General Update
This post is about a black cat named Nyxie. We adopted her 3 weeks ago. She talks. A lot. It’s sometimes hard to get a word in with her full vocabulary of chirps, naws, maws, mows, woas, nos, and other amazing sounds.
Nyxie is settling in well and is now sleeping in the bed most nights. She is a very affectionate cat that will do gentle love nibbles if you stop petting her and she wants you to continue.
She has decided that there is one position that is her favorite to snuggle in. She likes to be attached to my hip. When she was picked up as a stray she weighed 6 lbs, but when we brought her home she was so sick and skinny looking. She spent a lot of time gaining enough weight to look healthy. I’m happy to report she’s back up to 6lbs!
Figuring Out Nyxie’s Personality
I wonder about her history and why she craves so much affection. I don’t know much about cat behavior, so I consult the internet. Cat personality tests are a thing, right?
First in my quest to better understand my cat’s mind I hit up this website I discovered via Google: Meowingtons. They have a list of the Big 5 Cat Personalities they call Neurotic, Extraverted, Dominant, Impulsive, and Agreeable. So I check out their descriptions.
Neurotic
I would absolutely peg Nyxie as neurotic. There’s something absolutely skittish about her. Every time Jacob or the dog flex a muscle in her presence she flies off the bed or wherever she is lounging. In general she’s fairly affectionate with me, but not with many other people.
According to this website neurotic cats thrive on being able to build confidence slowly and having plenty of opportunities to hide so they can do so on their own terms.
Crap. I think I’m neurotic.
Extraversion
Nyxie is absolutely extraverted. She cannot stand to be alone and gets bored very easily. She made friends with Haskell and plays with him, even though he’s in the “I’m angry at not being an only child so I’m going to poop in front of the cat tree” stage. She loves being loved.
It’s noted that extraverted cats need to be kept busy or they could become destructive. Combining this with her extreme dislike of having her toe beans touched (meaning it’s difficult to trim claws) is a bit of a recipe for disaster at the moment if we don’t keep her entertained.
Dominant
Nyxie is not very dominant. I stand up to Haskell for her because he’s able to chase her off and I’m annoyed at him deciding it’s okay for him to be a little jerk. White dog being a jerk to a black cat right now? I’m not in the mood for that kind of theater.
Impulsiveness
Nyxie is definitely a little on the impulsive side, but just enough to be useful for problem solving. She likes climbing and getting interesting places. She is very curious about everything and wants to taste all of my house plants.
Interestingly, this website mentions that impulsive cats thrive on routine. Nyxie is a routine driven cat. It’s good to know that this is important to keep up.
Anyone want some succulents? I may need to re-home a few to save their lives.
The Personality Test
So then Jacob and I sat down to do this 2015 Buzzfeed Cat Personality Test. The not-so-scientific listicle experience of cat personality research has us intrigued now. How far can we take this? Time to anthropomorphize our cat to her fullest, purrrrforming potential!
Okay. Surprisingly, Jacob and I both found this as accurate as any human personality test (which is to say, we have our doubts, but it’s fun to play along).
Have You Done Pet Personality Tests?
I’d love to hear from people who have done pet personality tests or have thought extensively about animal personalities. I find every animal very unique and find animals much easier to read and understand than humans. This may be because I like them better than humans, but look at the world and tell me you blame me.
