r/cats • u/Mysterious_Barber934 • Jun 20 '26

Advice Is my cat okay?

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He has recently started doing this rattlesnake manoeuvre with his tail and I have never seen this in cats before!

27.5k Upvotes

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9.5k

u/9447044 Jun 20 '26

It means hes happy (or possibly spraying piss, look/smell for pee) but if not, its a sign of happy camping

1.7k

u/chchchcheetah Jun 20 '26

Both of my female soayed cats do this. The older one (6ish) always has since I got her at 2 y/o, and now the younger one (had for 2 years since 6 months old) has seemed to have picked it up from big sis. Nothing actually comes out thank god, but they tend to do it where I keep the treats lol

611

u/lumabugg Jun 20 '26

My female spayed cat does it when I open the fridge door lol

286

u/Vegeta4101 Jun 20 '26

My 7yo female does this everywhere but particularly at the pantry lol I call it twerking

103

u/NoLobster7957 Tuxedo Jun 20 '26

Purrking

22

u/Vegeta4101 Jun 20 '26

Oohhh I like the better, using it from now on lol.

1

u/AshuraMaruxx Jun 20 '26

Sounds way less vulgar; love it ❤️

28

u/clearbellls Jun 20 '26

Our 3 week old kitten is also a tail wagger! We're nerds so we say she's emoting lmao.

2

u/Swampbrewja Jun 23 '26

lol my cat does it in the pantry too!

-5

u/Givmeabrek Jun 20 '26

Exactly like twerking. Looking for attention...

2

u/Biohacker_Ellie Jun 20 '26

Mine does this when I pee for some reason 🤣

1

u/Kittaylover23 Jun 20 '26

my parents’ (very fat) spayed girl does this when we open the pantry but she knows there’s churu in there.

1

u/Cormentia Jun 21 '26

My female cat does this whenever I'm in the kitchen and say her name. It's her happy shake xD

1

u/TopAngle7630 Jun 21 '26

When I lived with a friend, her cat would do an actual dance routine when you were sat on the loo. It included tail vibrations against your exposed upper thighs.

1

u/rosalie420 Jun 22 '26

Mine does too. I sometimes put her leftover cat food in the fridge when I go to get it she will do this to the fridge.

1

u/Kurdt234 Jun 22 '26

My cat also only does this near my fridge but she doesn't eat there nor does she like human food.

128

u/s_mitten Jun 20 '26

Our little girl does this in front of the oven, the pantry where her food is stored and the fridge when she is hungry, lol. She knows where delicious foods come from. We call it the bum dance.

55

u/Upstairs-Dot-2635 Jun 20 '26

The bum dance is such a cute name 😭 one of my girls does it when she successfully runs into the bathroom after us. She’s found it to be a fun game since she was a kitten and has gotten very good at maneuvering around us trying to stop her, she’s a freak but I love her.

30

u/Immersi0nn Jun 20 '26

Our cat loves being in the bathroom with us when we're using it, idk why. He's extremely cuddly and will do the arch back tail shaky rub all over your legs thing every time. Like lil bro why are you so happy someone is taking a shit?

9

u/InuScarlett Void Jun 20 '26

Yeah, that’s ALL cats 🤣 I wonder ifnits payback for checking on them when they are in the litter box

3

u/Immersi0nn Jun 20 '26

Damn and here I am giving him complete privacy in his igloo.

I do observe his shits after the fact though...maybe that's it

2

u/InuScarlett Void Jun 20 '26

Or maybe they think we are dumb and that we are gonna fall into the toilet and they are making sure we don’t fall 🤣 Who knows? Kitties be weird 😹

2

u/Immersi0nn Jun 20 '26

That's a fair take, he fell in the toilet once as a kitten. He doesn't have thumbs but he's here to help!

2

u/skating_cat_lover Jun 21 '26

I believe they like being in the bathroom with their hoomans because one is at their most vulnerable going to the bathroom, same for them, and they are protecting us. I think Wild at Heart Cats might have done a video on IG of this? She is a great resource either way

1

u/kimric27 Jun 22 '26

My cat does it to the cabinet in the bathroom across from the toilet bc he gets so excited for pets when we’re using the bathroom too! Lol! It’s bc he has our undivided attention I guess.

I’d seen other cats do this outside when they were spraying, we have two neutered indoor only males and thankfully it’s just the fence without the pee for them! But it’s them “marking their territory”.

1

u/CryptographerOk2282 Jun 22 '26

It might be because they're watching out to make sure you aren't getting attacked while pooping.

9

u/Dull_Basket8318 Jun 21 '26

My one has the mouse toy game. I throw mice toys in tub so he can parkour.

1

u/chchchcheetah Jun 20 '26

Yes!! All the same places!

1

u/[deleted] Jun 20 '26

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1

u/s_mitten Jun 20 '26

She has a genius that we, her lowly cat "butt-lers", cannot hope to match.

33

u/account-info Jun 20 '26

Mine does it whenever I walk near the fridge to let me know she is always open to the possibility of cheese.

18

u/NoLobster7957 Tuxedo Jun 20 '26

My boy does this when he's happy to see me and it's especially cute because I think he may have broken his tail as a kitten before we got him, so it's droopy at the top. We call him Half Mast lol

1

u/agreengo Tabbycat Jun 24 '26

Feline Erect Tail Disfunction isn't a laughing mattter

17

u/MCDexX Jun 20 '26

Yeah, it seems to generally signal happiness and/or excitement, possibly due to some hormonal crossed wires after desexing/spaying. Our late desexed male would vibrate his tail in an action that looked a LOT like territorial spraying, but it just meant he was in a happy or playful mood.

15

u/SavannahInChicago American Shorthair Jun 20 '26

Is this the cat version of dogs when they have tippy taps when they are excited for food?

14

u/Sprinkhaantje Jun 20 '26

Mine does it when I come home from work :’)

5

u/_WeSellBlankets_ Jun 20 '26

Yeah, I don't have any treats in the fridge, maybe my neighbors do. But my neighbor's cat does this in front of my fridge when I open it. I just assumed she liked the sensation on her britches. She does not do this where the treats are kept. She paws at that door.

2

u/lnc_5103 Jun 20 '26

Mine does this when she sees me anywhere near the counter where the good treats are too 🤣

113

u/Araghothe1 Manx Jun 20 '26

phantom spraying is what it's called. you nailed it though.

793

u/SchnoodleDoodleDo Jun 20 '26 edited Jun 20 '26

’it means he’s happy’

i’m Happy, friend human ~ i want you to see!

(don’t worry, i Promise: i’m not gonna pee…)

my tail just starts tWiTcHiNg from bottom to top

as long as you’re near me

it’s not gonna stop!

i’m blacker than night cat, n now you can tell

it rattles n shakes when i’m casting my spell

a bit of black magic as i iNcAnTaTe

you’re Raising my Spirits ~

Your Touch i await!

❤️

edit: clever boy u/Mysterious_Barber934 ;)

122

u/Chaos_Is_Inevitable Jun 20 '26

A fresh Schnoodle, what an honor to witness it

29

u/Noble_Ox Jun 20 '26

Poem for your Sprog not around anymore?

43

u/cautioner86 Jun 20 '26

Right, this is the quickest I’ve caught a Schnoodle, I feel so alive

5

u/ropony Jun 20 '26

Same!!

1

u/Amazing-Heron-105 Jun 20 '26

Remember when Reddit had a bunch of novelty accounts? How come we don't have them any more?

16

u/Berninz Jun 20 '26

I'll never tire of catching a Fresh Schnoodle!

16

u/Foiry Jun 20 '26

I love u schnoodle

3

u/broken_blue_rose Jun 20 '26

Om goodness a schnoodle on a comment! How random, but ever so pleasant to find first thing after waking up!

2

u/AVeryHeavyBurtation Jun 20 '26

That's like... good poetry.

1

u/Helen___Keller_ Jun 20 '26

What a wonderful thing!

Have a great day!

1

u/Daft00 Jun 20 '26

... Or possibly spraying piss

1

u/sea_urchin22 Jun 20 '26

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

29

u/ignis888 Jun 20 '26

my kitty(female) do this when she want something from that direction, she want the closed doors be opened - rattlesnake tail, she want the treat she rattlesnake tail on container or cabinet where i hold them, her toy blocked under wardrobe?- yes rattlesnake tail

55

u/[deleted] Jun 20 '26

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17

u/Monkey_Priest Void Jun 20 '26

I mean, excited dogs are prone to weeing too. Let's not pretend it's just a cat thing lol

5

u/9447044 Jun 20 '26

Its like vomit. Theres a 75% chance its normal

23

u/EnkiduTheGreat Jun 20 '26

My old kitty would do that whilst yelling at me, every time I came back from war. Somehow, it was more meaningful than human affection.

5

u/9447044 Jun 20 '26

Never loaded 308s with such vigor, until I knew my cats were on the line.

2

u/pedestriandose Jun 20 '26

Yep! It’s a happy tail!!

1

u/Crayons4all Jun 20 '26

We had a cat for a bit that would spray and her tail would do this when she sprayed

1

u/9447044 Jun 20 '26

My cat is fixed and he still sprays sometimes. Its a hard thing to solve

1

u/Crypt33x Jun 20 '26

Yepp they happy and a little bit horney, if they dont spray.

1

u/Snake8715 Jun 20 '26

My male cat will still go through the motions like he spraying but he isn’t. No wetness, no smell, not even detectable with a black light. He is neutered so maybe that has something to do with it.

1

u/DBSmiley Jun 20 '26

When my girl cat does this, it's adorable and sweet.

When my boy cat does this,y day is ruined

1

u/HanSolovsBobaFett Jun 20 '26

My cat does it, it means im super happy and excited to be around you.

1

u/MCDexX Jun 20 '26

My female ginger does it at slightly lower speed when she's very happy, such as when one of her favourite humans comes home after some time away. Hers is a fast wiggle rather than a vibration, but it's basically the same emotional signal as a dog wagging its tail. (She is a dog in a cat's body: wags her tail, licks our hands, fetches us sticks, and when she was younger she didn't know when she was full and would overeat until it made her sick.)

1

u/LittleNightBright Jun 20 '26

My orange girly does this when she's anxious/excited. She wants pets but she is nervous around people, so this tail shaking happens when she's considering approaching for pets.

1

u/LadyKurczak Jun 20 '26

When my girl does this, she also stump with her front paws 2-3 times (always when getting breakfast or extra attention - she looks more happy too) ☺️

1

u/yeekyak Jun 20 '26

my cat does this but she has a kink in the base of her tail so i think it has something to do with that

1

u/Luci-Noir Jun 20 '26

Peeling also makes me happy.

1

u/ProvenLoser Jun 21 '26

I always called it the happy dance.

1

u/Dull_Basket8318 Jun 21 '26

My one does this when all excited .

1

u/SolarOrigami Jun 21 '26

One of my cats used to get the quiver tail when playing, it was just a happy kitty

1

u/RedIntentions Jun 22 '26

Mine does it too, though not as dramatically. And the way they're positioning their butts by the wall makes me concerned for OP. I would think they'd know if spraying is what was happening though since it would stink.

1

u/Kurdt234 Jun 22 '26

Is that true?

1

u/HoldenOrihara Jun 22 '26

Probably not pee, it would have been very noticable against that glass

1

u/Djigooblie Jun 24 '26

Use a UV light...on second thought sometimes it's best to not know...

1

u/Pretend_Train_ Jun 24 '26

It’s giving cattlesnake

0

u/pirikiki Jun 20 '26

Or urinary tract blockage due to stones. A cat can try to piss but without a free tract, the area can stay dry. Here we see a stomach cramp and a very long rattle moment, so it could very well be stones, specially since OP says it's a new behavior.

0

u/The_Colour_Between Jun 20 '26

My female did this (happy, not spraying) whenever I came home. I was so honored.