Man Spends 1.5 Hours to Build a Cat Door, but How His Kitty Walks In Is Hilarious

Illustration - Astrid Gast/Shutterstock

From the archives: This story was last updated in July 2019.

Cats are wonderful creatures and make excellent companion animals. One thing they are not, however, is obedient. When doting “cat dad” Brian Rickett decided to give his feline friend a helping hand by building him a cat flap, things didn’t exactly go as he'd envisioned.

The beautiful, long-haired Siamese, named Philo, didn’t hold back in showing Rickett what he thought of his 90 minutes of considerate labor. Rickett, perhaps anticipating a little more gratitude than he got, filmed Philo’s first interaction with his new cat flap.

“Yesterday, I spent an hour and a half installing a new cat door so Philo the Cat could come and go as he pleases,” Rickett wrote, captioning his video on YouTube. “This is his reaction.” As the camera pans out from showing Rickett’s handiwork, the proud craftsman addresses the viewers.

“Let’s see if Philo likes it,” Rickett says. And, turning to the cat, he says: “Try out your new door. Good kitty!”

His words, it seems, are a little too optimistic. Philo makes no effort but almost mocks his owner with his reaction. He stands on his hind legs, stretches his long body, and reaches up with his left paw to hook the door handle.

The industrious cat then leans against the door, and the door swings wide open. Philo saunters into the house, just like a person would. Rickett, the shamed carpenter and dumbstruck filmmaker, simply has no words.

Rickett found his words later, however, in a longer description of Philo’s cat flap escapades on YouTube. “After two days, Philo Cat finally warmed up to the idea of a ‘cat door,’” he began. “Some YouTube viewers pointed out that I was speaking to him in ‘English,’ and that was the problem.”

“Others pointed out that I should have called it a cat ‘flap,’ not a ‘door,’ This technicality, they said, confused the poor feline. Still others said the problem was the vertical filming!” Rickett continued, by now captivating his online audience. “Turns out they were all right!”

“As soon I [sic] began speaking to Philo in ancient Sanskrit, referencing the ‘cat flap’ and filming horizontally, bam! It was like magic,” he said. “Right through he went!”

If you don’t believe it, there’s video evidence to prove that the willful Siamese did eventually come around to convention and use his cat flap, just like a normal cat. Philo, you’re not a person! Here’s hoping that Philo left his reservations at the door, literally; he used the cat flap like a pro, and there was really nothing to worry about!

Since appearing online, Rickett’s hilarious clip has been viewed over 16 million times. It seems that millions of cat owners (and cat appreciators) are getting a kick out of Philo and his comically defiant attitude toward tiny doors.

A number of impressed YouTubers were vocal about their appreciation for Philo’s antics, too. “Philo 1, human 0,” wrote one sassy user.

“Human, I saw you work on this door thing,” wrote another, from Philo’s perspective. “Let me test it out for you. Yup, door works well as usual. Good job, now come in and feed me!”