Does Wolfie Chettoh understand symbols? The answer is yes, if you consider a sad Covid face mask a symbol.

Let’s consider Stage 2: Preoperational Stage test, or ‘the subject learns to understand images and symbols’ (I took this terminology from Calla H. Knopman’s Measure Your Cat’s IQ.)

Wolfram Chettoh hates being alone. Although he pretends aloofness, wherever I go, he follows. According to cat psychologists, an explanation for this behavior might be that cats see humans as parental figures who take care of their needs. So, Chettoh is just afraid that in case of a sudden urge (to eat, drink, or be cuddled), his foster mum might not be around to satisfy it.
When I’m working at my desk, he’s pretending to sleep nearby. I say ‘pretending’ because he’s actually keeping tabs on me. If I move to another room for just a few minutes, he waits for me to come back; if it takes longer, he joins me: to the kitchen to be taken care of before anything else, or to the bathroom, to sleep on the sink while I’m doing whatever I’m doing. Not to the bedroom, though. The bedroom is off-limits for Chettoh. For years, I let him sleep at the foot of the bed. Then I realized that when I was gone, he immediately relocated to my pillow. Once I got fed up with having to remove a layer of black hair before sleeping, I shut the culprit out.
But what Chettoh hates the most is when I leave home for longer. Having been my devilish pet for twelve years, he learned my habits well. He knows, for example, that on weekdays I’m out for work from about 7:30 AM until 4:00 PM. He’s also aware that on Sunday nights, I usually go out for pizza with friends. So, he gets nervous whenever I don’t follow the usual routine.
For example, if I suddenly change my slippers for a pair of shoes and – in Covid times – put on a face mask, Chettoh rightly understands I’m about to leave. In this case, he waits for me by his food bowl, which happens to be near the main entrance, and demands (with loud, heartbreaking meows) an extra supply of kibbles and cuddles.