2013-12-22
Explanation
The Joke
A cat has killed a mouse and presents it to its owner, apologizing: "I am sorry I killed it. I did not want to commit murder, but it is feline law that I must give an acceptable kill to the one who provides lodging." The owner is upset and says, "Oh no, there is Scruffles. What has he killed now?" The cat then offers its own body, saying, "Another body is yours. Please, let it meet your satisfaction. I do not want to kill any more." The owner recoils in disgust: "Shoo Scruffles! Shoo! Ugh... this is disgusting." The owner then asks, "Can nothing sate your bloodlust?" -- completely misinterpreting the cat's motives.
The Humor
The comic plays on the well-known real-life behavior of domestic cats bringing dead animals (mice, birds, etc.) to their owners. Owners typically interpret this as the cat being a bloodthirsty hunter showing off kills. The comic reverses this by giving the cat a voice and revealing that it is actually a reluctant, apologetic killer who only hunts because it feels legally obligated to pay "rent" to the human who houses it. The deeper joke is that even when the cat tries to explain itself and offers to stop, the human completely misinterprets the cat's distressed pleas as further evidence of bloodlust. This satirizes how humans project their own narratives onto animal behavior without understanding the animal's actual motivations.