Dogs play fetch, that’s a known fact, right? What about cats though? Given the right type of ball or stick and some patience, cats can do anything dogs can do. Maybe even better…


I have a Blue Russian cat named Smokey Lu, and my sister has a tabby named Pip. My cat absolutely adores pipecleaners! Of all things, pipecleaners! One day, he was chewing on a hot pink pipecleaner, and for a little fun I tried to get it away from him. (This was a bad idea since he’s never been declawed!) I winced as his claws sank into the flesh between my thumb and pointer finger, but as the tactic of just trying to grab it from him didn’t work, it was onto plan B…

I gave his treats a little shake and he came running, giving me just enough time to get the pipecleaner before he finished eating his treat. After I got it, I folded it into a ball-like shape so neither of the two ends were sticking out. Waving the ball in front of his face to get his attention, I threw it. What happened next was a huge surprise… Not only did he take off after it, but he charged after it so fast that you’d have thought he’d seen a dog! A couple of minutes later, I saw him as he trotted back, fluffy head held high with the pipecleaner in his mouth. He stopped at my feet, but did he drop the pipecleaner so I could throw it again? No, he plopped down with a soft thud and got back to gnawing on that silly pink pipecleaner! I wasn’t about to let him kick back when he’d just pulled off a neat trick like that. I gave him another treat in order to get the pipecleaner back, and then I got Pip’s attention. When Pip gets thrown into the mix, Smokey got defensive and more alert…his eyes tracked Pip’s every move, and his body set back into an easy prowl-like position. As soon as the pipecleaner began to fly, so did he. It probably due to the fact that he knew that if Pip got her paws on it, the game would be over. Smokey lasted a few more rounds before Pip gained control. Back and forth never once did he seem to tire.


What can dogs do that cat’s can’t? Guard us? Smokey’s a good guard cat. He’ll growl and hiss at anyone and anything until he thinks everything’s okay. Really, though, besides size and shape differences, how many things can you list that dogs can do, and cats can’t?