8 Times Cats Interrupted Things

The only thing cats like more than napping, mice, or a healthy handful of ‘nip is making a scene. Here are eight instances where rogue felines stole the show, at the expense (or to the amusement) of humans.

1. THE TIME CATS CRASHED THE G-20 SUMMIT IN TURKEY.

In November 2015, world leaders convened at the G-20 Summit in Antalya, Turkey—but their focus was briefly deterred from economic policy when three stray cats crashed the event’s main stage area. Unaware of the event's global significance, the kitties languidly walked around and sniffed a few flowers as the head organizer tried to drive them away.

2. THE TIME A CAT WALKED INTO A LIVE GERMAN WEATHER FORECAST.

In January 2009, German weatherman Joerg Kachelmann had just launched into a two-minute live forecast when viewers caught sight of a tail flickering around his legs. It belonged to Lupin, a news staffer's cat; at the time, its owner was out of town.

Kachelmann noticed the brown-and-white tabby rubbing against his leg, scooped it into his arms, and continued delivering the news like nothing had happened. As for the kitty, it nibbled on Kachelmann’s beard and pointed its paw at the weather map.

"I don't know how he got into the studio," Kachelmann later told Reuters. "I noticed him when he rubbed against my leg and thought people might wonder what was happening. I figured it would be easier to control the cat by picking him up. Cats get annoyed if they feel ignored. So I made sure he didn't feel ignored."

3. THE TIME A CAT SPONTANEOUSLY AUDITED A COLLEGE CLASS IN MALAYSIA.

In September 2016, a brown tabby with a thirst for knowledge sauntered into a classroom at the International Islamic University in Malaysia and took a seat at a table. Proving that students aren’t the only ones prone to falling asleep during long lectures, the feline slipped into slumber during the second half of the class.

“The other students and teachers found it really amusing … but we just left the cat,” Nur Elynna Binti Mohammad Shaharul Hashri told BuzzFeed News. “It did not disturb the flow of our lesson.”

4. THE TIME A CAT THWARTED A TEXAS COP TRYING TO WRITE A SPEEDING TICKET.

In November 2009, a black feline in Taylor, Texas had a furry brush with the law when it accosted a local police officer on duty. Officer Keith Urban had pulled over a driver in a rural area of town and was writing him a speeding ticket when the kitty came over from a neighboring farm and crawled up his legs and onto his shoulders.

"I think the driver of that vehicle was laughing a little bit," Urban later told the Taylor Daily Press. "And the driver even offered to get out of the vehicle and remove the cat."

Urban shrugged the cat off him, and nudged it away with his foot, but the persistent kitty managed to scale him again. Eventually, the officer had to gently kick the cat away—an action he apologized for after the video went viral.

"(Urban) came in and said, 'Hey, you know, I kind of kicked this cat away from me, and I'm sorry,' " Taylor's police chief, Jeff Straub, told the Taylor Daily Press. "He was trying to get it away from him and kind of launched it. Of course the cat thought it was great fun and wanted to come back."

5. THE TIME A CAT GUEST-STARRED ON A TURKISH TELEVISION PROGRAM.

While filming a live broadcast in October 2016, Kudret Çelebioğlu, host of the Turkish television program Good Morning Denizli, was upstaged by a furry co-anchor: a white-and-brown tabby stray who wandered on set, hopped onto his desk, and—in classic cat fashion—sat on his warm laptop.

Instead of shooing the kitty away, Çelebioğlu kept his cool, and joked that there was a “surprise guest” in the studio. He also took the opportunity to make a public service announcement, informing viewers that stray cats were getting hungry as winter approached, and to feed and look after them.

6. THE TIME A CAT WALKED ONSTAGE DURING A LEBANESE FOLK MUSIC CONCERT.

In August 2015, a culture-seeking kitty sauntered onstage during a folk music concert at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon. The band played on, the audience remained respectfully silent, and the cat eventually hopped offstage and disappeared. Later, as the band began playing more upbeat tunes, the feline returned—this time, with extra speed and spring to its step.

7. THE TIME A CAT STOLE THE SHOW AT AN AUSTRALIAN RUGBY GAME.

In July 2016, the Penrith Panthers, a professional rugby league in Penrith, Australia, inadvertently got a new feline mascot for a day. During the second half of a match against rival team Cronulla Sharks, a fluffy black cat galloped across the field and leapt over a wall and into the bleacher area.

The Panthers ended up losing 26-10 to the Sharks. Some fans may have blamed the black cat for the team’s bad luck, but others loved it (social media users even voted to name the kitty "Ryan Purrdler,” after former Australian rugby star Ryan Girdler). The feline was never seen again, but the Panthers paid homage to their furry fan by selling likenesses of the cat at a match.

8. THE TIME A CAT STOLE THE HEARTS OF CALIFORNIA HOCKEY FANS.

Meanwhile, in California, yet another black cat crashed a sporting event in April 2016. The San Jose Sharks were all set to compete against the Nashville Predators in Game 1 of their second round playoff series. But during warm-ups, a female kitten mysteriously appeared out of nowhere and skidded across the ice.

After making its cameo, the cat hid underneath the SAP Center’s bleachers. The center’s engineering staff eventually located the scared kitty, and the Sharks found her a temporary home at the Humane Society Silicon Valley.

The cat—which the Sharks named “Jo PAW-velski,” after Sharks captain Joe Pavelski—ended up being a good luck charm: The team defeated the Predators 5-2. Jo PAW-velski became so famous that fans sitting in the stands at Game 2 wore cat ears, someone made her a parody Twitter account, and the Humane Society Silicon Valley set up a live webcam in her room.

No one claimed Jo PAW-velski, so San Jose Sharks forward Patrick Marleau and his family ended up adopting her from the shelter, along with another cat they named Stanley.