Nature programmed the cat to hold onto prey tightly. This is amply demonstrated in this cute little video. Have you seen a kitten so determined to not let go of prey? We have to believe that this kitten believes that this toy is prey. All cat toys are prey and they retain interest in their toys provided they can rip it to pieces. When cat toys are indestructable a cat will probably lose interest at a point in time when she’d normally be ripping the animal apart. There has to be progress. Without it cats become demotivated. Cat toy manufacturers should realise this.
Strangely this reminds me of a pitbull dog I saw once years ago. He had clamped his jaws around quite a sizeable branch attached to a tree and was ripping it off. He refused to let go of it.
This must be predator programming. Once a cat has got her prey she’ll hang on because it often takes a lot of energy and expertise to get the prey in her jaws in the first place. I guess it a mathematical formula instinctively worked out by predators. They expend X amount of energy to catch prey and take Y amount of risk to their health and welfare. They demand Z amount of food from that to make the process worthwhile.
Yeah, this is a common activity pit bull owners like to do with those dogs, who will hang on forever. That and what it does to people and animals and that nothing short of a “break stick” can make them release is why they have the negative reputation of locking jaws. It’s technically not accurate, but effectively the result is the same.