Nearly every owner has asked themselves why their cat prefers to play in the box their new toy was packaged in, rather than with the toy itself. This is a common phenomenon and can be explained in a variety of ways.
There are many reasons why your cat loves to play in boxes. Read on to find out more.
Boxes Provide a Sense of Safety
The main reason your cat loves to play inside cardboard boxes is for the feeling of safety it provides. Boxes play to your cat’s natural instincts of desiring a place that’s safe enough to hide in or to hunt prey from.
Cats are instinctually ambushing predators. This means that in the wild, your furry friend would capture its prey by the element of surprise. Boxes provide the perfect cover your cat would need in order to trap its meal.
Being inside of the box reduces stress for your cat since it can observe from the box and not be seen. This is really important to cats naturally because if they were out in the wild, there would be other predators that would hunt them.
However, due to their lack of conflict resolution strategies, cats would much rather run and hide from their problems, than face them head-on.
A cardboard box can provide the perfect place for your cat to hide and avoid any conflict, hostility, or anxiety-inducing scenarios.
Cardboard Keeps Your Cat Warm
Cardboard boxes make great insulators. Cats love to stay warm and the ideal indoor temperature for a cat is around 70 degrees Fahrenheit or 21 degrees Celsius.
If your home is a bit chilly, you might find that your cat will tend to curl up inside of a cardboard box in order to stay warm.
Even if it is perfectly warm inside your home, you may still find that your cat prefers to snuggle up inside of a box to take a nap. Again, this is because of the safety and comfort they provide.
Your cat may just feel safer sleeping in one. After all, cats do spend a considerable amount of their day sleeping—anywhere from 12-16 hours!
Cats are Curious, Territorial Creatures
Everyone knows that cats are some of the most curious creatures alive. Because of this, they tend to inspect every new thing that is brought into the house. Cats are curious to find out what this new object is and what it does.
The new box smells different to your cat, so you may find it sniffing the box or rubbing itself against it. Rubbing its face against the box actually transfers scent from the glands that are inside of the cheek area.
Oddly enough, this is normal cat behavior and is its way of transferring its scent to the box—claiming ownership of its new territory.
A cat can display its curiosity in many ways and jumping into boxes is just one of them. These seemingly strange behaviors are oftentimes a reflection of their natural hunting instincts.
These natural instincts have served them well over the centuries, helping them to escape danger and hunt prey efficiently.
What Can I Do to Change this Behavior?
So let’s say you don’t want to keep a bunch of empty cardboard boxes laying around your house for your cat to hide, play, and sleep in. What can you do?
The best option is to provide good alternatives for the reasons that your cat is attracted to the cardboard boxes.
Provide a Shelter for Safety
The first thing you’ll want to do is make sure that your cat has a place where it can feel safe.
Obviously, your cat should feel safe inside your home, but cats also love to have safe and secure places within your home where they can retreat to.
Cat houses provide the same sort of feeling that curling up inside of a box can. They offer a small, secluded space that your cat can retreat to when it feels particularly stressed or anxious.
It is important for your cat to have its own space where it feels safe and protected from the elements or any potential “threats”, especially if you have multiple pets or if a new pet is introduced into the household.
- The cover is machine washable
- Folds down easily for simple storage
- Free hanging toy included
- Includes a scratching board on the side
Provide a Warm, Secure Place
As mentioned before, boxes provide a warm place for your cat to lounge in due to the fact that they make great insulators. If you want to replace the box, you’ll need to provide an alternative for your pet to keep warm and toasty.
There are many solutions to this, but a great way is to provide them with a window perch. Cats love to lay in the sunshine and we often find them snoozing near windows.
This is because it is usually warmer near a window that gets plenty of sunshine. Attaching a cat perch to your window or placing one next to it, will allow your pet to get its warmth from the sun, as well as do a bit of birdwatching.
It also gives it a place where it feels it has a good vantage point from any predators—which is always a plus.
If you’re looking for a standing option, rather than one that attaches directly to the window, the PetFusion Ultimate Window Cat Perch is a great choice. It also doubles as a climbing tree.
- Good for homes with more than one cat
- Perch and climbing tree in one
- Replacement posts available
- Sturdy design
- Easy assembly
- Suction cups secure the perch
Feed Your Cat’s Curiosity
We all know just how curious cats can be. Sometimes it may feel as though they need constant stimulation. Boxes do make great toys for your cat to play in, as you may find them hopping in and out of them.
But if you want to find a good alternative to this, you’ll want to consider getting your cat a good interactive cat toy. These will keep your cats busy and provide them with their daily recommended amount of exercise.
Cats have a lot of energy and if they don’t have any fun, interactive toys to play with, they will try and make their own fun. Cardboard boxes provide an element of fun for them as they hop in and out of it and maybe even chew on the sides.
There are many great options to choose from when it comes to interactive cat toys, and we’ve gone over some of the best of them.
Making sure your cat has something fun to do is very important for its overall health and wellbeing. Most cats already do not meet their daily requirement, and many are overweight or obese.
Another benefit of having a good quality interactive cat toy is that when your cat is more active during the day, it will be less likely to be active at night.
- Provides plenty of interactive playtimes
- Features nonskid pads on the bottom
- Provides physical stimulation to burn off excess energy
- Includes three different tiers with balls on each tier
Many cat owners often wonder why their cat decides to be much more active during the night than during the day. This may be in part due to the lack of physical activity your cat has during the day as well as its sleeping patterns.
Making sure that your cat has something fun to do during the day may lessen the frequency of its nighttime adventures.
There are many reasons why cats love to play in cardboard boxes. Many of those reasons can be explained by normal instinctual habits. Providing adequate replacements for the boxes will help keep your cat happy and healthy.
The photo featured at the top of this post is © Konstantin Aksenov/Shutterstock.com
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