On a silent night, hidden in the all-encompassing darkness are always some hard-to-detect secrets. The same goes for cats. Cats are well-known nocturnal animals, so naturally, nighttime is the best time for them to showcase their strengths. However, cats’ activities at night might not be as normal as humans perceive. Some researchers have found that cats hold gatherings at night?

　　The identity of the first person to discover this feline behavior is unknown; I suspect they were quietly silenced by the cats. However, after searching through various ancient and modern books, records of cats gathering at night are extremely scarce. Yet it is apparent that cats do gather together at night. Owners often find their cats grouping in threes or fives while half-asleep, and after a while, they seemingly break up in twos or threes. This arouses curiosity—what exactly are they doing? Why do they gather?

　　Based on this, the well-read author made some guesses. The reasons can be summarized as follows:

　　1. Stranger cats meet to show friendliness

　　For newly arrived cats, naturally they have to meet the local cat boss first. To avoid unnecessary quarrels and fights, they make a sort of introduction meeting, like “Hello, nice to meet you, I am…”

　　This kind of nighttime gathering only appears in densely populated areas with high cat density. In places with few cats, such scenes are rarely seen.

　　There are various views on the purpose of cat gatherings. However, many experts believe cats in the same territory gather mainly to confirm whether intruders have entered their turf.

　　2. Foraging for food

　　Cats get hungry at night too, and naturally need to forage. But the night is dark and scary; going alone might risk encountering something unsafe! So cats plan to go out on foraging expeditions in groups. Before foraging, they hold a meeting—Blackie goes east, Whitey goes south, Ming goes to the kitchen... All collected food is then pooled and shared!

　　Of course, some people choose to feed cats at night, especially stray cats outdoors. Cat lovers often kindly provide food for strays, which leads to many stray cats gathering for these “meetings.” After eating, stray cats usually linger around the feeding area for hours.

　　Whether you accept these two reasons or not, if you disagree as a cat parent, then don’t sleep well tonight and watch what your cat is doing. Cats are basically nocturnal animals and often hold gatherings at night. But there doesn’t seem to be a fixed meeting time; they gather and disperse without apparent reason.

　　Now, it’s time for some science. Although cats are night owls, their nighttime activities can disturb their owners’ rest. Moreover, large groups of cats can make the indoor environment messy, and managing outdoor stray cats is troublesome. Therefore, owners should discipline indoor cats. If home cats roam freely at night, in the processes of catching mice, mating, and fighting, they may get injured or dirty themselves. Cats being active at night is unhealthy and affects indoor hygiene. Such cats tend to be wild and hard to manage. If they bring back infectious diseases, it may also threaten the owner’s health. Hence, family cats should not be allowed to roam at night.

　　A closed porch or a window extending outside is a safe place for cats to connect with nature. If your yard has a fence, another good method is to install a net on the fence to keep cats within your yard. During the day, you can train your cat to walk with a leash, but be sure to use the lightest, retractable leash connected to a chest harness instead of a collar. Let your cat get used to the harness indoors first, then you can take it on outdoor adventures.

　　In addition, correcting a cat’s night roaming habit must start when it is a kitten. When beginning training, keep the cat in a cage during the day but allow it indoors to move around, never outside. Then catch it back in the cage at night. After some time, this will become a habit, and even if the cage is removed, it won’t go out to wander at night.