HAVING trouble keeping your cat in line? Apparently someone on the Internet has found a secret button on the body of the feline, and pressing it “shuts them down.”

There were no instructions, merely a brief yet viral video by Posts Of Cats, showing a kitten becoming immobile when a hair clip was attached to the nape of its neck.

Bro got deactivated bcoz he thinks its mother holding him pic.twitter.com/T4ZBh1lwn6

— Posts Of Cats (@PostsOfCats) February 14, 2025

After it was removed, the kitten immediately regained its senses, as though the hair clip was the stuff of magic. The comment section on the post was equally an interesting place.

“What’s the human version of this?” said . We can only imagine what he plans to do with such a technique should it work on humans.

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Netizen Robert further wondered if it works on nine year old cats, in which he has his doubts.

MAGA Firearms & Tech asked if this works with dogs, to which a cheeky netizen advised to try it out on an American Pitbull to see what happens.

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Perhaps the most relevant comment came from Phyllis who stated that it was cruel to treat one’s cat in such a manner.

Several netizens pointed out that it was an instinctual response which adds no stress to the feline.

To better understand the mystery of the “off” button, a website by the name of catster said that mother cats gently bite the skin on the neck of their kittens to lift them.

The kittens almost always react the same way where they go completely limp. There’s even a scientific name for this inert, lifeless state: the flexor reflex. However, this nerve-triggered response disappears after the first few weeks of a kitten’s life.

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On the other hand, an adult cat that becomes still when picked up by the scruff is showing a submissive response, claims the website.

This state is called learned helplessness, which basically means the cat doesn’t try to move because “they don’t believe their actions matter.”

In other words, learned helplessness could be compared to a cat that “freezes” when faced with a stressful, inescapable situation. Their muscles become rigid and they go completely limp.

They may seem calm and silent, but this “false” relaxed posture hides real distress and discomfort. —Feb 2, 2025

Main image: Posts Of Cats

The post Video goes viral for showing how to turn “off” your cat first appeared on Focus Malaysia.