Why do cats go away to die?

Question

A friend of mine is struggling with the death of her cat. She is also upset that the cat hid to die, and that she couldn’t be with it and hold it. I told her this is something all cats do, but really I’m not sure why. Why do cats hide themselves when they are dying?

Answer 1

Sometimes when cats are injured or dying, they hide themselves or vanish and are never seen again. It’s easy to be upset, questioning why our dear feline friends wouldn’t want to spend their last moments with us. The truth is, however, cats hide for evolutionary reasons, in order to protect themselves from the dangers of predators who could attack in such a vulnerable moment. When cats begin hiding themselves for extended periods, it is a telltale sign they are feeling ill, and trying not to appear weak and consequently endanger themselves.

Answer 2

I once had a cat that disappeared shortly after we learned she had feline leukemia. She was an indoor cat, but I never had a problem with her sneaking out the window until suddenly, that day she was gone. A neighbor later found her body under their backyard deck. I learned there is an evolutionary reason why do cats go away to die. When they start to feel weak or unable to defend themselves, they go into protection mode to be secure from potential predators faced in the wild. Unfortunately, they simply don’t always return.

Answer 3

As much as we like to think of our housecats as domesticated and intimate friends, we cannot forget cats are and will always be felines with an evolutionary past and survivalist instincts. As humans, we are aware of death, not that cats aren’t, but probably they don’t understand what death means exactly. Rather, they begin to feel weak and vulnerable so they go to a place where they will be safe from ‘predators.’ Once again this is theorized as survival instinct, and the same reason mother cats hide to give birth.