Pregnant woman was puzzled when her 5 cats pawed at her belly one by one — later that evening, she realized why

Cat owners often marvel at how attuned their pets are to their bodies. Anecdotal evidence suggests that cats can predict changes like pregnancy, and even death, in humans. While a cat mom, Sophia Lee, who goes by @sophialee1997 on TikTok, did know she was pregnant, she was perplexed by the strange behavior of her five cats all at once. One evening, the felines clung closer to her belly, pawing at her baby one by one, which left Lee wondering what it was all about. A few hours later, her doubts were clarified. A heartwarming snippet of the pregnant woman's interaction with her cats has gone viral on the internet.

The soon-to-be mom filmed her cats hanging out closer to her belly on that particular day. “It’s rare, all 5 come in one evening!” an overlay note hinted. First, her adorable black and white cat, Poppy, sat on her belly at around 5:31 p.m. Then, Precious followed, snuggling with her mom by 7 p.m. About fifteen minutes later, her third cat, Tito, was up on her belly making biscuits with its paws. Luna and Kiki followed suit, with the cat paws finally concluding at 9:40 p.m. By then, Lee had already realized that she was about to go into labor and was amazed at how her felines had guessed it. “When your cats sense you’re going into labor before you do,” the video added. 

The posts amassed 584,000 views and 51,000 likes. People were thrilled about Lee’s pregnancy and admired the five cats’ efforts. “Them massaging your belly is precious,” said @phoenixdragon262, and @ren_tomodachi noted, “I feel like they’re taking turns to make sure that their matron is feeling okay! They know that something is happening!” “They really said, ‘We need to go support our mama,’” wrote @hollatme91. Some fellow pet owners took the opportunity to share similar personal experiences. “When I went into labor, I was pacing, and both my babies were screaming at me, weaving between my feet to get me to sit,” recounted @littlelunarfox. “They really can sense changes so well! Whenever I have a flare, all 7 cats pile on me in one big cuddle! It’s amazing,” noted @secondsonviking. 

Cats have powerful olfactory senses, with about 200 million smell receptors in their noses, per PAWS Chicago, which may explain their remarkable ability to notice biological changes. Hormones play a significant role in pregnancy, from the onset of symptoms like fatigue, pelvic pain, and cravings to inducing labor, and cats are likely able to detect these changes in body odors to sense pregnancy and other biological alterations, per Healthline. Simultaneously, the emotional shifts may lead to atypical behaviors that cats easily take note of. During pregnancy, pets may exhibit a range of behaviors, such as becoming overly protective of their owner or clinging to them at all times. While there is no scientific evidence to back the events, most cat owners agree that their cats know before they do. 

You can follow @sophialee1997 on TikTok for more videos.