Orange kittens have a reputation for finding themselves in the funniest situations, and one adorable little cat named Purrsy Bysshe Shelley is doing his best to keep that reputation alive.
Purrsy belongs to bestselling author and blogger Jenny Lawson, who named him after English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley as a nod to her love of books.
But in one hilarious video, Purrsy clearly had more important things on his mind than literature.
The orange kitten was caught in an all-out battle with his own tail.
Instead of chasing a toy or wrestling with another cat, Purrsy twisted himself into an awkward position and repeatedly went after the furry appendage attached to his own body.
Jenny made the clip even funnier by pairing it with audio from the comedy Step Brothers, starring Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly.
She joked in the caption, “I don’t know what that tail did to him, but it must’ve been awful.”
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The ridiculous showdown quickly had other cat owners sharing stories about their own pets doing the exact same thing.
“I have an eleven-year-old cat who still fights his tail and growls at it when it won’t stay put, or he bites himself too hard,” one person wrote. “He’s a black cat, but he must have orange genes lol!”
As silly as Purrsy’s behavior looks, tail-chasing is actually pretty normal for kittens.
According to veterinary guidance from Petcube, young cats may chase their tails as a way of practicing hunting instincts and developing coordination and motor skills.
Basically, if a kitten sees something moving, there is a pretty good chance it will try to pounce on it — even if that moving object happens to be attached to its own backside.
Most cats eventually grow out of the habit.
However, if a cat begins chasing or biting its tail obsessively, injures itself or suddenly develops the behavior, owners may want to check with a veterinarian to rule out an underlying medical issue.
For Purrsy, though, this appears to be nothing more than one tiny orange kitten taking his rivalry with his own tail very seriously.
And judging by the video, the tail is putting up quite a fight.