Given that cats are such an outlier among the animals we live with, it’s no wonder that we might have been getting their signals wrong.
“Because they are so self-determined and can take care of themselves, cats are becoming more and more popular,” Hiestand says. “But whether the lifestyle suits them is another question. Humans are expecting cats to be like us and like dogs. And they aren’t.”
Research into cats’ emotions and sociability has long lagged behind that on dogs, but in recent times it has gathered pace. Much of it is in its early stages, but already research has shown that cats’ sociability towards humans is quite a complicated spectrum.
“It is highly variable, driven by genetics, and the sociability part can come from what they experience in the first six or eight weeks. If they have positive experiences in the early part of their lives, they’re probably going to like humans and want to hang out with us.”
Just like dogs, cats do a lot of communication with their bodies rather than through sound
Even
the domestication of cats itself is a spectrum. Feral strays often hide
or flee from humans, behaving far more like their wild ancestors. In
places such as the Mediterranean and Japan, colonies of “community cats”
thrive in fishing villages, friendly enough to ingratiate themselves
with locals who feed them. In Istanbul, for instance, the semi-stray
cats are fed and looked after by locals, and have become part of the
city’s identity, even spawning a recent documentary film.
Then there are the cats that live with us, but even this subset is a spectrum; some keep a relative distance, while others positively thrive with human company.
So, if we’re wanting a strong bond with our cats, what should we be looking out for?
Just like dogs, cats do a lot of communication with their bodies rather than through sound. “I think it’s a lot harder for people to read their body language compared to dogs,” says Kristyn Vitale, a PhD researcher studying cat behaviour. That’s not necessarily the cat’s fault.
One vital feature may have allowed dogs to leapfrog cats to our affection. A study from Portsmouth University found that dogs have learned to mimic the expressions of infants, which triggers a desire to nurture in their human owners. The change seems to have been the development of a muscle which raises the inner eyebrow – and it’s not something found in their wolf ancestors. “Puppy dog eyes” aren’t just a cliché, they’re an evolutionary trick which has strengthened the bond between dogs and people.
Then there are the cats that live with us, but even this subset is a spectrum; some keep a relative distance, while others positively thrive with human company.
So, if we’re wanting a strong bond with our cats, what should we be looking out for?
Just like dogs, cats do a lot of communication with their bodies rather than through sound. “I think it’s a lot harder for people to read their body language compared to dogs,” says Kristyn Vitale, a PhD researcher studying cat behaviour. That’s not necessarily the cat’s fault.
One vital feature may have allowed dogs to leapfrog cats to our affection. A study from Portsmouth University found that dogs have learned to mimic the expressions of infants, which triggers a desire to nurture in their human owners. The change seems to have been the development of a muscle which raises the inner eyebrow – and it’s not something found in their wolf ancestors. “Puppy dog eyes” aren’t just a cliché, they’re an evolutionary trick which has strengthened the bond between dogs and people.
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