What on earth is my kitty doing!!!???

Question

I am at a loss on this one, I am a vet tech that worked for 10 years and 4 years in animal behavioral services back in the 1990s. So, I think I have an idea on whats going on, but I want to put it out there and see if ANYONE has any other ideas or has had this happen.

I have a 13 year old orange tiger boy "Quentin" he is fat, and happy, and VERY VERY attached to me. We also have 3 other felines, and 3 Ferrets of various age. 2 of my ferrets are about 3 years of age, and my youngest ferret one is a little over 1 year. All the ferrets are free roam, and interact very well with the cats.

Sometimes, the ferrets witll get rowdy with the cats and engage a chase game with the cats, and for the most part the cats just jump up to higher ground. No aggression or anything like that between them.

Quentin in the last 6 months or so, has taken to this EARLY MORNING YOWL FEST and carrying a ferret around our apt. in his mouth. He picks the ferret up by the nape, and just walks around YOWLING with this ferret dangling out of his mouth. He is almost in a trance, because I have to get up and remove the ferret from his mouth.

The ferrets are unharmed, just a lil stunned I guess because it seems he goes to where they sleep and picks them out of a sound sleep to do this.

I'm not worried he will hurt them, he seems to be gentle enough carrying them around as a mother would carry her kitten, but I just wonder WHAT THE h**l IS IT ALL ABOUT???????

I thought it was a sexual thing at first, because I did catch him almost like stuffing one of them between his legs, but it turned out he was losing his grip and needed to re-grab him. I wonder if its a maternal thing? A dominance thing? Or maybe all 3?????

Anyone want to weigh in on this one please I welcome you!!!!!

Answer 1

Maybe quentin is just in love with it?

On a joke level - remember those toys with a ferret attached to a ball that cats chase? :)

Answer 2

My male cat does the same thing!! (with his toy though).  He has a stuffed shark that he loves.  He walks over to it and talks to it and then puts it in his mouth and carries it around the house yowling.  He does it especially at night when I am trying to sleep.  I think it is a maternal thing because he seems to really love it.  It sounds like your cat has the same attachment to this ferret.  It is pretty funny and cute though right? :)

Answer 3

lol..those poor ferrets must wake up and think what the h**l is going on. haha. it is strange. i have 2 females and a male (all are fixed now) and i have had a situation when one of my females had babys and the other female would do that same thing with her kittens. but being that he is a male, I'm not sure that is what he is doing. i would just call and ask a vet clinic, and let us know what you find out, i would love to hear the conclusion. good luck!