What Do Cats Hate To Walk On? And Why?

You might have noticed that cats are very selective when it comes down to where they step, the surfaces they like to walk on, and places they avoid. It is very common for cats to paw against texture just to see how they feel and if they don’t like how it feels, to just go in the opposite direction.

So it’s pretty clear that cats will choose the surfaces they walk on. But what will cats hate to walk on?

There are specific materials that cats will surely hate to walk on, and these include sticky paper,r plastics, and aluminum foil. They will also be pushed away by some strong smells like the smell of eucalyptus oil, citronella, citrus, aloe, and so on. Anything that is unknown to them, most of the time they will treat as dangerous. This is a great survival mechanism that they have developed in the wild.

This is why long-time cat owners will know exactly what smells or textures to place next to doors they don’t want the cat to go through.

You might also like my articles on how long cats hold grudges, whether cats can have purple eyes, and why would cats have black boogers.

This is a great way to prevent the cat from going in certain rooms, at least until it figures out your game (because cats are strong enough to understand this at some point).

Below you will find some things cats surely don’t like to step on and the reason behind this.

Surfaces Cats Hate To Walk On

1. Aluminum Foil

For some reason, cats hate to walk on aluminum foil to the point that they would rather sit in one place if you surround them with enough foil.

This is something that still puzzles most people and the answer is still up for debate considering that this type of foil is not painful to walk on or sticky. It will take your cat just stepping once on aluminum foil to know that it hates the feeling.

So is there a reason why cats will avoid stepping on aluminum foil?

In this case, is less about the texture and more about the crinkling noise it makes. Cat’s really hate these types of sounds, that they would likely perceive as coming from a threat.

Cats are very quiet walkers so they would usually avoid stepping on surfaces that make a lot of sound to prevent any possible prey or predator from hearing them.

2. Sticky Flooring or Tape

This one is pretty common in memes and short videos from social media.

Cats really hate stepping on something sticky and will get really agitated if they get stuck even for a second on the floor. The simple feeling of having something stuck to their fur is something they really hate and will do anything to avoid.

This is why you can use sticky tape to block entrances where you wouldn’t want your pet to go.

You can also use sticky tape when you’re trying to deter stray cats. They will stop trying to get inside your home the first time they get some tape stuck on their paws.

3. Ice

You might have noticed that cats also hate walking on ice.

This is easily understandable because ice is slippery and cats don’t like the feeling of insecurity when walking.

This is why, if they see an icy surface ahead, they might just turn around and go somewhere else.

The cat also dislikes the cold sensation on its paws. This combination of cold and insecurity will cause the cat to just avoid walking on ice altogether.

4. Plastics

This is another type of material on which cats don’t like to walk, although not many people know about this one.

The reason why cats will avoid walking on plastic has more to do with stability issues and less to do with sounds or other issues. Most cats will notice that they slide on plastics, which might make them consider this material unsafe.

If the place they are trying to reach is very important, most cats will try to move on plastic surfaces, but they surely won’t like the instability and they won’t repeat the experience too often.

You will get a funny reaction from your cat by just placing a sheet of plastic in its way.

Conclusion

So what do cats hate to walk on?

There are a lot of surfaces and materials that cats will just hate to walk on, including ice, plastics, sticky tape, and aluminum foil. Most of the time, a cat will refuse to walk on a surface if either walking on it will make a weird sound or the surface, for one reason or another, will cause unstable movement.

Most cats will try to test a surface using their paws. If it moves or makes weird sounds, it will be a no-no for the animal.

This is just a survival instinct that they got in the wild.

This is very important to know especially if you’re a cat owner because you can use these surfaces to prevent a cat from entering or exiting some areas.