Post B Week 5 Suite Francaise

I have noticed that in the beginning or end of almost every chapter, there is a cat mentioned. The cat is meoing, begging for help, or diggng through the trash, frantically searching for food. I think the author may be comparing the desprate people to animals. They are moving in a herd, stampedeing out of Paris in a mad rush. They have lost their civilized manner, and now have only the animalistic way of survival left in thier heads. They have been stripped all convienience, thrust into a world clearly outside thier comfort zones, and most cannot handle it well.