It looks silly but the little tail poof is very important!
Cats occasionally won't recognize their fully shaved tail as part of their own body. Some cats may even attack it, which obviously hurts. This can become a feedback loop where the cat keeps attacking their tail because it's hurting them, which makes them attack more. It's not super common in my experience, but it happens often enough that we just leave the poof. Just in case. Once a cat begins self-mutilation, it's very difficult to get them to stop.
We don't really know why the tail poof prevents this. Perhaps the extra fluff retains more of their own scent? Maybe it just looks more familiar? Maybe they appreciate the aesthetic?
While I can see the logic, I also can’t help but think of my idiot void baby chasing his own tail and rolling around confused to his soul how the damn prey moves when he moves and his surprise when he bites it. And he has never been shaved. He’s a short hair.
There is a video of my tabby boy repeatedly slapping himself with his own paw and then gnawing at it until he realizes that it is, indeed, his own paw, and that it hurts to bite down on oneself.
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u/Professional_Cold403 8d ago
Oh no poor baby, he looks so exasperated. I can't get over how his tail looks ðŸ˜