I have often wondered what it is about cats that causes them to suddenly dart around the room erratically. One minute, Fluffy will be completely comatose, snoring on a pillow. The next minute, she’s racing around the room seemingly possessed by some demon.
We refer to this kitty behavior as "spaz mode." At some point in time, almost every day, one or more felines in the house enter spaz mode.
Sometimes the onset of spaz mode seems to relate to a lack of food in the food bowl. ("I’m hungry, therefore I spaz.") Other times it seems to relate to a particularly embarrassing kitty failure. ("I fell off the kitty tree; if I spaz maybe no one will notice.") With two cats, we also find spaz mode can relate to a need to dominate the other cat. ("I was reprimanded for jumping on the counter; therefore I will spaz and take out my displeasure on YOU.")
It seems as though cats have no control over spaz mode. Maybe for a cat, spaz mode is like sleep. When a cat needs to sleep, almost nothing gets in her way. Spazing is the same deal: A cat’s gotta do what a cat’s gotta do.