Posted on 02/25/2011 1:31:11 PM PST by Slings and Arrows
The bond between cats and their owners turns out to be far more intense than imagined, especially for cat aficionado women and their affection reciprocating felines, suggests a new study.
Cats attach to humans, and particularly women, as social partners, and it's not just for the sake of obtaining food, according to the new research, which has been accepted for publication in the journal Behavioural Processes.
The study is the first to show in detail that the dynamics underlying cat-human relationships are nearly identical to human-only bonds, with cats sometimes even becoming a furry "child" in nurturing homes.
NEWS: Pets Vital to Human Evolution
"Food is often used as a token of affection, and the ways that cats and humans relate to food are similar in nature to the interactions seen between the human caregiver and the pre-verbal infant," co-author Jon Day, a Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition researcher, told Discovery News. "Both cat and human infant are, at least in part, in control of when and what they are fed!"
For the study, led by Kurt Kotrschal of the Konrad Lorenz Research Station and the University of Vienna, the researchers videotaped and later analyzed interactions between 41 cats and their owners over lengthy four-part periods. Each and every behavior of both the cat and owner was noted. Owner and cat personalities were also assessed in a separate test. For the cat assessment, the authors placed a stuffed owl toy with large glass eyes on a floor so the feline would encounter it by surprise.
The researchers determined that cats and their owners strongly influenced each other, such that they were each often controlling the other's behaviors. Extroverted women with young, active cats enjoyed the greatest synchronicity, with cats in these relationships only having to use subtle cues, such as a single upright tail move, to signal desire for friendly contact.
NEWS: U.S. Pets Increasingly Pudgy
While cats have plenty of male admirers, and vice versa, this study and others reveal that women tend to interact with their cats -- be they male or female felines -- more than men do.
"In response, the cats approach female owners more frequently, and initiate contact more frequently (such as jumping on laps) than they do with male owners," co-author Manuela Wedl of the University of Vienna told Discovery News, adding that "female owners have more intense relationships with their cats than do male owners."
Cats also seem to remember kindness and return the favors later. If owners comply with their feline's wishes to interact, then the cat will often comply with the owner's wishes at other times. The cat may also "have an edge in this negotiation," since owners are usually already motivated to establish social contact.
DNEWS VIDEO: Find out why all tortoise shell cats are female and why white cats are deaf.
Although there are isolated instances of non-human animals, such as gorillas, bonding with other species, it seems to be mostly unique for humans to engage in social relationships with other animals. In this case with cats, it's for very good reason. Cats could very well be man's -- and woman's -- best friend.
"A relationship between a cat and a human can involve mutual attraction, personality compatibility, ease of interaction, play, affection and social support," co-author Dorothy Gracey of the University of Vienna explained. "A human and a cat can mutually develop complex ritualized interactions that show substantial mutual understanding of each other's inclinations and preferences."
Dennis Turner, a University of Zurich-Irchel animal behaviorist, told Discovery News the he's "very impressed with this study on human-cat interactions, in that it has taken our earlier findings a step higher, using more modern analytical techniques to get at the interplay between cat and human personalities."
Turner, who is also senior editor of The Domestic Cat: The Biology of Its Behaviour (Cambridge University Press), added that he and his colleagues "now have a new dimension to help us understand how these relationships function."
BLOG: Cats Get Sick When Routine Changes
Kotrschal's team is presently involved in a long-term study of man's other well-known animal best friend: dogs.
Awwww!
Maybe next time she’ll manipulate her way into a good movie.
Hair of the cat that scratched ya?
bump
So funny! I only have one moron in the house (well, I guess the dog counts too) and she simply looks at the mice.
Maybe you should rename her Tootie.
No mice here, but my three furloaders will quickly show an errant moth who’s boss.
.."so I find this shinny thing and the next thing I know she's all excited...changes my litter, I get extra treats, a new toy, she washes that smelly dog,and she forgives me about that dead mouse incident....women, go figure"
After treat time, they both eventually come back downstairs to snuggle with me until I get up for the day and I feed them. The rest of the day they alternate upstairs and downstairs between us and have their naps in different places. Beaux usually lays on the table in my arms while I try to read FreeRepublic or attempt to type one-handed. All and all, I would say they spend a bit more time with me than hubby, especially in the evening. They ARE my babies. :o)
Orange want-sicle Jungle Sherbert.
Now are they talking crazy cat lady women or regular women?
The dog says, "They take care of me, they feed me, they give me a place to live, they must be gods."
The cat says, "They take care of me, they feed me, they give me a place to live, I must be a god."
LOL! Love it.
All four of our cats come to me when I call them by name. They know that they’ll get something nice when they come, either food, treats, catnip mice, tummy rubs, grooming, play, or some other pleasant thing.
We had a cat who got lost in our low-ceiling attic once, and he didn’t come to us, and we couldn’t go to him. When he finally came out, I quickly trained him to come when called.
In an emergency, having them come to you may save their lives.
Awww, that is too cute!
I got her for my wife as a birthday/anniversary gift. She comes and wakes me up in the morning, usually by jumping up onto the bed and demanding to be petted. On occasion, if I stop, she'll try to wedge her head under my hand. If that doesn't work, she'll nip me!
Beaux
She’s a pretty kitteh!
Mine will knead your stomach to wake you..
LOL
Beaux & Stella sound great. I miss having two. Our lovely black-n-white died two years ago — must’ve had an aneurysm or something. Just one night, heard her meow and fall down the stairs, and that was that. Our calico was too old at the time (15) IMO to introduce another pet, so she rules the roost alone now. She’s a grand old lady but still her mamma’s original baby (the 3 human ones notwithstanding!)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.