De facto Cat

Cat owners and lovers will agree that most cats are easily frightened by things. My cat, Keke is no exception. While she is as adorable as she can be, she is the textbook definition of an scaredy cat.

The Urban Dictionary’s definition of scaredy cat is Someone frightened by almost everything

She runs for cover at the drop of a dime. I cannot begin to count the number of times she hid in the bedroom closet whenever company cames to visit.  Her behaviour made me curious about the old adeage – scaredy cat. So I began to do some research about this catchall phrase.

• The word scaredy doesn’t exist on its own. The phrase scaredy cat first appears in print in Dorothy Parker’s The Waltz, published in 1933, and she’s usually credited with coining the term. Thus, it is used with the word cat attached to it.
• “scaredy” relies on the english “-y” suffix which usually changes the word to “something having the quality of” (rain > rainy; mess > messy).
• Another phrase most people are familiar with is “Fraidy Cat”. This has a similar meaning but is typically directed towards a person’s cowardly behavior, in general.

I came across a poem called Scaredy Cat, by Leah Claire Kaminski with a thoughtful and fullbodied aroma of expressions. I clipped a small piece of it and encourage you to enjoy the full poem yourself.

I stumbled across the following 2005 case study conducted by the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors (APBC) in the UK. This study produced an annual review of data from cases referred to APBC members from veterinary surgeons.

In the 2005 review of cases, information was collated on 65 feline cases, of which 30 were male and 35 female. 11% showed some kind of fearful or ‘phobic’ response; 10% of cases presented with aggression towards people, 7% with behaviours caused by medical disorders and 5% with ‘bonding problems’ (presumably meaning cats showi a limited tolerance of interaction with people) (APBC, 2005).

Interestingly enough, ten percent is not the bulk of cats nor does it indicate scaredy cat refers to a female feline (although the majority of the cats were female).

I just met the cutest, tiniest kitten at the Raleigh/Durham International airport in December 2019, His name was OB (short for Outer Banks…as in the coast of North Carolina).

He is a healthy, handsome 7-week old tabby.  His human mother, Teriann shared that she was at the end of a lovely vacation enjoying the coast of NC with her  mother and sister. Her newborn baby kitten made the airport his amusement park and frolicked all about within the perimeter of Teriann’s luggage, of course.

I could not remember a time in my past that I had encountered a kitten, either in person or as an observer. None of my friends had any pets growing up. Although my parents were given an adult cat, well after I had moved out, this kitten helped to teach me that there is a big difference between a cat and a kitten.

They need help becoming comfortable with people.  Kittens may be timid at first but with patience, kindness and humane training, I can blossom. What you teach me while I’m a kitten will have a lasting effect when I am fully grown. I’m a social animal but I’ll need your help in gradually exposing me to people and experinces to raise my comfort level.

They are obligate carnivores. It’s not a want, it’s a need. Unlike their vegetarian owners, they must receive good quality protein from meat sources.

They can be trained. You may have believed only dogs could be trained but kittens are smart and willing to learn. Take the time to understand what they need and how to best communicate with them. They respond to caring and positive training methods.