Cat Cats
Catching mouse – Cattery – Claws – Cat’s Tail
Fear of –
Kitten –
Because a cat is often an easy source of physical contact and affection it can depict the need to be cared for and warm affection, even sexual love accompanied with intense warm feelings.
But cats live by their own wits and do not need an owner to walk or care for them, just food and comfort. So a cat can represent a form of street wisdom learned through stress.
You may have felt a lot of affection from a cat, and so associate it with sensual, or even sexual pleasure. It can also represent your need to care for someone or be cared for, to have close physical contact.
Example: ‘I went to the fridge to get out some mincemeat to feed the cat. It came in. As it fed I had a strong urge to touch it, such strong feelings of love were pouring out of me. The animal looked up at my face as I wanted to kiss it. The lips had pink lipstick on. I kissed it, it’s paw came up around my arm, I could see the black claws. We were rolling around on the floor, it felt very sexual.’ Monica.
A male cat can represent male sex drive.
For some women cats are a substitute baby, it is therefore used in many dreams to represent a woman’s urge or need to care for someone, or directly her need to reproduce, or be involved in sex. Therefore it is often used to signify a woman’s creativity, which is a very real part of a woman’s makeup. It is obviously linked with sexuality as that is a woman’s creative process, but it doesn’t have to be sexual as it can flow in any direction she chooses. So it can flow into creating a real or dream baby, or become a creative project or business idea.
The cat can therefore also link with refined female sexuality or ruttiness unless the cat is markedly a tom. See A Woman’s Creative Power
The term ‘catty’ refers to a spiteful woman, showing one’s ‘claws’, jealousy, anger or vindictiveness in a relationship. In this aspect it might refer to ones mother; independence; stealth; fertility. So if the cat in your dream is angry it might depict yourself if female, or feelings about a female friend.
Because cats are independent and often alone, they may represent the secret part of yourself, or independence. See: Kitten; Animal;
In a man’s dream it may refer to a woman or to the female, intuitive side of his nature. The cat can be your intuition and feelings, perhaps warning you, through its sensitivity to moods, or unseen dangers. In some dreams it indicates cattiness – showing one’s ‘claws’, jealousy, anger or vindictiveness in a relationship. It might refer to your mother, independence, stealth, or fertility.
In some dreams the cat definitely represents the fear of bad news or general fears, especially if it is a black cat.
If you have bred cats it may well represent your own, perhaps unconscious, desires to have a baby.
Jungians see the cat as representing a deep psychological secret, a hidden side of ones nature, the shadowy less obvious or outwardly displayed side of your nature. This is most likely because cats go about their business without any attempt to explain themselves or to accommodate us poor humans. Also they are creatures of the night very often, and live a dark life. Prior to the custom of neutering a cat and, in the US, removing its claws, this dark life was often very noisy and obviously sexual and aggressive. Left to itself the cat is a master predator
The cat is thought to have first been domesticated in Egypt about 2000 BC, and all modern cats are said to be descendents of them. They are desert creatures and so do not pant in the heat as dogs do, and are also easy with freezing desert nights. They do not like rain though. The Egyptian name for cat was ‘miu’ or he or she who mews. Although the cat never became a fully acknowledged god figure as the jackal and hippo did, it was perhaps the most popular. She was known as Bastet or Bast, and a household goddess, the protector of women, children and domestic cats. She was also known as the goddess of sunrise, music, dance, pleasure, as well as family, fertility and birth.
But there was a negative side known as Sekhmet the goddess of war and pestilence, though later tamed by Ra to become the protector of humans.
EXAMPLE: My husband died over a year ago, and I live alone, no pets. Yet I dreamt I opened my front door and there was a cat waiting to be let in. It was my cat, and I knew I hadn’t fed it for ages or looked after it. I felt awful that I had neglected it for so long. The strange thing was that the next day as I walked around the supermarket, I kept wanting to go to the cat-food section to buy food. – Winnie P. – Exeter
In losing her husband Winnie has lost her source of given and receiving affection.
EXAMPLE: I was with a young boy and went to his house. I believe his mother was there and a cat. The vivid part was that the cat spoke to me. It spoke in a rather female voice, very clearly. As it spoke I felt great amazement. I had lots of thoughts about how it had learned language – that it could speak because of human language – what did language do to its psyche – and so on. I didn’t reach any conclusions. I noticed as it spoke that it had tiny lips, but they were perfectly formed like a woman’s. They had lipstick on – or at least were red and attractive. Ben.
Ben’s dream has a mixture of sexual attraction, femininity and the ability to express in it.
EXAMPLE: I am sitting in the hotel staff room eating lunch at a large dining table. One by one I am joined by perhaps a dozen women. The atmosphere is pleasant, easy and light hearted. I enjoy the feeling of being the only male among a dozen attractive women. Then I notice a strange thing. One by one all the girls around me turn into cats, but carry on laughing and talking as if nothing is happening. I find this interesting and not alarming. I am aware each girl turns into the sort of cat that is right for her – a vivacious redhead becomes a purring orange tabby; an aloof, slightly superior lady becomes a Siamese; the only ex-girlfriend of mine present becomes a black witches familiar.
I remember turning to my left and asking: “Tell me Rebecca, how did you do this?” The Rebecca cat giggles with a human voice and says: “He doesn’t have a clue, does he?” As I look at the Rebecca cat I realise she still has her human eyes. This I realise is true of all the cats, they have human eyes in feline faces. As I realise this one says: “I think he’s beginning to understand now” and laughs. Paul C. Teletext.
This graphic dream so well illustrates how our human personality exists within our animal drives and urges.
Example: I was with a young boy and went to his house. I believe his mother was there and a cat. The vivid part was that the cat spoke to me. It spoke in a rather female voice, very clearly. As it spoke I felt great amazement. I had lots of thoughts about how it had learned language – that it could speak because of human language – what did language do to it – and so on. I didn’t reach any conclusions. I noticed as it spoke that it had tiny lips, but they were perfectly formed like a woman’s. They had lipstick on – or at least were red and attractive. Ben.
Ben’s dream has a mixture of sexual attraction, femininity and the ability to express in it.
The next example illustrates how we might not be caring for the natural and instinctive side of us.
Example: ‘I am given an animal to look after, usually somebody’s pet while they are away on holiday. I then completely forget the animal, go away and when I return the animal is either dead or very dried up or has been got at by another animal and is in the throws of dying. When I wake from the dream I feel most dreadful and it is only when I am fully awake and realise it is not true do I feel better.’ Lynda E
Example: Recently a neighbor brought a newborn kitten to my home hoping we would care for it. My daughter, Sydney, cleaned the blood off and put her In a box. Meanwhile, I left work at five armed with doll bottles and powdered milk. One evening after feeding her, I was wondering if she would live beyond her current three days old. Before I was fully asleep that night, I saw a picture of her at about seven weeks old, running and playing. She stopped, looked at me and said, “Of course I’m going to live!” Her name is Betsy and she has developed into a big, beautiful kitty that we all adore. Martha Folin
Alley cat:: Sexuality; promiscuity; down on luck.
Black cat: Depends what dreamer associates with it – so may be good luck or bad luck and evil – i.e. events working for or against one; anxiety. The belief of a black cat being evil is a throwback to times when people persecuted women accused of being witches. Their cats were also seen to be evil. Of course if you believe that cats are bad luck, then it may symbolise that for you.
Black cats are invisible in darkness and can apparently appear mysteriously. So they often represent something that arises from the unknown or unconscious. It can therefore indicate a woman’s creativity, which is a very real part of a woman’s makeup. It is obviously linked with sexuality as that is a woman’s creative process – and the black cat therefore suggest her creative potential is emerging from an area she did not known about previously. See Woman’s Creative Power
Bobcats: Bobcats, like other wild animals that are adaptable and can live on the outskirts of human territory, are very ‘street wise’ or capable of surviving despite heavy human hunting.
So in your dream it can depict your survival instinct, and your ability to fight back with real cat zeal. It represents intelligence and patience. Like most cats it is not a pack animal and so is solitary in its habits – and also brings up it ‘kittens’ alone. See cats.
Cat’s claws: Spitefulness; desire to hurt; hidden aggression; clinging, or ‘getting ones claws in someone’.
Cat having kittens: Desire for or feelings about babies or ones own babyhood; fertility.
Cat Cattery: If it is a cattery for breeding it could refer to your feelings about having a baby – or if you breed cats then look at Easy Dream Interpretation. In general it suggest you are having a rest from, or not taking responsibility for your female qualities.
Cat catching mouse: A problem solving activity in you; cat and mouse situation in work or relationship.
Cat’s tail: The tail is a very expressive part of a cat; a very visible and active part, so represent the expression of your instinctive feelings.
Fear of cat: Fear of the female in oneself; fear of females; difficulty in meeting feelings and intuition; sense of danger. See: Animal phobias at the end of the animal section.
Group of cats: Group of women; relating to the different moods or feelings.
If allergic to cats: If you are allergic and dream of a cat it would signify a negative and threatening reaction to a situation or relationship.
Kitten: Feelings about vulnerability or babyhood; feelings about caring for someone or something vulnerable; parental urges, perhaps protectiveness.
Neighbouring cat and kitten: It could be that you have developed a link with a child that is not your own. If the cat and kitten were not from the same family as yourself, it may show you are making a relationsnhip with a new partner and their child.
Speaking cat: Ability to express feminine feelings, intuition or sexuality; a realisation of feelings of physical hunger or emotional or sexual attraction. See last example below.
White cat: Can represent your feminine intuition and a link with the natural beauty in you.
Wild cat: Stealth, ferocity, intelligence, cunning, ability to survive. Like most cats it is not a pack animal, so suggests living and bringing up children alone.
See: First example under the general information at the end of the separate animal definitions.
Idioms: Copy cat; bell the cat; cat and mouse; cat’s whiskers; cat out of the bag; cat and dog life; cat on hot bricks; something the cat brought in; a cat’s paw; cat among the pigeons; while the cat’s away.
Useful questions are:
What is happening or what am I realising in my relationship with the dream cat(s), and how does that relate to my life?
If I take out the word ‘cat’ from my dream description, and replace it with what I feel about this cat, what would I write?
If there are elements of caring or love in this dream, am I looking after that side of my life?
If this is about a kitten, what are my feelings or desires about my childhood, or about a baby?
See Easy Dream Interpretation; Talking As; Processing Dreams
Comments
Please help me interpret the dream I had last night. a family member came with a sack as a present, and when opening this it was a black cat! please help me understand this dream.
I had a dream that I saw a lot of cats outside my house. the cats are of different colours, black white and brown but i think most of them are white. Then they are trying to get into my house, so I close the door and thought that they will not be able to go in right now. but suddenly there is a white cat near my feet, so i am trying to chase it out of my house by spraying water. however i cannot open the door to let it out because that means that more cats will come in . Thus, i decided to catch it. but as i chased it, there are more and more cats that already went in inside my house, then turned out that my kitchen window was opened. However, with the help of my friends then i was able to capture all of them, around 5 of them, most of them are white. then i put them inside the cage. strangely no matter how much i want these cats to go away, i am still ensuring that these cats are comfortable inside the cage. Does this dream symbolizes anything? i am in a happy long distance relationship and about to see my boyfriend in a week time? or is this more about difficult times? because now i am very anxious and scared about my exam result.
I had a dream that there was a gray colored cat that would follow me. at some point the cat, similar to a snack eat what i think was a squirell or rat whole. i then became scared of the cat. I didnt want to care for him, and thought that he would eat my little dog just like the other animal so I locked him out of the house and he kept scratching the door to come in. the cat would follow me and i was a bit scared of it
I’ve literally just had this dream or rather a terrible nightmare and as I always do I come straight to the laptop in the hope to calm my mind before I go back to bed….
Firstly it was one of those dreams where I thought I was awake and that it was really happening.
I was sitting in my chair, next to my lamp, reading my book when suddenly a cat crawled up the side of me onto my lap, I felt immediately under attack and rightly so as it proceeded to try to bite me, I responded by grabbing it around the neck and squeezing as hard as I could and then I tossed it to the floor. As soon as it landed another cat came at me and the same thing happened again, the third cat actually managed to bite me on the forearm and at this I pushed it to the floor, jumped out of my chair and left the room. (Again during all of this I thought I was awake and couldn’t understand why these cats where in the house, we don’t have any), when I returned to the room I was too scared to go back to the chair so I climbed into bed thinking ‘I’m awake, this is ridiculous, they don’t exist but as I pulled the covers over me I felt a cat climb up the side of the bed and walk over me, I felt it’s paws, it’s weight even it’s warmth. At this I cried out as loud as I could but no sound would come, I kept trying to shout out for help but still no particular sound and then I opened my eyes.
Took me a few minutes to realise that now I really was awake and upon that realisation I burst into tears, it was an awful experience. I haven’t had a nightmare like this for many years.
Vince – There is no way you can ‘have nothing to do’ with someone you have been intimately involved with. It doesn’t work like that. Remember that we are not just a conscious personality, we are Life itself expressing as Vince. We have a massive unconscious self which takes care of all the things like heartbeat that keeps you functioning. As such we are always feeding on something, food, water and EXPERIENCE. Most people are often totally unaware of the experience they take in and how it interacts with them.
It sounds as if you are not honouring what you have taken into you, and it is giving you indigestion of the soul. What I have found over years of investigation that everything we take in, experience as well as food, needs to be dealt with in a particular way. We are a living process like all living things. We have to transform what we take in into living processes.
For instance when a plant takes in water and nourishment it changes it into living cells the same with us if we are healthy, we change food into our living body and awareness. As I wrote years ago, “We often take for granted some of the most astounding facts about our everyday life. They seem so normal we barely notice them. But just think, the potatoes or rice you ate yesterday, is today capable of sitting and laughing at a television program. When you digested the food you ate, in some way that is truly astounding it transformed into your movements, and feelings, and being able to do maths and enjoy a video”. (Quoted from SuperMinds).
How we do that with our experience is slightly different – we have to digest it fully by experiencing it fully. If we do not do that it is like plastering stuff/experience on ourselves that is like thick coating which leads to all sorts of mental disorders. Look around you and see the massive crap many people are carrying.
Experiencing it fully is a life process like digesting out food. We cannot do it consciously because Life in us does it – as you can see in your disturbing dreams. You interfered by trying to kill the guy – in your dreams – and also shut out any further contact with the memories. So, as a start you can imagine taking him, her and the children into you. Literally imagine that are going into your body and you are accepting them – not as outside people, but as the experience you took into you. Then you mst allow any feeling to surface fully – that is how we digest experience. In our culture we have been taught to repress everything, that is why we have so much social sickness. See http://dreamhawk.com/approaches-to-being/the-lifestream/ and http://dreamhawk.com/body-and-mind/peoples-experiences-of-lifestream/
Tony
I had a terrible dream of a destructive alley cat that was going around killing people with powers beyond that of a normal cat. I was hunting it and it managed to fool me into thinking that I was killing it then I realized that I had killed a dog. I am a cat lover so this dream was quite disturbing considering. The cat was an orange cat, with scars all over it.
Since a I was a little girl I have had re-occuring dreams of being attacked by cats. Sometimes there are more than one cat, but most times there is just one and its usually dark in colour. My mother has also had this same re-occuring dream all of her life. In the dream the cat attacks without reason and no matter what I try to do to restrain the cat it always manages to bite and scratch me. I don’t want to hurt the cat in my dream but sometimes it is the only way to stop it coming back at me. Afterwards, if the cat is hurt, I feel sick and upset. In the past I have read many different reasons to the dream but none seem to relate to my life. Hope you can help?
Last night I had a dream of four or more cats coming into my house from the dining room window. I can’t remember exactly how many there were or the colors, but I know one was grey and there were two black ones. They were eating something off the floor, but one of the black ones wasn’t eating. It had really pointy ears and it sat and stared at me everywhere I would move and it had these really large lime green eyes. I quickly walked over to the sofa and picked up a newborn baby out of a carrier and I just stood staring at the cat as he stared at me. I don’t know who the baby belonged to because I have know children and I’m not pregnant.
Ive had two cat dreams two nights in a row. In the first one I was at the beach (my fav place in the world) and I ran into a high school friend and we were going back to my hotel, only I couldn’t find the hotel. Eventually my friend got frustrated, left and I still couldn’t find the hotel. I started to panic (I have anxiety issues in real life that sometimes manifest in nightmares) and ended up spending the night under some tarps in a boat. When I woke up the morning was beautiful and the tarps were soft and pristine white. I stepped on to the dock and two cats confidently started to walk beside me. I felt a wonderful sense of calm as I walked in the sun w them.
IN the second one I was riding home from the beach with my mother and she saw a peach colored poodle standing in the ditch beside the road. She stopped to pick it up and its fur was matted w filth. I told her I would take it home w me since I had been thinking about getting a dog. She handed it to me and when I looked down it was a perfect, clean little orange tabby kitten.
The last couple of days i have been dreaming of my male cat. The first one was we was in a groceries store and i saw my cat climbing up the shelf. I reached out to get him and his eyes got real big as though he was scared. His claws came out and i put him down. But he ran and hid between the shelves again. I went to reach for him and he had this scared look on his face again and scratched me. Second dream was i was showing some friends(Girl twins) i havent seen since grammer school my new Church. Once we got inside everything was done but the back. It basically looked Abandoned. I continued to show them saying becareful. The steps was broken and walking up them could make them callasp. As soon as we got to the top my cat was there looking soooo scared but his eyes was Big as though he was mad at the same time. I went to pick him up and he scratched me. Like he was mad at me for leaving him. So my last dream was i went to my old house were we grew up in. And i was looking around and saw my cat dead laying on top of clothes. As i went in the living room it was a dead dog laying on the side of the couch. But i was sad as if i new the dog as well. I also saw some other animals alive and walking around the house as well(tiger,other cats etc.)
I have had recurring dreams of a short-haired light orange tabby that is living in the garage of my previous home or in a dark basement and is extremely friendly. It could be days that he has eaten, but he looks healthy and gets along well with other pets and people. Any comments would be appreciated. Thanks!
In my dream I discovered a male and female cat in the garden of my old family home. The male cat was large and fluffy and came up to me to be stroked briefly; the female cat kept her distance. I then discovered that the pair had kittens in a small nest on the ground. I returned the next day (in the dream) and the kittens had grown much larger.. There were 3 kittens, one was grey with black stripes, the other was white and an overly bright shade of yellow, the third didn’t catch my attention. The parents were close on the periphery but did not interfere. I remember thinking that I’d always wanted the grey cat and perhaps I would take the yellow as well; but I wasn’t as bothered by it; I left without the kittens. I returned the next day and the kittens were dead. The mother had been ravaged, she was lying on her side with large wounds all along her belly. I remember someone saying she had been beheaded, though I don’t remember seeing this clearly. This was the first time that I’d seen the female with any clarity, usually she was little more than a suggestion, I could see she had spots like a Jaguar though she was only half the size, the kittens however had definitely been of a domestic variety as well as the male who wasn’t present on the third day. That’s where the dream ended.
In my dream I awoke one morning and there were lots of cats in my house. They were hiding and I’d find them under my sofa recliner etc. I was like where are you guys coming from? I’d pull them out from under my furnishings and put them outside one cat after the other. All kinds of cats fat ones long haired ones orange cats grey cats etc. This happened every morning for like three days. Oneday a girlfriend of mine came over and I started telling her what had been happening every morning for the past few days. So we proceeded to look for the cats in my house together. We started finding them and putting them outside once again. I was like “How are they getting in here?” There were so many of them and they did’nt want to go outside and even after we put them there they did’nt run away. I checked the house to try and find where they were getting in, but found nothing. It was impossible for them to be sneaking in. Then all of a sudden we came across this tiny black kitten with white markings. She had a white marking in the center of her chest at he tip of her tail and on each paw. I responded to her and said awww she’s so cute! i don’t want to put her outside. I want to keep her and I did. What does this dream mean?
i had a strange dream where i was at my parents’ house and my sister found a dead kitten under the couch. then all of a sudden i was in my house in my bedroom chocking on a skinny, little, disgusting dead kitten and trying desperately to get it out of my throat and gagging on it! at the end, however, i do succeed and think to myself that wasn’t as bad as i thought it would be.
Z.A.M. – The kitten is almost certainly your child self. Baby animals are used in dreams to show how small and vulnerable they are. That it was dead was a way of telling you that a small vulnerable part of you was killed. But fortunately such a death means that that part of you was not allowed the chance to grow and development.
That means that some part of you was blocking the normal flow of life to open you into full growth as a mature person. That is why suddenly you were gagging on the dead body inside you. Now it is out of you it can hopefully be realised and you can grow the parts of you denied.
Tony
Had a dream that my ex-boyfriend turn into a white cat, and I took him to see a prostitute and have sex with her in order of him to become a man again…. I’m trying to understand it… but I’m lost….
Andrea – This where I wish I could speak and could ask questions. Were you disappointed with your ex; and did you feel as if he were not a real man?
The only thing I can think of is that you felt he was a bit feminine and that the prostitute is a slightly dangerous and exciting thing to do. Considering this is your dream and so is really about you I wonder if it is saying that you could have been more of a temptation.
Tony
There were tons of kittens me and others had found. Out of all I had chosen this beautiful white kitten. I had so much love for this cat as i played with her and cared for her. I had chosen her and claimed to come back for her. When I was on my way back I had gotten a phone call saying there was a man that was torturing my precious kitten. I returned to only finding the other kittens. As i walked to the road I noticed her soft white fur on the ground leading toward the mans house across the street. I walked up to only having him deny doing anything with her. While walking back to the middle of the road I screamed and cried for the loss of her. Not only losing her but not knowing if she was still suffering the pain she must have gone through. I had a heart full of regret for even leaving her out of my sight.
Scarlett – I feel the cat is a very lovely part of your inner life. It is often used to indicate a woman’s creativity, which is a very real part of a woman’s makeup. It is obviously linked with sexuality as that is a woman’s creative process.
In the world of dreams our most intimate fears and longings are given an exterior life of their own in the form of the people, animals, objects and places of our dream. So the felt death of your loved cat was a feeling of death of an important part of you. And as it was a man who you felt was the cause of it, I wonder whether this was in fact linked with a relationship.
You can of course bring the cat back to life by realising whatever caused the hurt – for nothing can be really killed in our dreams. You can start feeling the love for the cat and see if you can bring back the original feeling for it.
Tony
Actually, yes I was in a relationship at the time I had the dream. I’ve read one of your books and followed this website so I had a general ideal. At the time the relationship had a lot of downfalls and harsh words. Now things have turned around a lot for me since the ending of that chapter in my life. I realize back then there was depression I was carrying about myself and current situations in life. It seemed as though I forgot the beauty in myself.