NEW YORK — Big Buddy and Little Buddy experienced an awkward moment while watching a cat documentary which claimed feline personalities eventually come to resemble the dispositions of their humans.
The human and tabby were sitting on their couch, eating popcorn and laughing at their own farts when Holly Sikes, a cat behaviorist interviewed in the documentary, broke down the way people and their furry pals mirror each other.
“So, for example, if the cat is a lazy, egotistical jerk who’s always coming up with hare-brained schemes, he obviously learned that from someone,” the behaviorist said. “And that someone is the primary caretaker, the one with whom the cat spends most of his or her time.”
The Buddies looked at each other, shrugging.
“I once had a client whose cat, Quintus Lentilus Batiatus, was an absolute lunatic,” Sikes continued in the documentary. “And it turned out the owner was a LARPer who belonged to a group of wannabe Roman legionaries, which explained why little Quintus had declared war on the German family next door, labeling them ‘barbarians and savages who must be civilized under the banner of the Sacred Eagle.’ I’ve heard of cats styling themselves as Mongol conquerors, Spartan warriors and even kings of Joseon.”
Little Buddy stopped chewing, and with a mouth full of popcorn, turned to his Big Buddy.
“I’m, uh, not feeling this documentary, dude,” he said. “Let’s find something else to watch.”
“Agreed,” Big Buddy said.
The behaviorist continued to elaborate as Big Buddy searched for the remote.
“…and delusions of grandeur, particularly when it comes to fantasies about conquering the world, being famous, or even establishing ties with big cats like jaguars and tigers…”
Little Buddy’s voice was urgent.
“Where’s the remote, dude? Come on! Find it!”
“I’m trying! Where the heck is it?”
“…and we find that in cases where human and feline are closely bonded, they serve as enablers, with each convincing the other that their schemes are brilliant even when they’re gobsmackingly inane…”
Big Buddy grunted triumphantly.
“Found it!” he said.
Human and cat breathed a sigh of relief as the stream stopped.
“So what do you wanna watch next, Bud?” Big Buddy asked.
Little Buddy sat up and stretched.
“Actually, I was thinking of taking another nap and then working on my brilliant plan to intercept catnip shipments bound for pet stores.”
Big Buddy whistled.
“That is a brilliant plan, little guy,” he said.
“It is, isn’t it?” Little Buddy said proudly.
“Good call on the nap too. I’ll set my alarm for 90 minutes. Gotta get that beauty sleep…”
As of press time, the Buddies had settled on a scheme to intercept catnip and turkey bound for pet stores, which they both agreed was brilliantly conceived and guaranteed to work.
Pain In The Bud 
Ahahaha, I hope our cats don’t have hundreds of photos of us somewhere …
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Now that’s a terrifying thought!
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Hee hee, there is no doubt that when treats are involved then Bella definitely mirrors me, eat the lot, and then go get some more…
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Popcorn fanatic here. Not allowed for cats. Choking hazard. When i explained this to one cat i began choking a bit. Cats are not interested in popcorn but my friends cats will eat anything.
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I eat a lot of popcorn too, which is why Bud always wants it. It started when he was a kitten so it’s basically locked in behavior now.
I carefully remove any kernel and give him very small pieces of the fluffy part, and he’s happy with that.
I’m not even sure if he actually likes it or if he just likes to eat what I’m eating.
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👍🤣Never thought of that but i think most want to lick the butter off.
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And that cat Millie? I think she was giving me a judgemental look. Just staring at me.POPCORN FOR BREAKFAST!?Something i rarely do.
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LOL. My boyfriend says Ramses and I are one in the same so this may be true.
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I got the idea from an article a month or two back quoting a behaviorist who said cat personalities are heavily shaped by their people, although I think it was more about how we treat them, how attentive we are and that sort of thing.
Bud was already a lunatic when I adopted him, and all I did was encourage him and give him space to become even more extra.
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I have lived with multiple cats at one time. Not all of them were deeply connected to me in the way that Ortoloni, Diego, and now Ramses are. From the second Ramses and I met there was a connection I cannot explain. He is me and I am him – and it’s becoming more and more obvious with each passing year we are together.
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That’s a scary thought. We have five cats and three humans. The three humans are pretty lethargic most of the time we’re home. Guess we’ll end up as eight couch potatoes. 🙂
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Cats give you an excuse to be lazier. “I can’t get up now, my cat’s asleep in my lap. Actually, a nap isn’t such a bad idea…”
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Excellent point
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