It’s a cats life: why a cardboard box beats a basket any day

Reasons for cardboard love

Somehow cats and cardboard boxes seem to be magically attracted to each other. And perhaps you’re still trying to wrap your head around why that is. Especially when you’ve spent a small fortune on a new cat bed that your four-legged friend isn’t interested in. So it’s time to think «outside the box». Here are five reasons they love cardboard:

1. Hiding

Cats prefer to observe what’s happening around them from a safe hideaway. Cardboard boxes are the perfect place to retreat to because they usually only have one opening and are sealed all around them. From a cat’s perspective that means they can’t be ambushed.

2. Comfort

The four tight walls around the cat’s body not only provide safety, but also a feeling of security. Even as kittens, our four-legged friends snuggle in-between their mother and siblings. So cardboard makes a wonderful cuddly substitute.

4. Temperature

Cats are most comfortable at a temperature of 30 to 37 degrees. Room temperature is therefore too cool for them and they have to expend additional energy. That’s not the case in a cardboard box. Cardboard is a material which insulates particularly well and provides your four-legged friend with optimum warmth.

5. Texture

Yes, some cats behave like rodents. Cardboard is a suitable material for many animals to chew on or bite into. My colleague Lorenz Keller’s cats, for example, are veritable punching machines and leave bite holes on every single cardboard box:

Squares

In 2021, a study came to the conclusion that cats also like to sit in taped-off squares. The investigation gave way to the «CatSquare» social media campaign where pet owners recorded their pets’ reactions to squares of adhesive tape:

Simplicity

So if you’re still scrolling through the 4,400 cat beds on our website in search of the perfect place for your furry friend to sleep in, don’t let it drive you crazy. Your cat will probably prefer the classic in the end anyway: