WHY DO CATS KNOCK THINGS OVER?

Why do cats knock things over? “It depends,” says Amy Shojai, certified animal behavior consultant and the author of several books about cat antics. “There could be multiple reasons why cats knock things over.”
– It could have something to do with your cat’s prey drive. Cats are hardwired to hunt for their food, so knocking things over may be a manifestation of this instinct.
– Cats use their paws to test and explore objects, and the movement, sound, and touch or feel of the object helps them understand what might be safe or not.
– How you react after something is knocked down can also influence whether or not the behavior continues. Humans make great audiences. When cats want attention, they learn very quickly what gets your eyes on them.
– “Cats are incredibly adept at finding ways to manipulate what they want,” says Shojai, “which often comes down to: Look at me, feed me, play with me.” Since even bad attention is better than being ignored, knocking over objects provides another way for cats to get a reaction out of their owners. So as hard as it may be, if your cat is in the habit of knocking things over to get your attention, the best thing to do is to ignore the behavior.
* Then they’ll get your attention by spraying urine on everything.
* Hey, isn’t that adorable? Animal behavior consultant Amy Shojai knows how to get our attention by talking about cats!
* Old joke: “How do you know the world is round? Because if it were flat, cats would have knocked everything off the edge.”
* Next, Amy explains why cats chase laser pointers.