Cyril in a Day: Following a Cat’s Schedule

Hi, I’m Dr. Karyn, read my bio to learn more about me and meet my five delightful cats: Clutch, Cyril, Alex, Zelda and Zazzles.

I often find myself envious of my cat. He has no responsibilities, all his meals are provided, there’s nothing to do but lounge around all day. So this week I decided to put my envy into action and spend a day in Cyril’s shoes (or feet). Turns out it’s not as bad as I thought it would be.

02:00: Feeling a little lonely, he finds his owner and spends about 15 minutes relaxing on his back.

02:30: I’m bored so I decide to go back to my room and sleep.

04:00: Feeling a bit hungry, he makes a few trips in and out of the human bedroom to see if he can find something to eat.

04:30: The food mission wasn’t a success, it’s time to get others involved.

04:45: “Operation Wake Up People” begins. The red-haired cat and I take turns chasing each other, and the black-haired cat chases after us. Sometimes the calico cat joins in.

04:55: The humans are moving about and complaining, but they make no move to get out of bed.

05:00: A little dog jumps on the floor. The human is upstairs and follows the dog downstairs. It’s frustrating that a little dog can do something I couldn’t, but at least food will be on its way soon. I’m so excited.

05:15: The food arrived and I was so excited because it was the same as yesterday, the day before yesterday, the day before that, and the day before that…..Delicious!

05:25: It’s nap time.

07:30: Humans are more active now. Today may be the day we forget that we have already been fed. No. Well, there will be tomorrow. It will be time for another nap.

09:45: A human is sitting at a desk, moving their hands a lot, maybe they’re cold, so you can help them by sitting on them.

09:50: Humans don’t seem to realize that I’m trying to help. I’ll try my best.

10:00: The humans refused my assistance. Instead, I put a big poop in a box next to my desk. The humans seem very pleased, making all sorts of noises as they gather it up for their collection. I wonder what they’ll do with it?

12:45: Bored and a little hungry. Check the bowl, no food. Disappointed again. Have a drink, lick my ass, and check again later.

13:00: Still no food. Time to collapse on my back in the middle of the room and lie down for 30 minutes.

13:30: One of the little dogs sniffed my tail so I wagged it seductively. It made a loud yapping noise so I lay down and patted it on the head. It ran away crying. What a coward.

13:40: The little dog came back with his little friend and chased me up the stairs. How brazen! When I got to the top and looked back, the dogs had run away. do not have That’s very brave.

14:00: Check bowl – still no food. I’ll wait another hour, but then it’ll be time for the afternoon demands to start. In the meantime, I’ll take a nap.

15:30: I activate my shadow mode. Wherever the humans go, I go too. They try to lock me out of the little room with a porcelain chair, but I manage to fit through the gap in the door.

17:30: A human is getting ready in the kitchen. There are bowls and food on the counter. I’m going to check it all out. A big dog jumps up and licks my face. What a disgusting creature.

17:45: It’s dinner time! I’m so excited because it’s the same thing I had last night, the day before yesterday, the night before that, and the night before that again….delicious!

18:00: As I lazily wash my face and feet, I wonder if I should spit tonight’s dinner onto the carpet. Not tonight, maybe tomorrow. Instead, I take a nap. There’s a pile of warm towels on my bed, so I decide to use those.

19:30: I was woken up by the sounds of the humans rummaging around in the litter box, so I patiently waited until they were done scavenging before going in for a big pee. The humans sighed, probably in relief at the increased waste they would be collecting.

20:00: I sit out front and wash myself as the humans look at the noisy paintings on the wall, and wait for them to say something as they make tea, which I take as my cue to curl up on their lap and take a nap.

21:30: The humans aren’t moving so we’ll be here for a while longer.

22:00: The human was shaking my knees and unable to sleep, so I stretched and disappeared upstairs, the human following me into a room with a porcelain chair.

23:00: It’s time for one last fight with the ginger guy before going to bed for the night. I checked the bowl to see if there was any food in it, but unfortunately it was empty. Oh well, I’ll check again in a few hours…

Although Cyril’s life seems very laid back and stress-free, I’ve noticed that it’s also very boring. I’m also not sure if I could eat the same food every day with the enthusiasm that cats show. The lack of dietary autonomy would be a killer for me. But I think I can get used to naps!