I have a five year old pound rescue kitty (very sick and would have been euthanized if not rescued). He's now a big, healthy boy with way too much creativity and intelligence.

He watches me doing things, like opening a drawer in the bathroom, and then figures out how to do it himself when I'm not in the room. Last week, I found one of the bottom drawers in the bathroom open, but I figured I must have somehow left it open. Then, earlier this week, I walked into the bathroom to see him opening the drawer...and when I said his name, he nudged it shut with his nose.

Fast-forward to last night, when I as sitting and reading. He came into the living room making his "I have a treasure" sound. I look, and he has one of my headbands--from the top drawer in the bathroom. I took it from him, and took it to the bathroom to wash it out (it was rather soggy). On the way to the bathroom, I found about another half dozen items from that drawer. One more was in his water bowl, and yet another was in his food bowl.

The drawer was barely open, not enough for him to remove anything, so he opened the drawer, went "shopping" (shoplifting?), and then tried to close the drawer.

I guess I have to put child latches on my drawers, to match the child latches on the closet, which he already knows how to open (and shut on the other cat, who can't open it.)

He is the gray one in this picture.

What a pair of cuties!!!

I have no problem imagining this happening--and now that he's gotten it down pat, I think those child latches are a good idea.

Those latches can be expensive, though, so maybe some re-training would be worth trying first. You could try emptying the drawers and see if he loses interest, or you could put a few cat toys that he likes in them and see if he continues the trick.

I know that my cat will go after my hairbands and scrunchies, too. He throws them up in the air and meows and purrs at them when they're on the floor.

Enjoy your fur babies!
Rae

I can tell you what he does with an empty drawer...it becomes his favorite kitty bed.

I am hoping that telling him that I was very upset with him getting my things out of the drawer would maybe have an effect, because he has an amazing ability to understand what I say to him. He has changed other behaviors when I reprimanded him for it.

I think that hair accessories are a feline favorite!

So far, so good today.

Our smart little princess likes sparkly things! She found my daughter's barrett and took it all the way down stairs where her other toys are!

Of course you found one in the water bowl! I'm surprised you didn't find one in the litterbox!

My hubby has a big dresser with heavy drawers. Sometimes he doesn't close the bottom drawer, where he keeps his boxer shorts, all the way, leaving it open maybe an inch or two. More than once, I have found Fifi dutifully pulling out boxer after boxer like she was on a mission. She doesn't do anything with the boxers once she pulls them out. It's the emptying of the drawer that is so much fun!

When I first told hubby about this, he said, "You WATCHED her do this?" Yup! Funniest thing I'd seen all day. Who am I to spoil her fun?

Sticky velcro will probably work to keep the drawer closed(but maybe not.)

My cat figured out that when I get up in the morning I take my glasses off the side table and put my earplugs in the drawer (my husband snores, boo.) So when he wants me to get out of bed and feed him he goes over and opens the drawer, then tries to knock my glasses off the table. At least he waits until the alram goes off, then he pounces on my face and looks at me really closely to see if my eyes are open yet. If I keep them closed he goes and sits on my legs and waits until I open them before he opens the drawer for me.

Totally adorable!!!! MY DH had a cat that opened drawers, too. When I first found the drawers open, with his underwear and socks everywhere, I was like "What the heck?" I questioned DH about why he would leave things like that. He just scratched his head and was convinced that he did it and just didn't remember! Then one day I caught him in the act! Apparently Buster liked to empty drawers so he could take a nap in them!

BEAUTIFUL KITTIES BY THE WAY!!!

One of ours used to get into my cabinets in the kitchen, so I had to put child latches on those. Then he figured out drawers. But I figured HIM out! HA!

He only does things we don't want him to do (and he KNOWS that those things are) when he wants our attention. I guess we don't spend enough time with him or something.

That or he wants to eat, but he HAS to have someone right next to him while he's eating. He'll stop mid-chew, look up to make sure, then continue eating. The other cat has picked up this habit too. You'd think they'd lose some weight this way.

Btw, bathrooms and spare rooms in the house are "no-cat zones" and we politely ask our guests to close doors after they've used them. So far, no problems.

I love cats. My old cat could open the fridge!

What a rascal! Thanks for sharing...

my mom has a cat that did the SAME thing in one of her dresser drawers, it would open the drawer and empty it and try to sleep in it.....my mom finally gave up and stuck a blanket in there and it's now the cat's bed!!

Haha too cute! You have beautiful kitties redpanda! I have 5 rescue cats and my oldest BonBon, opens our cupboards and closets all the time, plus she opens the sliding screen door so she and her kitty sisters and brothers can go outside when I'm trying to keep them inside!
Two of my kitties love riding around my living room inside one of those cardboard flats that pop comes in. I poke a hole in one narrow end, attach a long string so its kind of like a sleigh you would pull in the snow. Soon as I put it on the rug they rush over and jump in, sit down, and wait all happy happy cause moms gonna take them for a ride!

redpanda and any other cat lovers, check out this link.

http://lovemeow.com/2009/09/backpacker-cat-touring-the-world-with-french-couple/

Scroll down till you see the video that says backpacking cat, it takes a second or two to load but well worth it!

Thanks for that link! It's too cute!

We got our cat when he was 1 from a family with small children that tortured him by chasing him and throwing magazines at him. He really didn't like anyone or anything when we got him.

We drove home over 30 miles with him just checking us and the car out the entire trip, but no problems. We walk into the house with the phone ringing. It's the mom calling to say she's sorry that she didn't tell us sooner that HE'S HORRIBLE IN THE CAR--howls, scratches, hisses, etc. I'm thinking, "Did she give me the wrong cat????"

Fast forward 7 years--he LOVES car trips! He rides on a pillow on my lap, paws at my DH when he cleans the windows, lays on the dashboard while we go in to eat, uses the litter and eats when we have a pit stop. He behaves in hotel rooms, loves playing by jumping from bed to bed, and likes having his blankie on a chair by the window so he can watch action in the parking lot.

We take him on no less than 4 roadtrips a year. When he sees his special zebra print carrier on wheels--only for car trips, NEVER used when going to the vet--he jumps right in. He's ridden in it for hours while we walked thru an antique store--boy was he a hit with the staff.

I love having a such a wonderful traveling cat. When we come back to the hotel room, it's like coming home--and he seems much less stressed than when he comes back from a stay at the vets.

I don't know if he'd tolerate being a backpacker--he just might--but I sure see why this couple loves traveling with such a cutie.

Rae

First of all, that little grey kitty has the sweetest "i'm super cuddly and happy and I like to purr" face...I just want to love on him! I have a good friend from college who has the funniest cat, he was fat and orange and jealous. She worked in a department store that required her to wear pantyhose and those things were expensive for a girl just starting out..she would set her clothes out on the bed in the morning and go take a shower. The kitty would sense an injustice and took it out on the expensive pantyhose, dragging them to the litter box. She would come home from work and find her toothbrush in the same litterbox...god, I would giggle forever when she's call me in a mock-rage, telling me abut what Gargamel just did to her toothbrush. hhahaahahaaa!!!

I love your description of his "I have a treasure" sound...so true and so funny!!

Thanks for the fun story about your kitty! He gets into more stuff than my two year old!! (Who got in my bathroom drawer and grabbed my deodorant stick, opened the top and attempted to apply it to her lips as if it's a gigantic chapstick. I've moved it since.)

I am a Leo the Lion. FELINES RULE! Cats are truely cute funny and just straight up mellow. I definitely know that I have feline ways about myself from the long slow stretches, the slow strut walk and the purring that I do (it's just a natural thing for me). Sometimes when I'm watching t.v. I catch myself (not often) licking my paw I mean hand. We the feline population is DEAD SEXY! I'm proud to be a LEO.