“Ggracious domestic tigers”: this is how the great ethologist Konrad Lorenz defined cats. born predators, in their evolutionary and “domestication” path, however, they have changed a lot. So that several of the stereotypes about them can be debunked. They are not details: a distorted perception of his behavior leads us to perpetuate errors in the relationship with our cat. Mistakes that can threaten the balance and interconnection between human and animal health (see the tendency to humanize it). Here then are the clichés to debunk.
To identify the false myths about our apartment cats, the Veterinarian Simona Cannas (Specialised in Applied Ethology and Animal Welfare and Researcher at the Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences of Lodi). Consultant of MSD Animal Healththe expert outlined a few mistakes we make in living with this species.
1. Cats are not social animals. FALSE
The cat is a social animal. In its evolutionary and domestication path, it has made progress in getting closer to human beings, even on a communicative level. Just think of the meow, developed in the domestication process: that sound intensity is the one to which we respond most.
2. He loves the house, not the people. FALSE
Although it is certainly a territorial animal, the cat forms intense bonds with people. Affiliative ties, often preferential and special, with a family member.
3. The cat is an animal that cannot be educated. FALSE
The cat is certainly an independent animal, it has a different intelligence from that of the dog, not greater or lesser but different. While the dog was domesticated to be dependent on us, the process of domesticating the cat was different.
We are therefore the ones who have to find the right way and motivation to teach some rules, but we often get the ways, the times… and the rewards wrong. For a cat, food is not a primary element with which to reward him (as instead for the dog). A recent study explains that most cats, if they have to choose between their favorite toy, favorite food, favorite smell, choose… their favorite human.
4. He is not empathetic and is not affective. FALSE
The cat is highly empathetic, it just has a different way of communicating. When we are nervous or angry, the cat understands it immediately and moves away. When we are unwell or sad, he is there to support us. He is always influenced by our emotions. Even just by being close to us or with the gesture of licking us, he is manifesting his bond with us. So when he rubs on us, it’s a form of marking, but with this gesture he’s also restoring the smell of the cologne, his family.
5. He’s fine with another cat. FALSE (feline bullying exists too!)
The cat in nature creates affiliative bonds with other cats, but if there is no feeling between those two cats, they will never be together. Sometimes, even though they can’t stand each other, they manage not to interact too much with each other, but we can also witness phenomena of passive aggression, such as stalking or bullying. Cats that tend to follow the victim, without making aggressive gestures but always staying close to him, like vultures, or still preventing him from getting close to the food bowl.
6. The cat that stays at home doesn’t need specific care. FALSE
According to a study conducted thanks to the unconditioned contribution of MSD Animal Health with the involvement of all Veterinary Parasitology Departments of the 13 Italian university centres, almost 6 out of 10 cats are affected by at least one species of parasite.
This means that over 50% of domestic cats harbor at least one parasite, whether it is located externally, as in the case of fleas and ticks or internally, as in the case of intestinal or respiratory worms. Therefore, the risk of parasite infestation should never be underestimated, even in the case of cats that live mainly indoors.
7. (Unlike the dog) Must not be microchipped. FALSE
Even the cat, like the dog, can find itself in the position of leaving the house never to return or to travel. In both cases, the application of a microchip allows the finder to be able to trace the owner and identify the animal in a timely manner. Furthermore, in some Italian regions such as Lombardy and Puglia, the microchip is mandatory for all domestic cats. The microchip is injected under the skin between the shoulder blades. For the cat it is not a nuisance: the effect is like that of a normal sting for vaccination and is applied by the Veterinary Doctor.
+ 1. There is no limit to the love of a cat
The last serious mistake that can be made is not setting limits and considering the cat part of the family to such an extent that it is treated as a human being. This is a real “unconscious abuse”. According to Veterinary Doctors, more and more owners have these attitudes towards their pets. With direct repercussions on the well-being of both humans and animals: the development of behavioral pathologies, chronic diseases and even an increase in pet aggression are some examples.
Anyone who wants to bring a cat into their family should therefore consider its nature as a feline predator, starting, for example, from its nutritional needs.
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