Possible answers: garbage wallows, secret feeders, anal glands.
Possible answers: garbage wallows, secret feeders, anal glands. bk

This is part of a veeeery occasional series called Asked and Answered, in which I track down answers to random questions from readers. If you're confused about something, e-mail askedandanswered@thestranger.com and I'll see what I can do.

If you've walked around Seattle lately, you may have noticed posters, such as the one above, asking why someone's cat smells like curry. A reader e-mailed to ask what the deal was, so I flipped my hardcore investigative-journalist switch and got to work. First step—e-mailing the address on the flyer. Just like Ben Bradlee taught me!

Turns out the couple behind the posters wants to remain anonymous for the moment but the quick answers are: (1) No, it's not a joke, and (2) No, they still don't know why their cat smells like curry. But they have a few theories.

"It all started a few weeks ago," S says, "because my wife and I noticed that, for some reason, our cat Nakata actually started smelling like curry and we had no clue as to why."

So they decided to find out. "We are always looking to do fun projects to do together," S continues, "but aren't big pot smokers—however, one night after smelling the cat, we indulged." The poster campaign was a hazy inspiration that made them laugh, so they designed one and put a few in different neighborhoods.

The response was immediate, and while most of them were attempts at humor—"it's just too bad he jumped out of the pot before we managed to make him a nice tikka masala..."—a few people offered solutions, including a Londoner named Mary who suggested that their cat might have blocked or infected anal glands. (Remember when we sent Steven Blum, public intern, to squeeze anal glands at a vet's office? Those were happy days... for us, anyway.)

Did S and S's wife consider sniffing their cat's butt for an anal infection?

"Since it is only around the chest area," S says, "we decided to keep our noses towards the front of the cat."

As of this writing, the cat still smells like curry. Stay posted for details!

For other burning, smelly questions, e-mail askedandanswered@thestranger.com.