Some pets are doing the weirdest things on repeat—and it’s not just for laughs.
If your dog zones out watching a laser dot that disappeared hours ago or your cat obsessively licks the bathtub faucet, you’re not alone. Pets have quirks that don’t show up in training books but are clearly wired into their little brains. These oddball habits aren’t just strange. Sometimes they’re rooted in instinct, stress, or leftover survival tricks. Some are harmless, others are warning signs. All of them make you look twice.
1. Some dogs fixate on lasers long after the game ends.
It starts as a fun little game, but for some dogs, laser pointers turn into full-on obsession spirals. As reported by the American Kennel Club, dogs can develop compulsive behaviors chasing lights they can never actually catch. It taps into their prey drive but doesn’t offer the satisfaction of a reward. That unfinished business messes with their head. They may continue to search long after the beam is gone, pacing, whining, or even scratching at the floor like it might come back.
2. Parrots sometimes scream at specific times of day without fail.
Parrot people know the 6 p.m. scream is real. These birds aren’t throwing tantrums—they’re communicating based on flock dynamics and environmental cues. According to the World Parrot Trust, wild parrots use loud calls during dawn and dusk to locate each other and regroup. Your home just happens to be their jungle now. So when the sun hits a certain angle, your parrot yells like it’s trying to find its long-lost cousin across the canopy. It’s not random. It’s instinct with a volume knob stuck on max.
3. Cats licking non-food surfaces might not be just being quirky.
It’s easy to laugh when your cat obsessively licks a plastic bag, a wooden chair, or the wall. But as discovered by the Cornell Feline Health Center, excessive licking of inedible items—called pica—can sometimes point to nutritional deficiencies, boredom, or anxiety. It can also be more common in certain breeds like Siamese cats. It doesn’t always mean something is wrong, but it’s worth watching if it becomes a daily routine. Sometimes your cat’s weird behavior is just a cry for more stimulation or a diet check.
4. Ferrets will stash your keys and forget where they put them.
These little thieves weren’t domesticated for obedience. Ferrets have a strong instinct to hoard and hide objects, often shiny or soft ones. They’ll steal socks, pens, coins, even your remote control, then bury it under a couch and move on with their lives. It’s not malicious. Their wild ancestors stashed food in hidden burrows, and the behavior never left. If your ferret is living its best bandit life, you might want to check their stash before accusing anyone else in the house of losing things.
5. Rabbits will do a weird mid-air twist that looks like a glitch.
It’s called a binky, and no, it’s not a malfunction. Rabbits leap into the air, twist their bodies, and kick out their legs in a random direction when they’re super happy. It looks like someone hit a lag spike in real life. It’s one of those rare pet behaviors that’s pure joy, no explanation needed. Rabbits aren’t exactly expressive, so when they throw a binky, it’s their version of a backflip high five. Don’t stop it. Just enjoy the performance.
6. Hamsters will run miles on their wheel with zero reason to stop.
You think your workout routine is intense? Some hamsters log up to five miles on their wheels in one night. They’re hardwired to run. In the wild, they’d travel long distances for food and safety. Just because they live in a glass box now doesn’t mean the instinct disappears. So they run. And run. And run. Take the wheel away, and many of them start stress chewing or climbing the cage bars like action heroes with no plan. That wheel isn’t just a toy—it’s therapy.
7. Dogs sometimes try to “bury” food on flat floors.
This one’s especially weird when they try it on tile or hardwood. Some dogs will nudge their nose across the ground, acting like they’re pushing imaginary dirt to cover a treat. It’s not random. They’re tapping into that ancestral scavenger instinct to bury food for later. Even if they’re inside with nowhere to dig, the instinct kicks in and says, stash the goods. It’s cute, mildly confusing, and totally harmless unless they start doing it with your TV remote.
8. Guinea pigs freeze like statues when they hear a new noise.
They don’t run. They don’t squeak. They just pause like time stopped. Guinea pigs evolved as prey animals, and freezing is their go-to move when they sense something unfamiliar. It’s not panic. It’s defense. Movement gets you noticed, so stillness is survival. If your guinea pig suddenly goes into statue mode during a Zoom call or when you turn on the blender, they’re not broken. They’re assessing the threat like a tiny, fluffy soldier trained in passive combat.
9. Turtles will stretch their legs and necks like they’re sunbathing on vacation.
They don’t want pets. They don’t want snacks. They just want to stand there with everything extended like a solar-powered yoga mat. Turtles stretch out to absorb as much UV light as possible during basking. It looks goofy, but it’s essential for their bone and shell health. When you see them doing their best superhero pose on a rock, just know they’re not bored—they’re recharging like a phone in low power mode. And yes, they know you’re watching. They just don’t care.