Cats are usually stereotyped as being aloof creatures. However, that generalization has been demonstrated to be far from the truth. Some years ago, a scientific study revealed that cats actually enjoy social interaction, and additional findings reported that felines care more about us than we may think. In the September 23rd, 2019 issue of the Current Biology journal, the article “Attachment Bonds Between Domestic Cats and Humans” shares that cats can display attachment styles toward people comparable to patterns studied in dogs and human infants; the experiment did not measure or rank how much they love their caregivers.
Animal behavior scientist Dr. Kristyn Vitale, together with her team at Oregon State University, conducted this study. They performed a test that observes bonding behavior, which is the same that has been used on canines and babies. For the experiment, scientists had the cats (79 kittens with 38 adults) and their caregivers enter a new environment. After some minutes in the unfamiliar room, the humans left—which is a potentially stressful situation for the animal. After they returned two minutes later, the researchers watched how the cats acted when their caregivers came back. Cats with “secure attachment” greeted their owners and returned to exploring. In doing so, it meant the kitties viewed their humans as their safe spot that they could come to in an unfamiliar situation.
About two-thirds of the cats (65.8 percent) and kittens (64.3 percent) in the study were classified as securely attached from their patterns of reunion behaviour, including contact and exploration, rather than from a greeting alone. How does this stack up to dogs and infants? A 2018 study on canines demonstrated 61 percent secure bonding, and infants have a 65 percent rate. So, next time you think your cat does not care about you, think again.
Secure attachment is a behavioural category
The experiment examined how cats behaved in an unfamiliar setting before and after a caregiver’s brief absence. A securely attached animal could use the returning person as a source of security and then resume exploration. That is more specific than saying a cat simply greeted its owner. The study’s interest lies in patterns of behaviour across the test, not a single affectionate gesture. Oregon State University’s account describes evidence that cats can form attachment bonds with caregivers, challenging the assumption that their independence rules out meaningful social relationships.
The comparison does not rank cats against babies
The percentages describe the groups studied under particular procedures. They do not measure an amount of love, and similar percentages across separate studies do not establish identical feelings or abilities. A cat that behaves differently at home is also not automatically “insecurely attached” on the basis of this article. Context, individual variation and the experiment’s definitions matter. The useful conclusion is that cats’ relationships with people merit careful observation. Their way of balancing contact and exploration can be part of a bond, even when it does not resemble the behaviour a person expects from a dog.
Further reading: Oregon State University: cat attachment research.
COMMENTS