Cats are persnickety little beasties. They’re cute and cuddly, sure, but they’re also chaos demons with anarchy on their minds and murder in their claws.
Do I speak from experience, as two little terrorists destroy my sleep with their late-night mayhem? Why yes, yes I do, which puts me in a perfect position to consider the emotions TikTok user @mal_photo_ was grappling with when they uploaded a tragic but hilarious video to their page.
The video in question is filmed from Mal’s back window, which features an excellent view of her neighbor’s house — and her cat. The little traitor can be seen, as Mal zooms in on the home, in the upstairs window, rubbing on the glass and taunting his distant owner. As Mal notes in the video’s caption, that particular “joker’s been with” her a full 13 years, but where’s the loyalty? Instead of sticking it out with his longtime owner, it seems he frequently makes the pilgrimage to nearby homes to stir up some extra snacks and attention.
Judas.
It’s a simple, 12-second video in total, but it riled up plenty of emotions among commenters. Mostly humor, as people chuckled over the stubborn promiscuity of our furry felines, but also plenty of suggestions for how Mal can get back at her little orange menace.
“Get a dog, and make sure the cat sees you with the dog,” one viewer cleverly suggested. Others joked over their own similar experiences, with several gracing the comment sections with similar — but vitally different — tales of woe: Like commenter @nicd888, who wrote “same happened to me but instead of a cat it was my ex husband.”
Easily the best of the comments come from those with the same breed of traitor in their homes, however, as people rushed to the video’s responses to lay out how often this tabby treachery occurs. At least a dozen comments detail other instances of cat betrayals, proving that our feline companions are simply awaiting their chance to double-cross us.
This tendency to stray is actually quite common among cats, but not necessarily due to a lack of loyalty. That’s a factor, sure, but there’s almost always another underlying culprit. Cats are actually quite protective of their territory — which, typically, includes their chosen home — but if certain outside elements are introduced, they may decide it’s no longer their happy place. These elements include increased stress — perhaps due to a new addition to the family or a shift in the dynamic — the temptation of better food or pleasant alternate company, or simply a perk some other home offers that your’s does not.
Whatever the reason, @mal_photo_’s comment section reveals just how common it is for cats to ditch their original owners for brighter prospects. Not all are quite as bold about it as that orange tease in the upstairs window, but all our cats keep us on short leashes. Slip up one too many times, and there’s always a neighbor willing to take them in.