# Tricks You Didn't Know Your Pets Could Do. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 4, 2008, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718 "2008-12-04T19:26:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2008, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/21 "2008-12-05T04:24:52Z")
> [@SnakesCatLady](#): > > Mr Spock, who is a 25 lb flamepoint Siamese mix, sits up and begs. This is weird enough, but he doesn’t just beg for attention from humans. He has been known to beg the ceiling fan and the bookshelf for attention. > > I once told him if the ceiling fan came down to play with him, I was leaving and not coming back. Meezers are mental. Don’t get me wrong, meezers are my favorite flavor of cat, but they’re mental. They are very needy and clingy. And most of them are quite smart, too. MY meezer learned to make a vocalization that sounds like “Mama”. She did it once, I fussed over her, and now she says it whenever she wants attention, or possibly some of that sirloin you’re eating. ---
**Author:** ![Brunhilda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/cdc98d/32.png) [@Brunhilda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brunhilda)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2008, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/22 "2008-12-05T04:32:10Z")
My mom’s cat is, we think, pretty verbal. Since my family often uses the dining room table as a work space for bills, my siblings’ homework, etc, she often comes up to visit whoever is working. It is her first year with my family. When we set the table for Thanksgiving, she was confused. She came up to inspect everything, and my dad got a little annoyed. My mom said to her, “Honey, whatever is on the table is going to get eaten.” And she looked at mom, her eyes got real wide, and she just jumped right off. Also, any time she hears the word cat in conversation, her tail does a special little swish. ---
**Author:** ![Marjorie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5ac83/32.png) [@Marjorie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marjorie)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2008, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/23 "2008-12-05T19:10:04Z")
This is not exactly smart, but Badger and Mushroom recently figured out how to lock themselves in the [bathroom](http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q175/marjoriefizz/catinbathroom.jpg). ---
**Author:** ![QuanSu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c37758/32.png) [@QuanSu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuanSu)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2008, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/24 "2008-12-05T22:34:06Z")
My cat, Socrates, would tap me on the elbow to get my attention. Just the right elbow, and nowhere else. This is only after a few “Hey you!” meows do not do the trick. The first time he did it, it was Sat night, 3 o clock in the morning and I was deep into typing up a project letter on the computer. I was alone in the dark, all lights turned off, and then suddenly there were 4 taps on my elbow. I must have jumped clean off the chair, so startled I was! When I collected enough wit to stop myself from bolting screaming into the night to look down, he was sitting there looking back at me with that “didn’t you hear me?” on his face. Note that in order to tap me on the elbow, he must stands up on his hind legs. He did the same to my girl friend the next year when she was working on her thesis late one night, and she woke me up with her screaming! :eek: He is the only cat I know who would only drink by dipping his paw into the water and then licks the wet paw. He even taught his “son” to do the same! (And loves coffee.) ---
**Author:** ![supergoose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@supergoose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/supergoose)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2008, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/25 "2008-12-05T23:43:50Z")
> [@QuanSu](#): > > My cat, Socrates, would tap me on the elbow to get my attention. Just the right elbow, and nowhere else. This is only after a few “Hey you!” meows do not do the trick. One of our cats does this too, except not on the elbow - he gently pats you once on the forearm with his paw, out of the blue (no yowling first, which is a bonus, since he’s clearly part Siamese when it comes to vocalizations). It’s very cute. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2008, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/26 "2008-12-06T00:05:52Z")
We have this old armoire that has about four drawers and then doors toward the top that open up. Well our cat [Mandy](http://flickr.com/photos/25268857@N02/2383224170/in/set-72157604354496728/) starts sniff around and clawing at it when suddenly she climb/leaps up to the top drawer - which is closed mind you - and latches her paws over it and manages to get it to slide open. At that point she, while still simply hanging on, climbed into the drawer and the proceeded to open the doors of the armoire, crawl in a lay down on some sweaters. ---
**Author:** ![Eats\_Crayons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/278dde/32.png) [@Eats\_Crayons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eats_Crayons)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2008, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718/27 "2008-12-06T00:55:12Z")
Fatcat flushes the toilet. He’s doesn’t _use_ the toilet, but he thinks it’s a roaring good time to flush repeatedly. Especially at two in the morning. We have a standing house rule to keep the toilet lid closed because one Christmas Eve he managed to flush a cat toy and clog it. It was hard to find a place open to buy a plunger the next day. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tricks-you-didnt-know-your-pets-could-do/475718.md?page=1)