Does tinfoil scare cats?

This is a question about domestic cats. In general, tinfoil does scare cats. In my view it is because of the noise tinfoil makes when handled plus the texture and the unknown quantities and qualities of the material which can make domestic cats anxious. They may get used to it and some individual cats won’t be bothered. The cat in the photograph on this page is one of those cats. It is living proof that not all domestic cats are scared of tinfoil.

Cat sites on tin foil

Cat sites on tin foil. Photo: Reddit.com (user: u/elf533)

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It is the same story: we need to treat domestic cats as individuals with their own characters. We should avoid stereotyping domestic cats. On one website they state that domestic cats like tinfoil and the noise it makes. They say that domestic cats like to play with tinfoil balls but they shouldn’t because they might bite pieces off and swallow them. Therefore, it is dangerous to use tinfoil as a cat toy. I personally find what they say preposterous.

Cat's extreme reaction to tin foil

Cat’s extreme reaction to tin foil

RELATED: 2 ways to stop your cat climbing your Christmas tree. One is better than the other.

Cats don’t like the noise. Everyone knows that in general domestic cats either at least dislike or hate tinfoil. And it can only be because of its strange or unknown appearance, the way it feels under their feet and most importantly the noise it makes. After all, the most outstanding feature of tinfoil is the noise it makes when it is handled. Common sense, to me, dictates that this is the feature of tinfoil which is most likely to create anxiety in domestic cats.

The video below is illustrative of domestic cats’ reaction to the stuff.

 
There is nothing more to say so I will keep this article very short. Below are some more articles about anxiety in domestic cats. The first is about sounds causing a neurologic response:

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Gabapentin combined with a behaviour modification program can substantially improve rescue cats' rehabilitation and therefore chances of adoption after being rescued from a cat hoarding environment

Gabapentin substantially improves adoption rate of shelter cats rescued from a hoarding environment

Cats living with a cat hoarder are almost invariably neglected. They are often only partly socialised, stressed and unhealthy. After ...
Neurotic cat owners perceive their cat differently

Cat owners with negative feelings are more likely to report cat problems

Human character can be categorised in five ways which must overlap to varying extents. They are: Agreeableness, Conscientiousness, Extroversion, Neuroticism ...
New cat

Animal shelters are reluctant to allow a person to foster a cat if they have an existing cat

There appears to be a distinct difference in opinion between animal shelters and cat owners. I'm told that there is ...
Female vets dominate the profession in 2023

Compared to the past, more cats like men for this reason

There was a time when you could ask this question, "Why do some cats hate men?" Around 20 years ago ...
Vet with cat. The way it should be.

Has your cat been traumatised by a visit to the vet?

I was reading a section by Dr. Desmond Morris in his book Catlore and he suggested that sometimes domestic cats ...
Useful tag. Click to see the articles: Cat behavior

Note: sources for news articles are carefully selected but the news is often not independently verified.
Useful links
Anxiety - reduce it
FULL Maine Coon guide - lots of pages
Children and cats - important

Michael Broad

Hi, I'm a 74-year-old retired solicitor (attorney in the US). Before qualifying I worked in many jobs including professional photography. I love nature, cats and all animals. I am concerned about their welfare. If you want to read more click here.

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