One of the fascinating questions about cats is this: Are they too dumb to learn tricks or simply too aloof to condescend to such behavior at the beck and call of a mere human.

Those of us who have cats (or are owned by cats) believe it’s the latter. Most devoted dog lovers I know attribute canine obedience to superior intelligence and look down on cats as too dumb to learn tricks.

I’m here to tell you, our cat, Tigra, has trained us thoroughly to perform the “tricks” she demands of us. When she’s really thirsty, she chooses not to drink from her water bowel, rather she walks into the bathroom and sits patiently on the closed toilet seat with her paws on the edge of our bathtub. If we aren’t quick enough getting there to give her the preferred bathtub drink (through a detachable hand-held shower hose), she will hop into the tub and do her best to suck/lap water from the old tub spout.

If Ms. Tigra comes in from outside when we call her, she strolls through the front door and straight to her food dish area in the kitchen, where she sits expectantly awaiting two or three tiny, crunchy kitty treats.

Yes, she’s bright enough to “train us” — but she treats us as though we must be out of our minds if we ask her repeatedly to do something that doesn’t interest her. Dumb? I think not. I think, rather, that she’s simply convinced she’s above all that. Sly, or perhaps “elitist,” would be the best term.

So, tell us, if you have a pet cat, have you trained the cat to do any tricks? I saw a video where I would ALMOST believe a woman had taught her cat a couple of basic obedience things, like “sit up,” and “sit.” Even then, I’m not sure if the cat really was trained — or the woman had been trained by the cat when to give it treats.

Scary, in a way, are cats, aren’t they??

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