Cat learns to play piano to tell his owners when he needs feeding
'He was a rambunctious kitten and he’s transformed into a chaotic gentlemen,' says owner Kate Nyx
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A cat has reportedly learned to play the piano to tell its owners when it is hungry or needs its litter tray changed.
Winslow, a seven-year-old tabby cat from Philadelphia, USA, was taught to use the instrument to counteract bad behaviour – which included making loud noises.
Owner Kate Nyx explains: “He used to run around screaming all the time and I was like, ‘this is no good’”.
So 29-year-old Nyx decided to take a different approach: “The piano is another way to communicate so he’s not screaming bloody murder.”
“He was a rambunctious kitten and he’s transformed into a chaotic gentlemen.”
Winslow was adopted when he was eight weeks old, after being found, abandoned, in a back garden. The cat was trying to fight a dog when he was found.
“He was scarred up, covered in dirt, we had to teach him how to eat dry food and he had a serious case of ringworm,” she said.
Nyx, who is a musician, bought the tiny piano on eBay when she was at school and it has been in the house since Winslow has lived there.
He has shown interest in the instrument since he was a kitten. “He would play the notes and look underneath trying to find where they were coming from,” says Nyx.
The owner says she decided to embrace his natural curiosity and channel it in a useful way for both the pet and her.
“It became some kind of hunting reward because he can’t do much in the apartment,” she says. “He tends to only play it when we’re in the kitchen and he knows he can possible get a snack.”
“He uses the piano to express himself in general, for attention, to get his litter scooped,” said Nyx. “It’s his alarm system in general”.
“He learned that I encourage moving his paws up and down the keyboard, so he does that when he really wants something.”
Winston also gave the couple ringworm when they first brought him home, which led to their engagement.
"I was like 'do you think you'll do this with anyone else?' And he was like 'nope' and so that's how we got engaged," said Nyx.
"We call that our engagement ringworm."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments