As a connoisseur of cats, I’ve never seen a cat that didn’t like a good old-fashioned cardboard box. Oh, and don’t forget those shoeboxes, laundry baskets, and suitcases! I think all cat owners can agree: cats just simply love boxes and enclosed spaces…or anything that they can hide or squeeze their fluffy body into, regardless of size! But have you ever wondered why cats love boxes so much? Then keep reading, cat lover!
- This box makes me feel safe!
- Cat bed? No, this box will do
- Big cats love boxes, too!
- Boxes have been used to reduce stress levels of shelter cats
- The reason the study was conducted and how it was performed:
- The results and findings:
- Check out this super cute video on the Cattitude Daily YouTube channel, and don’t forget to subscribe!
This box makes me feel safe!
Plain and simple, your cat loves the security that a box provides. Whether it’s a small kitty in a big box or a large kitty squeezing into a tiny one, that box grants it a comfortable space that makes it feel safe and secure.
Stephen Zawistowski, science adviser for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, says:
“Cats like boxes because they are cryptic animals; they like to hide…And a box gives them a place of safety and security.”
And for your feline friend who loves to sleep up to 15 hours a day, a box is the perfect spot for an extended cat nap, as the walls provide a nice hiding spot. As we know, cats do not like to be bothered when they are sleeping!
Cat bed? No, this box will do
Cat owners can definitely relate to this for sure! You’ve spent all this money buying your cat something new, and they’d much rather hang out in the box it came in than the item you’ve purchased just for them. Not only is this cat owner reality but there are also many stories of cats accidentally getting packed in moving boxes. Please always be careful when packing boxes if your cat is roaming around your home.
Regardless of the box size, your cat will squeeze into it because, in their mind, it provides them with a safe place to escape from potential dangers/threats. Your cat is not naturally aggressive, and they will avoid conflict at all costs. Hiding is much more up their alley!
Big cats love boxes, too!
I don’t know about you, but I am totally crazy about big cats, too! And although big cats and our domesticated felines have many differences, they also have some super cool similarities, too. Have you ever seen what a big cat does when they’re presented with a cardboard box?
Want to see a fun collection of cats embodying, if I fit, I sit logic? Check out this silly collection of photos here on CatittudeDaily.com.
Boxes have been used to reduce stress levels of shelter cats
Science Direct shared a study out of the Netherlands where shelter cats in high-stress environments were provided with boxes to test and see if it would reduce their stress. Shelters are often noisy, and as we know, cats aren’t precisely fans of loud noises—likely because their sense of hearing is 5x what ours is!
The study’s results clearly indicate that the boxes provided to the shelter cats greatly reduced their stress levels and helped to calm them. See below for more details!
The reason the study was conducted and how it was performed:
Domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) can experience severe stress in shelters. Stressful experiences can significantly impact cats’ welfare and may cause higher incidences of infectious diseases in shelters due to raised cortisol levels, which can cause immunodeficiency.
Though several studies showed a preference for hiding places and the stress-reducing effects of hiding boxes on cats in combined studies, none of these studies determined if proper hiding enrichment would be effective in a quarantine cattery. These stress-reducing effects are crucial in the first weeks after admission when novelty stress is highest.
The present study aimed to determine the effect of a hiding box on the stress levels of newly arrived cats in a Dutch animal shelter. Therefore, 19 newly arrived shelter cats were randomly divided into two groups: with (N = 10) and without a hiding box (N = 9). To determine the stress levels of recently admitted cats, behavioural observations were done during a 14-day period according to the Kessler and Turner Cat Stress Score (CSS).
The results and findings:
The main results of this study are that: (1) a significant difference was found between groups in the mean CSS on observation days 3 and 4, whereby the hiding box group had a lower mean CSS (p < 0.01); (2) the mean CSS of the hiding box group showed minimal variance, meaning that the hiding box had its effect on most experimental cats, whereas, high variance could be seen in the group without hiding boxes; (3) the mean CSS for both groups was equal at day 14, but this level of recovery was already reached around day 3 in the hiding box group.
These findings suggest that cats provided with a hiding box could recover faster in their new environment than cats without a hiding box, as measured by the CCS.
In summary, the hiding box significantly enriches the cat’s ability to cope effectively with stressors in a new shelter environment during the first weeks after arrival. Further research is needed to study the effect of a hiding box on group-housed cats, its long-term effects, and its correlation with outbreak frequencies of infectious diseases.
