Study: Cats bond differently than dogs

Barely raising an eyelid when you walk in the room, sometimes it can seem they spend most of their lives not caring if you’re there or not.

link Sharna Johnson

In search of ponies

When it comes to pets, the lack of apparent interest cats display can be off-putting for those folks that need more from a critter, one of the factors leading to the great divide between cat and dog people.

Cats aren’t without their affections, as cat lovers will attest. They cuddle; they play, greet their owners, sulk when left alone and at times beg for attention just as one might expect from a creature that is part of a family.

But they also have a tendency to do their own thing, and, packaged with strong and often distinctive personalities, cats tend to want what they want when they want it — whether that means being left alone or demanding a petting session.

And it can be a moving target, with a cat soaking up attention and contorting its body to get more scratches from a loving hand one minute, then swatting at the same hand, claws out, the next.

Because of their unique personalities, there are, of course, those cats that interact more and crave constant attention, but as a general rule, there is a reason the cats’ approach to life with people has become a symbol for hot-cold interaction.

In many ways, the ways cats interact with people and each other runs opposite of what might be expected of other social animals.

For instance, cats see an approach by an unfamiliar person or animal as a sign of uncertain intentions and, instead, initially greet others by showing a respect for distance, interacting when they are ready — explaining why cats often quickly withdraw from those that walk right up to them to try and say hello.

When they do approach, rather than being a sign of familiarity or affection, researchers have found that cats are more likely to “mark” a person — accomplished by rubbing up against them — they don’t know, than one they do because they mark things that are unfamiliar.

It’s all part of their wiring as independent animals that, while domesticated to a large extent, also possess a large degree of self-sufficiency.

Based in an understanding that the bonds cats form often appear different than those of other animals, a British research team conducted a study to see if they — like children, dogs and others — have an attachment bond to their owners, which is defined as associating owners with safety and security such as the way a child sees a parent who cares for them.

Researchers evaluated the behavior of 20 cats with their owners, when left with a stranger and when left alone. They found that though cats showed a preference for their owners, they did not show signs of separation anxiety or attachment when they found themselves alone in a strange environment.

What researchers concluded was that while children and dogs in the same situation exhibit anxiety when their caregivers are absent, cats simply don’t form attachments on the same level. Essentially, they don’t experience distress because they don’t look to their humans as the source of their safety and security.

The independent traits of cats would make it seem they wouldn’t form bonds with humans at all, however the study acknowledged that they do.

Ironically, that very sense of detachment and independence that puts some people off is probably the highest of compliments — because if cats don’t need humans, it is safe to assume that if they form a relationship with people, it’s only because they want to.

Sharna Johnson is a writer who is always searching for ponies. You can reach her at: [email protected]