Cat Learns to Play Piano for Treats

When the vacuum cleaner emerges from the closet, Jeeves the cat doesn't hide under the bed. She walks to her piano and plays a soulful melody, earning herself a treat for her emotional performance.

Elizabeth Lopatto, a tech reporter at The Verge, discovered her tortoiseshell cat has become a pianist through the Pet Piano, a smart feeder designed by a YouTuber who specializes in cat training. The instrument looks like a miniature keyboard and dispenses treats when Jeeves presses the keys in sequence.

Training started simple. Lopatto placed a treat on a key, and when Jeeves swiped it, the piano rewarded her with another treat from its dispenser. The device includes a training mode that gradually requires more key presses, and Jeeves maxed it out at eight notes per feeding.

Now the cat has developed her own relationship with music. She plays when she's hungry, sure, but she also performs whenever she's agitated or upset. If Lopatto gets up from her lap at night, a moonlight serenade follows her to the bathroom.

Jeeves' compositions vary wildly. Some days she repeatedly presses the same key eight times. Other days she moves her paw up and down the keyboard, creating different melodies each time. Lopatto declined to use the piano's auto-tune feature because she prefers her cat's authentic artistic expression.

Sunny's Take

The most touching part? Lopatto realized her cat plays most when she's upset. Jeeves comforts herself through music, eating her feelings one melody at a time. It's a quirky reminder that enrichment and emotional expression matter for our pets too.

Guests visiting Lopatto's home sometimes squat down to play the piano keys themselves, discovering to their surprise they've just earned cat food. Meanwhile, Jeeves has mastered coming when called and tolerating nail trims for her favorite reward: meat yogurt tubes.

The Pet Piano proves that cats can learn complex behaviors when properly motivated. Jeeves is living proof that with patience, creativity, and the right treats, even the most independent pets can surprise us with hidden talents.