Grieving Cat Refuses To Leave Beloved Human’s Grave in Heartbreaking Video
It’s a viral video that has left viewers baffled: a white cat from Malaysia refusing to leave a grave site.
Depending on the voice, some viewers agree the cat is grieving the loss of the man buried underground.
Generally speaking, cats don’t exactly embody the spirit of “Man’s Best Friend.”
Cats are often described as having a chilly demeanor, behaving with a fierce independence, and more or less devoid of compassionate emotion — especially when we humans tick them off.
So what drew this cat to the burial grounds of a mosque in Langkawi, Kedah, Malaysia? It very well could be a man named Ismail Mat, who lived a life showing compassion to stray animals in his hometown.
Ismail Mat’s grandson, Soffuan CZ, captured video of his grandfather’s memorial service. He explained how his family was perplexed when the cat appeared at his grandfather’s grave.
“At the funeral, the white cat came and started circling the grave,” Soffuan CZ told The Telegraph. “My grandfather was a man who loved cats.”
“This white cat is actually not a pet cat,” Soffuan said, “but it’s probably a hometown cat near the mosque.”
Media company Viral Hog published Soffuan’s video, offering additional information about the scene on its YouTube page:
“When our friend was in the world, he loved cats,” the video caption stated. “He often took them in from off the street. While they were in his home he always fed them.”
“After completing the funeral, the cat did not want to go back home,” the caption continued. “Today the cat was waiting on the grave.”
So was this white kitty in the throes of grief? Or was it trying to satisfy an instinctive feline curiosity by hoping to uncover whatever was below?
According to Anita Kelsey, a cat behavior expert based in London, the cat’s behavior was “unusual.”
“I never stop being amazed at animal behavior,” Kelsey told The Telegraph. “It’s obviously seen something being buried that it wants to get to.”
It’s not unheard of for cats to grieve, Kelsey said. “Cats can grieve the loss of a presence and show it in many ways, but it’s usually dogs we see exhibiting this behavior,” she said.
We’ll never know for sure what prompted white kitty’s actions on that day. But for viewers around the globe, just the thought of an animal missing a beloved human is comforting enough.
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