British scientists have experimentally shown that cats almost never miss the owners leave them … but just miss. Self-sufficiency of cats, which indicates their owners, and the owners of dogs, have been linked to the process of domestication.
Rudyard Kipling was right: cats really walk alone currently. For this is not that surprising conclusion drawn by researchers from the University of Lincoln in the UK. Their research can be a powerful argument in long disputes dog breeders and cat lovers about who is more devoted to the owners – cats or dogs? Despite the confidence owners of cats that their pets are suffering at home when the owners go to work, experiments have shown,
this is not the case and in fact the cat does not show fear of separation.
Recent studies have shown that domestic cats have surpassed dogs in popularity among residents Europe. Argued that the cat – the ideal pet for people who disappear for long periods at work.
«Past studies have shown that some cats show signs of anxiety due to separation, being abandoned by their owners, just as do the dogs. However, the results of our study showed that, in fact, the cat is much more independent than dogs. It seems that what we call the fear of separation, may just be frustration, “- said Professor Daniel Mills, author of the study published in the journal Plos One .
In order to investigate this seemingly subjective question, as loyalty and affection to the owner of cats, the researchers used for their experiment is quite scientific methods. They have adapted to the long-known psychological test Ainsworth, by which we can assess the child’s attachment to his mother.
These tests are mini-performances involving the mother, her baby and the stranger.
For the experiments, the researchers selected 20 cats and their owners. In the experiment, the researchers observed the behavior of each cat in unfamiliar surroundings – in the usual empty room with two chairs. With video cameras, researchers evaluated the behavior of the cats alone, with their owners and strangers. In particular, they pay attention to the behavior of cats after leaving the home and during contact with them.
It has been observed that cats really meow loudly when they leave the host, rather than a stranger . “But we do not see any other reason to believe that the relationship between the cat and the owner reminds secure attachment” – says Mills.
The so-called secure attachment is inherent in most children: babies feel confident in unfamiliar surroundings, but when parting with their mother they get upset, their curiosity is reduced. At the same time they are seeking the return of her contact with her and continue actively to play.
«Vocalization of cats can be a manifestation of dissatisfaction or acquired reflex, since no other signs of affection were not observed,” – says Mills.
These experiments have shown that cats show a more independent and autonomous behavior in unusual situations than a dog, for which the owners represent the “safe harbor” of the security. The authors do not claim that cats are not able to establish a close emotional bond with their masters, they argue,
that the owners do not associate cats with safety and security, especially in an unfamiliar environment.
In experiments with cats, whose owners considered them especially attached, it appears that the behavior of cats is not much different from that of other animals, added Mills.
The authors offered several explanations for the scientific independence of cats. Unlike dogs, these animals were domesticated recently. In addition, their domestication had a distinct purpose to teach them to live in close proximity with humans. Therefore, the social behavior of cats is not characterized by the same close ties that exist between man and dog. Therefore, usually, cats do not contact closely because a long time with the hosts, as do dog.
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