Why Cats Are Sooo Scared of Cucumbers?

no matter how you feel about cats you're gonna find this one interesting the unfunny reason why cats hate cucumbers now I'm sure you've all seen the memes gifts and videos of cats literally leaping into the air and fright at the sight of a cucumber Hey I used to do that at the site of Brussels sprouts now this can look outright hilarious to us humans and it seems so random that an animal related to the ferocious king of the jungle would be so scared of a simple fruit so what's a deal anyway why do cats find cucumbers so repulsive that their initial reaction is to scamper away when they see one well we're as puzzled as you are so let's see what experts have to say about this cat versus cucumber phenomenon but before we get into the science behind your kitties fear of the dreaded cucumber be sure to click that subscribe button and turn on the notification bell so that you'll always be the first to see all the informative and insightful videos coming out daily on the bright side of life so it usually goes like this a pet owner will quietly place a cucumber behind their cat's back as the animal is eating out of its food ball once the cat turns around and notices this strange green and long gated thing lying there on the ground it'll either jump up and fear and run away or stand there in wide-eyed amazement at the fruit the especially brave kitties will even engage in a nudging battle with it we get our kicks out of watching this whole thing go down but what's going through a cat's brain during all of this don't forget that cats are basically miniature alliance that sometimes show dominance impulsiveness and a bit of neuroticism like my neighbor it's natural for this stealthy creature to be suspicious which is sometimes mistaken as being curious of their surroundings especially in an unfamiliar environment domestic cats even though you always find them lounging on top of a bookshelf or dozing on your couch are still highly skilled predators and always in a state of heightened alert when they hunt for their prey they're wary of flashing lights ah the infamous laser dot noisy toys and any moving items before them and they're not really afraid of us humans since in the words of dr. John Bradshaw a biologist at England's University of Bristol who studied cat behavior for 30 years our feline friends only think of their owners as a larger dumb non-hostile cat or to make it less offending a mama cat so why on earth are they such scaredy cats when it comes to cucumbers animal experts aren't quite sure they have a few theories but they all agree that cats aren't petrified of the cucumber itself certified animal behavior specialist dr. Rogers Mugford puts it down to simply being caught off guard during a moment of vulnerability remember a lot of these pet owners sneak up on them when they're eating which is when a lot of creatures whether human or animal feel most relaxed and place the cucumber behind their back so just imagine if someone snuck up on you from behind while you were blissfully having a meal of course you'd be startled and probably not by the person themselves if you know them at least but just by the mere unexpectedness of it all another theory is that cats mistake cucumbers for snakes the felines true mortal enemy other than dogs maybe according to dr. Constantine Slovakia cough an animal behaviorist and professor at Northern Arizona University the long green shape of a cucumber looks enough like a snake to have the cat's instinctive fear of the reptile kick yet our feline companions are hardwired to avoid these slithering beings at all costs because well snakes can kill ah your cats not quite as dumb as you thought whether it's because of the fear of the unknown or a phobia of snakes it's still not a good idea to pull the cucumber prank on your poor kitty actually the same goes for bananas pineapples or fake spiders they can evoke the same strong reaction simply put cats are not used to being caught off guard again especially when they're eating and have their guard down startling them for fun can do some serious damage on their psychic you're basically tricking them into thinking there's a deadly predator or danger nearby which causes them psychological harm and stress of course I know you don't want that for your fur baby but once again let's take it from the experts dr. Slovakia cough says it can inflict psychological trauma not only because of the cucumber but also the places where the green invader was presented to them according to the pet care site vet babble it can lead to anxiety aggressive behavior and even PTSD can't behavior consultant dr. Michael Delgado explains that if cats feel threatened particularly at their food stations they can lose their appetite and when cats don't eat they can develop life-threatening fatty liver disease cats love to be in control there are a creature of habit so they can become distressed when their human changes their routine or does something unpredictable based on a study conducted by the College of Veterinary Medicine at the Ohio State University cats may exhibit sickness behaviors in response to unusual external events like the infamous cucumber Stein the common sickness behaviors are vomiting refusing to eat diarrhea and urinating outside the litter box Marilyn Krieger a certified cat behavior consultant points out other symptoms that your cat might be suffering from stress they're more clingy to you or other members of the household or the exact opposite they hide from or avoid all contact with you again they have problems using the litter box they develop psychogenic alopecia or over grooming that leads to hair loss they eat non edible items like socks plastic bags wood or rubber they vent feelings on your other pets if you have any or other people they demonstrate nervous jumpy or skittish behavior furthermore they may injure themselves break something or become more stressed our furry feline buddy is a sensitive being which is why you should be a considerate pet owner you don't want your kitty to distrust you or feel on edge in their own home so be a responsible and caring mama cat by gradually introducing new items such as cucumbers to them let them study it at a safe distance and get familiarized with the object on their own terms instead of shoving it in their face or behind their back yes it's certainly amusing and entertaining to watch those cat versus cucumber or cat not like banana video have a good laugh since cats unlike their canine counterparts our models of being cool calm and collected seeing them go out of character is a rare and funny sight to behold but try to put yourself in their shoes or paws that is and think how would I react and feel if someone scared the heck out of me over and over again in my own home what may seem like innocent fun could be considered animal cruelty if you think about it and well that might be true that not all cats hate cucumbers it's still not a valid reason to experiment this trick on them even for the sake of science so please don't scare your poor kitties and speak up when you see someone else doing it to theirs which of these scientific explanations of cats cucumber phobia do you think is true and how do you feel about all those videos online showing this sort of thing tell us in the comments below don't forget to give this video a like if you enjoyed it and get the message out there by sharing it with your friends hit that subscribe button to stay on the bright side of life you

Channel: BRIGHT SIDE

Views: 1,665,051

Rating: 4.6721034 out of 5

Keywords: cats, cats and cucumbers, cats vs cucumbers, cat people, cat videos, cat language, cat stress, understand cat, cat behavior

Id: jQdBsRWy2WQ

Length: 10min 7sec (607 seconds)

Published: Fri Sep 28 2018