Gee, maybe it is traditional. I found a Web page that lists a 1936 songbook that has a song titled "Has Anybody Seen My Kitty?

Here's the Website: http://www2.lib.unc.edu/mss/inv/s/Southern_Folklife_Collection_Song_Folios.html

And the book: Asher Sizemore and Little Jimmie's Fireside Treasures: 1936 Edition. Asher Sizemore. Louisville, Ky. 1936. 48 p. of music.