building nests

[Lady Ten]

In canon, Clan cats not only had a designated permanent campsite, but they also furnished their dens with little "nests" of moss and such to sleep on. Most roleplayers, it seems, even ones who reject other parts of canon, don't think twice about carrying this over into roleplays. However, it's dubious how much sense this makes. Granted, regardless of what real cats would do, anyone could argue that the anthropomorphism in effect accounts for the cats' choice to build nests. That may well be. But I'm still curious, that aside, would it be realistic for feral cats to build nests like this?

Based on the cats I've owned, my observations are that cats like to sleep on a variety of things, and while they do seem happy to enjoy a soft blanket, they don't necessarily eschew all hard surfaces for soft ones. They seem content to sleep on a concrete driveway or the hoods of cars as well. Pretty much any surface will do for them, and I have never seen them engage in any type of "gathering" behavior when it comes to materials for sleeping on. Anyone seen anything different?

[drheiter]

One thing I've noticed in the books is that the cats seem to use their nests symbolically, particularly in the warriors' den. The newest warriors' nests are on the outside of the group of cats where it is colder, while the deputy's nest is in the center where it's warmest.

This is a practical thing; 'You just got here, kid. You'll earn the warm spot. For now, you get the outside'.
But it is symbolic as well, as if to say that the more experienced warriors have gained, through hard work, a better position in the Clan.

In response to the actual question, I recall my relatives having farm cats that would sleep in straw. They always preferred large piles of straw, so one could assume they'd gathered the piles themselves, though I've never actually seen it happen.

[Lady Ten]

Aug 28, 2012 12:33:03 GMT -6 drheiter said:

This is a practical thing; 'You just got here, kid. You'll earn the warm spot. For now, you get the outside'.
But it is symbolic as well, as if to say that the more experienced warriors have gained, through hard work, a better position in the Clan.

However, that can be done entirely without "nests".

In response to the actual question, I recall my relatives having farm cats that would sleep in straw. They always preferred large piles of straw, so one could assume they'd gathered the piles themselves, though I've never actually seen it happen.

One could assume that anything had gathered them there. It being a farm, seems like it wouldn't take a cat's intervention for there to be large piles of straw around. Potentially possible, I guess, but that's not evidence. As for my cats, if they wanted to sleep on something, they just walked over to it and slept on it where it was.

In practical terms, it doesn't seem like cats could sweep or carry straw very well. Moss would be easier, I assume, though I can't imagine why they'd single out that particular plant to make a pile of it. Is moss any good for insulation or retaining warmth?

[drheiter]

However, that can be done entirely without "nests".

That's certainly true. I suppose the only other reason I can think of is that they're giving themselves a small luxury of sorts, something they can return to at the end of a long day. It could also be said that it's a rite of passage of sorts for apprentices to change the bedding in the dens of the warriors.

[Grey]

From my personal experience around cats - a colony of feral cats, barn cats on a farm, and pure-bred pet cat - they don't make nests, with the rare exception of a mother insulating a place to have her kittens. Some mothers don't, some do. I'm not sure what prompts them to act one way or the other.

On an unrelated note, however, I once lived with a young Siamese she-cat who stole people's underwear and made piles with them. I have no idea what that was about.

Whatever it was, nest-making doesn't appear to be a normal cat behaviour.

[Lady Ten]

On an unrelated note, however, I once lived with a young Siamese she-cat who stole people's underwear and made piles with them. I have no idea what that was about.

That is hilarious. Just... that is hilarious.

Anyway, do you remember what the mothers would gather for insulation?

[mistytail]

I'm not sure how well this could be applied to Warriors, since this is typically dog behavior that I've seen and read about, but sometimes animals will take their owners' things and form a little force field or bed with them, because the smell of their owner takes away the stress. Perhaps the warrior cats do something similar? Their territory probably has a faint Clan-smell throughout - perhaps they make nests for the purpose of dealing with their high-stress environment? This is pure conjecture here, and probably not the author's intent at all, but maybe it's a possibility?