Well, it’s just a little past the middle of January. I don’t know about you, but I usually rejoice in the calm January provides after the crazy holiday season from Thanksgiving thru New Years. That said, things can seem kind of boring. Where are the holiday parties? The nice breaks from work? Wouldn’t it be nice to have a day that wasn’t hectic and busy but still changed things up a little?

Good news! That’s where National Answer Your Cat’s Questions day comes into play!

I know, I know. As cool as it would be if you cat magically had the ability to speak, that’s not quite what this day is about. On January 22nd, cat owners around the world are asked to consider one thing: if my cat could speak, what questions would they ask me?

Your cat might have questions like…

“Will You Play With Me?”

Okay, if your cat is anything like my cat, Goob, this would probably be a command: Play with me! Maybe your cat has been restless lately. You just wanna cuddle with them after a long day but they just keep attacking your feet whenever you walk by and refuse to settle down. Maybe you’re trying to sleep at night and they are running all over the house like a mad man!

Trust me, I get it. My cat always wants me to play with him, and I haven’t had the time. Today is the day to say, hey, I’m going to make lots of time today to play with my cat! And, to make this more than a one-time solution, I’m going to figure out ways I can keep him entertained throughout the day.

Maybe your cat has a favorite toy that she will happily bat around, not needing your efforts at all. Try grabbing her favorite mouse and throwing it. Yes, like playing fetch. For some cats, this is about all the effort you would have to do. They just want someone to get it going and then they will take off. So, new year’s resolution: throw the cat’s toy around a couple times a day. 

“Where are my toys?”

Speaking of play…

Does your cat keep playing with your socks, your kid’s toys, or even your electrical cables? Maybe they’re bored of their current toys, or they don’t have enough. Maybe they did have plenty, but they’ve all been knocked under the refrigerator. Today’s the day to think, what would my cat want? 

It can be hard enough to keep track of our own belongings. I’ve lost my keys twice this month and just last week I left my glasses in my friend’s car. So you might not really notice if kitties’ toys have disappeared. Today is a great day to check under bookshelves, cabinets, couches, and any other crawl space to see if your cat’s gotten all their favorite playthings stuff under there. 

Or, if your cat just has flung all his toys into the abyss and it’s too hard to find them, get him some new oes!  You can buy tons of cheap cat toys in bulk! Amazon has some 20+ piece sets for about ten dollars. If you don’t mind some festive cheer still around, check your local pet store’s discount section. Petsmart, for example, has holiday toys on sale. You can get a 24 pack for three dollars! 

“I am pooping like, everywhere! Haven’t you noticed?”

Assuming their health is fine, cats most commonly will poop around the house if they’re not satisfied with their current litter box situation.

Some things that might have your cat going elsewhere:

Smelly, uncleaned litter box

Cats don’t wanna go in a dirty box. The general rule of thumb that vets agree on is to aim for one box per cat, plus one extra “household” box. If you don’t have enough litter boxes, or you’re not scooping them often enough (once per day), your cat isn’t gonna wanna use it. I mean, it makes sense. Do you wanna use a toilet that hasn’t been flushed? 

“But I don’t have room for 4 litter boxes!” I hear you saying. Or maybe “I can’t scoop litter every day!” I get it. It’s time consuming, it’s gross, and some people just straight up can’t do it. If you don’t have the space for as many boxes as your kitties need, or you don’t have the ability to scoop every day, why not consider getting an automatic self-cleaning cat box?

I recommend the CatGenie, both because it’s the only self-cleaning box that actually self cleans, and because the latest model (the CatGenie A.I.) actually tracks your cat’s health and bathroom habits. The biggest issue with automatic litter boxes is that you can’t properly keep track of if your cat is getting sick or having constipation, but with the CatGenie A.I. it will actually send alerts to your phone so you might actually catch your cat’s sickness earlier than usual!

Change in the household

Any changes to a household might make a cat feel a little uneasy. This could include a new cat, a new baby, a new roommate, an old roommate moving out, or even just…you took a vacation. My Goob has serious separation anxieties because he was a shelter cat that got rehomed a lot in his first six years, so if he even sees me packing a small bag for an overnight he gets worried I’m moving away. Some cats react to these changes by marking their territory. Sometimes it’s a threatened feeling (oh no! Someone new is here!), but if your roommate just moved out and took her cat with her, it might be a triumphant claiming of space (Haha! This is MINE now!). 

Today’s a good day to reflect on how often your cat is doing this. If she’d been going outside the box or he’d been spraying everywhere during the holiday season (with people in and out all the time!) and hasn’t stopped by now, you may want to look into getting your cat a calming diffuser or taking them to the vet to see if something else is causing their behavior. 

What is your cat asking today?

I could write a novel about all the various questions your cat could be asking. But ultimately, it’s up to you! As you may have seen in my examples of my cat, Goob, every cat has its own unique problems that maybe we’ve all been putting off for awhile. It’s no surprise this holiday comes to us in January, right after the hectic holiday season. It makes sense that kitty’s restlessness might not have taken priority over more pressing matters during November and December. But now, hopefully with a bit more time on your hands, it’s important to address your cat’s needs! Maybe then you can both finally rest in for some warm winter snuggles.