Cats are the greatest schemers in the animal kingdom. I have two cats, Patches and Felix and I have seen the most amazing thinking go on in their brains. When Patches was an outdoor cat, he would go out on rainy days but want to come in a short time later. I would dry him off and put him down and he would go to another door wanting to go out. I always assumed his thinking was that sure it was raining outside the other door but maybe it won’t be raining outside this door. I’d eventually open the other door, he’d stick his head out and then retreat to my bed after deciding it was, indeed, nicer inside than outside. Needless to say, I always found hilarious to watch.

Another time Patches got stuck in our barn overnight. My mom and I had no idea he was in there but the next morning I saw him sitting in the barn’s upstairs window where he knew someone would see him. It blew our minds that he could realize that if he sat there the probability of him being seen was pretty good. I went out and opened the barn door and he came trotting out and into the house where he meowed loudly for his breakfast.

It wasn’t until we got our second cat Felix that I bore witness to just how much of a schemer Patches was. I give my cats a few treats in the evening. One night Patches wanted more than his share and I told him “No.” He went upstairs and I thought the matter was settled. A few minutes later though, he comes back downstairs with Felix in tow. The little goober figured that if Felix was downstairs he would get treats so then Patches would get a few more too, which he did.

I could tell stories for hours about my boys, who continue to surprise me with the way they are able to think things through and scheme to get their way on such a continuous basis.