Why Cats Hate the Vacuum Cleaner

by Michael

Ideas on a postcard, please. However, I don't think we need to look very far to figure our why our cat hates the vacuum cleaner. Do you like that noise? When you add to that the size of the machine and the fact that the upright ones are on wheels and it charges around like some demented monster (from the cat's perspective) and you can see why your cat dislikes the machine.

Cats don't understand what it is. It is a foreign "thing" to a cat. A cat won't necessarily recognize the fact that the machine is being pushed along by you. You know that because when you play with your cat with a string she does not recognize the fact that you are pulling the sting despite it being in plain view and obvious.

So, cats hate vacuum cleaners because of the noise mainly and the size of a strange moving object. Charlie dislikes it and leaves the flat (promptly!). And Binnie would quickly lurk off into a safe haven when I went near the vacuum cleaner.

The rather odd thing, though, is that some cats are OK with a vacuum cleaner and some positively love it!

Well, they love being vacuumed....



This video proves my point. This tubby little sweetheart is totally deaf. A good percentage of white cats are. White cats have blue eyes so blue eyed cats can be deaf.

This confirms that the noise is the biggest factor that frightens cats.

However, some non-white cats are purrfectly content being vacuumed:



This cat has white in her coat and partially white cats can be deaf too but the human makes not mention of this.

It must be pleasant for a cat to be vacuumed. Getting rid of the loose hair and sucking up some of those little horrors: fleas.

And no hair to get rid off as is the case when you brush. It's actually good for both cat and human. I wish my Charlie liked it.

Does your cat, love, like, dislike or loathe the vacuum cleaner?

Best