Hi, I’m Christopher! Read my introduction to learn more about me and my silly Russian Blue cat, Olga.
Cats are incredibly intelligent, and although they are more difficult to train than dogs, their long-term memory and problem-solving skills are impressive. Their ability to sense your emotions and avoid situations that cause them harm or stress is also commendable, but sometimes, I prefer a dark cat to a smart one. I have read research articles on dog and cat intelligence, but this article will focus on my observations of Olga and how I am amazed and annoyed by her intelligence.
Addressing the problem
Olga is a quick learner. He soon learned how to catch a paper ball with both feet and open a door from the inside. I have latches on the doors instead of knobs, but I think he can figure out how to open them too. It was easier for him to open a closed door from the outside because he could grab the latch and push forward, but holding it and pulling back took him longer to learn.
When Olga feels neglected, she runs into a bedroom or bathroom, tucks herself behind the door, gets on her hind legs, and pushes forward. If he is angry, he uses more force and closes the door. I was used to hearing him slam the door, and because I thought it was funny, I didn’t discourage him from doing it. However, it can get annoying when he does it over and over again.
Learning From His Mistakes
When Olga was young, she used to jump on the headboard of my bed and back and forth on the narrow wooden beam. One morning, he wasn’t doing so well on his balance beam, and his back leg slipped. I was half asleep below her, and I yelled when one of her back claws slashed my lip. He was frightened by the screams, and he ran and hid.
I’m not suggesting that yelling at your cat will help them learn or prevent their damage to your face, but in my situation, it prevented him from jumping on my headboard again. He learned other valuable lessons from being sick or stuck.
He no longer tries to get the paper balls out from under the fridge after running over his nail and can’t get them out. I helped her remove her foot, and later, when I heard her scream, I ran to find her dangling from a nail at the top of the blinds. After I helped her down, she stopped jumping from the chair to the blinds. He still charges the blinds occasionally and takes them, but he’s more careful.
Awesome and Annoying
Olga can sense when I’m getting ready for a trip, even though she can’t see the suitcases, and if I don’t feed her in the morning, she hides under the bed when I’m in the shower because she knows she’s going to the vet’s office . I have to be stealthy when I grab her ear drops since she knows where I keep them and recognizes the bottle. Life would be so much easier if I had an ignorant cat, but I’m glad that even if he gets sick sometimes, he never stops making me happy.
