Ever wonder why your pet cat seemed more interested in playing with the giant box for the new scratching post you ordered instead of the scratching post itself?
Well that backwards "cat logic" has more to do with your pet's animal instincts than Fluffy rejecting your loving gifts.
"Cats love boxes because they're cryptic animals. They like to hide. And a box gives them a place of safety and security," Stephen Zawistowski, science adviser for the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said in a video for Business Insider.
Once inside the box, nothing happens that the cat isn't aware of, for example there are no potential threats that can approach from the side or the back.
"They can sit in that box feeling safe and watch the world go around in front of them," Zawistowski said.
But if they see something tempting enough, like a toy, they'll temporarily leave their fortress for play time.
"Then they can run back into that box and feel safe and secure again," Zawistowski told Business Insider.
In conclusion, here are two heart-warming videos of cats jumping into boxes.
