for a bit. He tries to catch things on the screen. I’m into Morrowind lately, but he’s sorta “meh” about it. ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/15 "2006-01-03T00:12:47Z")
I started playing WoW today, but so far, neither cares much. However, my husband just brought in a fresh load of laundry, and the little one decided that was as [good](http://img446.imageshack.us/img446/7127/keroctn3ei.jpg) as an [armchair](http://img283.imageshack.us/img283/3702/keroctn26aj.jpg). She’s watching the Cartoon Network. I think “Teen Titans” is on. ---
**Author:** ![Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@Man\_With\_a\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Man_With_a_Cat)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/16 "2006-01-03T02:09:27Z")
> [@Anastasaeon](#): > > I SEE SEAHAWKS! Who’s side are you on? :dubious: > > Ahem. Yeah, I’m a 'hawks fan. What of it? 😛 > > (Cuervo’s a cutiepie!) The bear is more than just a mean looking piece of art. It’s his [doppelganger](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a39/keylimepie630/cat%20pictures/symmetry.jpg) . Here’s a clue to Cuervo’s [true loyalty.](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a39/keylimepie630/229%20house%20pictures/dabearshat.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Anastasaeon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Anastasaeon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anastasaeon)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/17 "2006-01-03T02:34:59Z")
> [@Mr Bus Guy](#): > > Here’s a clue to Cuervo’s [true loyalty.](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a39/keylimepie630/229%20house%20pictures/dabearshat.jpg) Ahhhh, well that is perfectly fine, since we won our game on Christmas Eve against the Colts and clinched the playoffs and avoided having to face the Bears. (Whew!) 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/18 "2006-01-03T02:46:47Z")
> [@Lissa](#): > > My Jack Russel Terrier loves to type. He sometimes hops up on my lap while I’m on the Dope and whacks the keyboard with his paws and nose. > > Henceforth, I am blaming any incoherent or bone-headed posts on him. 😉 There may be one or two posters here that actually are Jack Russel Terriers. My cats also enjoy sitting on the back of my computer chair. I hate when they jump up there while I’m scrolling through a long thread because I always lose my place and just as I am about to find it again they jump from the chair back to the top of the refrigerator. My kitten also enjoys sitting in front of the computer screen. This wasn’t so bad when he was tiny but now he’s about 8 months old and getting rather big and unfortunately for me he is not transparent. I usually have to stop scrolling or typing so he’ll get bored with the inactive cursor and lay down again. ---
**Author:** ![Aangelica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Aangelica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aangelica)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/19 "2006-01-03T17:00:35Z")
My boy kitty is absolutely fascinated by Civ III. He loves to sit on my lap and watch. He purrs whenever I make a new Settler. It’s a little creepy, actually. ---
**Author:** ![aurelian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f4b2a3/32.png) [@aurelian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aurelian)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2006, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066/20 "2006-01-03T22:18:47Z")
is David Attenborough’s _The Life of Birds_. I raided my roommate’s DVD collection when I was really sick last spring and watched the whole _Life of_ series. My cat, and my roommate’s two cats went insane for this video, cacking at the screen, standing up, trying to paw the birds, and running around the back trying to catch the birds on their way offscreen. Plus, it’s a beautiful documentary, with Attenborough’s lovely narration to boot. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-the-cats-are-addicted-to-evercrack-but-they-try-not-to-be/338066.md?page=2)