Why Does My Cat Follow Me into The Bathroom?
Just like humans, cats are creatures of routines and they always love it when their day follows a certain routine. Most people often use the bathroom at a specific time and in the same way every day. Although a cat’s routine-driven life seems boring to every pet owner, the predictability does a great job in making them feel safe. Furthermore, nothing pleases your cat more than knowing that you both share the same routine practices. Cats are extremely affectionate and contrary to what people think, they love being close to their owner. Once you get home from work, some cats like to climb onto your laps the moment you sit down or keep on following you wherever you move. This means following you even into the bathroom. If you are a first-time cat owner and you notice that your cat always follows you whenever you go to the bathroom, here is what you need to know about why cats follow you to the bathroom.
8 Reasons Why Cats Follow You to The Bathroom
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Your Cat Feels Vulnerable
One of the reasons why cats follow you to the bathroom is the feeling of vulnerability. While cats have a reputation of being highly skilled animals who can happily swat at bears and big dogs, house cats are also prey animals and they know it. Your cat will therefore feel vulnerable and susceptible to attacks from unknown predators if left at home alone and for long. That’s why he gets excited once you get back into the house from work. If you always treat your cat like family, he will always see you as he’s a source of safety and comfort. Therefore, when you disappear behind closed doors even if you are going to the bathroom, he might feel less safe than normal and choose to follow you right back.
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Curiosity
The second reason why cats follow you to the bathroom is curiosity. We all know that cats are the most curious creatures on this planet. After you have brought in a new cat inside your house, it becomes his territory afterward. Your cat will therefore want to know what’s happening in their territory and when you decide to visit your bathroom, he will follow you right back to ensure that you don’t do anything that might attract predators. When you decide to deny your cat access to the bathroom, you elevate his curiosity. He will then keep on following you whenever you go inside it trying to know what happens inside that room.
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A Bathroom is a Place of Routine
Another possible reason why cats follow you to the bathroom is the maintain a routine around your home. Routine practices keep stress levels low not just for humans but also for pets. Cats, therefore, enjoy when their day follows a certain routine. What’s good about cats following a specific routine keeps them feeling safe. Humans often use the bathroom at a specific time of the day or night and in the same way every day. Every day, you get out of the bed, use the toiler, brush your teeth then get into the shower almost at the same hour and in the same order day after day. Such routines are reassuring to cats to have their days unfold in a particular expected manner and they want to be a part of such a routine.
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The Bathroom Contains some of the Best Cat Toys
Another reason why your cats follow you to the bathroom is that a bathroom has all the best cat toys in one place. First, there are toilet paper rolls for unraveling. Your cat will be thrilled to unwind a whole tissue paper roll then scatter it all over the floor or snake it around the furniture and not worry about the mess he is about to make. Other cats will turn the whole roll into confetti, grabbing it with the front paws and then shred it to pieces with the back paws. Other cats will prefer playing with the tissue box. He will pull one tissue out and get excited and he watches the next one magically appears. After he has finished playing around with the tissues, your cat will then roll around on the bathmat, hunting and playing around with imaginary bugs in the air.
And that’s not all. Your wet and hanging towels on the hooks are perfect for climbing and clinging. After playing around for hours and he feels tired, he will then sleep on the cat bed that you put in the bathroom just for him. Or he can decide to sleep in the bathtub which not only provides him with a place to sleep but also the safest hiding place if he is trying to hide.
Related Post: Best Interactive Cat Toys
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The Bathroom Has Water
The other reason why cats follow you to the bathroom is that bathrooms have water which is fascinating to cats. Although many cats hate getting bathed, most of them are fascinated by taps with flowing water. Many cats will play around with water flowing from the taps or splash their paws in a tub full of water. He will also try to open and close the tap as he tries to imitate what he sees you do. In the bathroom, a cat will get to drink fresh water from the sink or tub faucet. Fresh running water is the other thing that many cats love.
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Your Cat Loves and Adores You
Believe it or not, cats love and adore the smells of their owners and a bathroom is full of such smells. You may think of your bathroom as a place of enchanting odors, however, that might not be the case for your cat. To your cat, the bathroom smells just like you. While scent means a different thing to animals than it does to humans, the scent is loaded with a lot of information for animals. While people think about a scent being either nice or noxious, to your cat, things are completely different. To him, all the wonderful and comforting things he associates with you are all embodied in your scent inside your bathroom.
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Attention Seeking
You will also find out that your cat follows you wherever you go even if it’s the bathroom trying to get your attention. This is more likely behavior when a cat follows you and when you are behind the bathroom door, he doesn’t leave you alone but instead starts to meow. Domestic cats are more likely to meow at their owners as a means of getting attention than they meow towards each other. If you don’t want to tolerate such behavior, make sure that you are not advertently rewarding your kitty by giving attention. You can instead keep your cat occupied by engaging him in different activities such that he will be so occupied that he won’t notice you getting up to go the bathroom.
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You are a Captive Audience
Cats learn quickly that when their owner is seated in the bathroom, they have the freedom to go anywhere they want. Your cat may want to follow you to the bathroom and see what entertaining thing you do next. Most bathrooms have a counter conveniently located at a cat-petting level. This is a perfect set up for your cat, as you have to pet them on their terms and you cannot leave until you are done using the bathroom.
See Also: Best Flea Collar for Cats
Frequently Asked Questions About Why Cats Follow You to The Bathroom
Q: What’s the main reason why my cat keeps on following me to the bathroom?
A: While there are multiple reasons why your cat is always following you to the bathroom, just like humans, cats love it when their day follows a certain routine. Although a cat’s routine-driven life seems boring to humans, the predictability helps make the cat feel safe.
Q: What does it mean when your cat won’t stop following you everywhere?
A: Sometimes, cats will follow their owners even when they decide to go to the bathroom. While there are multiple reasons why your cat will decide to follow you even in the bathroom, sometimes your cat might be following you to try and seek your attention. This is more likely behavior when a cat follows you and when you are behind the bathroom door, he doesn’t leave you alone but instead starts to meow. Domestic cats are more likely to meow at their owners as a means of getting attention than they meow towards each other.
Q: Why is my cat so interested in me when I go to the bathroom?
A: Cats have various reasons to follow you in the bathroom, however, it is mostly because they are curious to know what happens inside that bathroom. It might also be because they feel lonely and have no sense of personal boundary. With cats having multiple reasons to follow you wherever you go, if you feel uncomfortable whenever they follow you even into the bathroom, you can train them to stop doing that by not rewarding their behavior.
Conclusion
While cats demand privacy when they are using their litter boxes, they refuse to grant us the same privacy when we need to use the bathroom. While there are multiple reasons why your cat will decide to follow you even in the bathroom, if you don’t like such behavior, you can train not to follow you by not rewarding their behavior.