I am grateful to my cat and human mom for Mother’s Day.
As all dedicated cat lovers know, our cat friends have a mysterious sixth sense of danger.
Perhaps this isn’t as obvious as the surprising story of a cat riding the apocryphal story, a mother cat known as Jenny.
Jenny, a cat on the Titanic designated ship, demonstrated the mysterious cat intuition that continues to fascinate cat behaviorists to this day. When the “unsinkable” ship prepared for the maiden’s voyage in April 1912, Jenny made the decision to save her life and the life of a recently born kitten.
According to accounts from crew members, Jenny was a familiar welcoming presence during the ship fitting and sea trials. Ship cats were common in ships of the era, and were rated for their ability to protect grocery stores and prevent spreading of illness. Jenny has made Titanic home and made it comfortable enough to produce kitten trash in the ship’s galley.
However, on the day the Titanics left Southampton, the crew watched Jenny systematically transporting each kitten off the ship. This behavior was completely out of character. Mother cats usually do not relocate young people at the vulnerable newborn stage, unless they feel an immediate danger.
One steward reported seeing Jenny take multiple trips and carefully carrying the neck neck to the safety of the dock. The crew, which the sailors often superstitious, often superstitious, took notes but continued preparing for their departure.
What is particularly appealing to us who study cat behavior is that it perfectly matches our understanding of increased perception of cat sensations. Although we cannot know exactly what Jenny detected, perhaps the subtle vibrations in the ship’s structure, changes in air pressure, and even emotional clues from the uneasy crew — her actions suggest that she sensed something that the people around her could not.
Some cat owners report similar experiences during natural disasters such as earthquakes. Cats are showing upset or seeking hideaway minutes before humans feel the first trembling. Jenny’s story about the Titanic offers one of the most dramatic historical examples of this phenomenon.
Sadly, not all cats on the Titanic were as lucky as Jenny.
Yes, there was a pet on the Titanic, but its existence was not extensively documented in the passenger manifesto. This is what historical records confirm:
The dog was the best documented pet on the Titanic. The ship had designated kennel facilities for dogs for top-class passengers. Surviving records show that the actual numbers may be higher, but at least 12 dogs have been officially registered as they traveled on the Titanic.
Only three dogs are known to survive the sinking:
– Pomeranians belonging to Elizabeth Barrett Rothschild
– Peaking person named San Yat Sen, owned by Henry and Myra Harper
– Pomeranians belonging to Margaret Hayes
These dogs survived because their owners took them to lifeboats rather than leaving them in the kennel.
There are few validated records for cats. Ship cats were common on ships of this era due to rodent control, but specific details about cats aboard the Titanic are more limited and often based on crew anecdotes rather than official documents.
Some passengers may have brought small pets, such as birds, to cages that are not officially registered or other small animals. Top passengers sometimes traveled with a variety of pets, and crews sometimes carried their own animals.
Unfortunately, most of the animals on the Titanic, especially those remaining in the kennel, did not survive the disaster.
For those of us who share our lives with cats, Jenny’s story serves as a powerful reminder to respect and sometimes respect the mystical warnings our cat companions offer. The next time your cat behaves strangely for no obvious reason, pause to think about what they are feeling, perhaps avoiding your human perception.
After all, Jenny’s story suggests that sometimes wise behavior is to follow where the cat leads.
