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Sociality in cats: A comparative review
Abstract
The domestic cat is the only member of the Felidae to form social relationships with humans, and also, the only small felid to form intraspecific social groups when free ranging. The latter are matriarchies, and bear only a superficial similarity to those of the lion and cheetah, which evolved separately and in response to very different selection pressures. There is no evidence for intraspecific social behavior in the ancestral species Felis silvestris, and hence, the capacity for group formation almost certainly evolved concurrently with the self-domestication of the cat during the period 10,000 to 5,000 years before present. Social groups of F. catus are characterized by cooperation among related adult females in the raising of kittens from parturition onward and competition between adult males. Unlike more social Carnivora, cats lack ritualized submissive signals, and although "peck-order" hierarchies can be constructed from exchanges of aggressive and defensive behavior, these do not predict reproductive success in females, or priority of access to key resources, and thus do not illuminate the basis of normal cat society. Cohesion in colonies of cats is expressed as, and probably maintained by, allorubbing and allogrooming; transmission of scent signals may also play a largely uninvestigated role. The advantages of group living over the ancestral solitary territorial state have not been quantified adequately but are likely to include defense of permanent food sources and denning sites and protection against predators and possibly infanticide by invading males. These presumably outweigh the disadvantages of communal denning, enhanced transmission of parasites, and diseases. Given the lack of archaeological evidence for cats kept as pets until some 4,000 years before present, intraspecific social behavior was most likely fully evolved before interspecific sociality emerged. Signals directed by cats toward their owners fall into 3 categories: those derived from species-typical actions, such as jumping up, that become signals by association; signals derived from kitten-to-mother communication (kneading, meow); and those derived from intraspecific cohesive signals. Social stress appears widespread among pet cats, stemming from both agonistic relationships within households and territorial disputes with neighborhood cats, but simple solutions seem elusive, most likely because individual cats vary greatly in their reaction to encounters with other cats.
... Although cats possess some socio-cognitive capacities reported in dogs (but see Pongrácz & Onofer, 2020), the two species have quite different domestication histories and ecological backgrounds. The ancestor of cats (Felis silvestris), like most other felids (excluding lions, Panthera leo (Stander, 1992) and cheetahs, Acinonyx jubatus (Caro et al., 1989)) are solitary hunters and strongly territorial, with minimal contact between individuals except for mating or litter rearing (Bradshaw, 2016;Macdonald et al., 2000). These properties might appear to make cats unlikely candidates for domestication in general (Driscoll, Macdonald et al., 2009). ...
... Domestic cats originated from a less gregarious ancestor than did dogs, and they have not been subjected to artificial selection for cooperative work with humans. The capacity for group formation evolved with domestication, leading to the development of an intraspecies social repertoire (Bradshaw & Cameron-Beaumont, 2000), including establishment of dominance hierarchies (Bradshaw, 2016;Cole & Shafer, 1966). However, group hunting did not evolve in small cats, because the size of their typical prey items remained unchanged even as cat communities grew bigger (Bradshaw, 2016). ...
... The capacity for group formation evolved with domestication, leading to the development of an intraspecies social repertoire (Bradshaw & Cameron-Beaumont, 2000), including establishment of dominance hierarchies (Bradshaw, 2016;Cole & Shafer, 1966). However, group hunting did not evolve in small cats, because the size of their typical prey items remained unchanged even as cat communities grew bigger (Bradshaw, 2016). Thus, cats can be considered as at least potentially 'social' and flexible in terms of social structure, but without being 'cooperative,' except in the context of cooperative offspring-rearing by females (Bradshaw, 2016;Macdonald et al., 2000). ...
Humans evaluate others based on interactions between third parties, even when those interactions are of no direct relevance to the observer. Such social evaluation is not limited to humans. We previously showed that dogs avoided a person who behaved negatively to their owner (Chijiiwa et al., 2015). Here, we explored whether domestic cats, another common companion animal, similarly evaluate humans based on third-party interactions. We used the same procedure that we used with dogs: cats watched as their owner first tried unsuccessfully to open a transparent container to take out an object, and then requested help from a person sitting nearby. In the Helper condition, this second person (helper) helped the owner to open the container, whereas in the Non-Helper condition the actor refused to help, turning away instead. A third, passive (neutral) person sat on the other side of the owner in both conditions. After the interaction, the actor and the neutral person each offered a piece of food to the cat, and we recorded which person the cat took food from. Cats completed four trials and showed neither a preference for the helper nor avoidance of the non-helper. We consider that cats might not possess the same social evaluation abilities as dogs, at least in this situation, because unlike the latter, they have not been selected to cooperate with humans. However, further work on cats’ social evaluation capacities needs to consider ecological validity, notably with regard to the species’ sociality.
... Owners consider their dog or cat to be family members [12,15] but perceive differences in the personality of the two species: dogs prove more sociable and protective whilst cats more neurotic [16,17]. Physiological and ethological features, as well as divergent evolutionary trajectories, may have modulated dogs and cats' social behaviours [17][18][19]. Moreover, the sensitivity, the prejudices, and the attachment level of the observer could affect the qualitative judgment on pets' behaviour [13,17]. ...
... For cats, the issue of sociability is even more controversial [17,18,47]. Contrary to the dog, the modern domestic cat is the product of a natural selection in which humans have intervened relatively recently (i.e. ...
... within the last 200 years; [1]). Feral and free-living domestic cats subsist by hunting alone and can live in the solitary state all their life [1,18,47]. The close coexistence of many cats is in primis conditioned by the food and space availability and appears to be the result of human intervention, for example for breeding purposes, in multiple-cat household or in colonies of abandoned cats [1,18,47,48]. ...
Although popular culture describes them as mortal enemies, more and more often, dogs and cats live under the same roof. Does this make them best friends? Can sharing the same social and physical environment make them similar? This study compares the approaches of dogs and cats living in the same household have towards humans and other pets as perceived by the owner. Questionnaires collected from 1270 people owning both dog(s) and cat(s) were analysed. Most dogs and cats living together are playful with familiar humans (76.2%) but dogs have a more sociable approach towards strangers and conspecifics than cats (P<0.001). Moreover, the percentage of dogs that have a playful relationship with the owner (84.0%) was higher than cats (49.2%; P<0.001). Dogs and cats living together eat in different places and show different mutual interactions: more dogs lick the cat (42.8%) and more cats ignore the dog (41.8%) than vice versa (P<0.001). However, most dogs and cats sleep at least occasionally (68.5%) and play together (62.4%; P<0.001). Although some body postures, such as the tail’s position, are interpreted differently by the two species, the greater proportions of dogs and cats show a relaxed response to several kinds of approaches of their roommate. Our questionnaire confirms the common beliefs about the sociability of the dog and the privacy of the cat, but this does not result in continuous internal struggles. Most cohabitations are peaceful. Moreover, it is true that they speak different languages, but they seem to understand each other well and interpret each other's approaches in the right way. Thus, aspiring owners should not blindly believe popular assumptions, but both knowledge and respect for species-specific pet behaviours are essential to establish a balance in the household.
... Based on their visual system, we would not expect marked differences between dogs and cats in the perception of animacy. Cats have an area centralis instead of a fovea, similarly to dogs (Bradshaw 2016). This allows better peripheral vision despite their overall visual field is ca. ...
... The visual field of cats is ca. 200°, while in dogs it varies between 200° and 250° depending on the skull length (Bradshaw 2016;Miller and Murphy 1995). In our study, we tested dogs with different skull lengths to control for the potential effect of the head shape; however, head shape might influence dogs' behaviour (cf. ...
Chasing motion is often used to study the perception of inanimate objects as animate. When chasing interaction and independent motions between two agents are displayed simultaneously on a screen, we expect observers to quickly perceive and recognise the chasing pattern (because of its familiarity) and turn their attention to the independent motion (novelty effect). In case of isosceles triangles as moving figures, dogs and humans both display this behaviour, but dogs initially preferred to look at the chasing pattern whereas humans started to increase their gaze towards the independent motion earlier. Here, we compared whether family cats perceive moving inanimate objects as animate and whether their looking behaviour is similar to that of small family dogs. We displayed a chasing and independent motion side by side on a screen in two consecutive trials and assessed subjects’ looking behaviour towards the motions. Similarly to previous studies, we found that dogs eventually looked longer at the independent motion, but cats preferred to look at the independent motion at the beginning of the video display and only later shifted their attention to the chasing motion. No difference was found in the frequency of gaze alternation of the two species. Thus, although cats discriminate between the chasing and independent motions, it is not clear whether this discrimination is controlled by animate motion cues. The difference may originate from their ecological situation and/or may be explained by specific perceptual mechanisms.
... Additionally, cats were not artificially selectively bred. The cat's ancestor is the wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica), a solitary, territorial animal, like most other Felidae (Bradshaw, 2016). ...
... Cats looked at a familiar human for a shorter duration when the cats were directed gaze than when the cats were not, suggesting that, unlike dogs, they exhibit the behavior of avoiding a familiar gaze. Cats may see a human gaze as the same thing as a cat's gaze, which indicates a threat in a social situation with no goal or threat (Bradshaw, 2016). ...
Whilst humans undisputedly shape and transform most of earth's habitats, the number of animals (domestic and wild) living on this planet far outnumbers that of humans. Inevitably, humans have to interact with animals under a variety of circumstances, such as during conservation efforts, wildlife and zoo management, livestock husbandry, and pet keeping. Next to the question of how humans deal with these interactions and conflicts, it is crucial to understand the animal's point of view:
How do animals perceive and differentiate between humans?
How do they generalize their behavior towards humans?
And how does knowledge about humans spread socially?
In this Research Topic, we aim to collect original empirical work and review articles to get a more comprehensive and diverse picture on how humans are part of the sensory and cognitive world of non-human animals. We strongly invite contributions that pinpoint shortcomings and limitations in interpreting the available research findings, that provide new cross-disciplinary frameworks (e.g. links between conservation biology and comparative psychology, or human-animal interactions at zoos and animal welfare) and that discuss the applied implementation of these findings (e.g. for conservation attempts or livestock husbandry management).
... Cats, as a species, are non-social and nonsolitary. Cats show a highly flexible inter-individual tolerance, unusual in a solitary species (e.g., [26]). Darwin [27] gave a vivid, detailed description of aspects of cats in different contexts as expressing different emotions. ...
... Transposed to cats' approaches to humans, one may hypothesize that cats consider humans as dominant to them. The question of dominance either in social species, such as primates [45], or in interspecific dog-human interactions has been criticized [26,46]. Looking at hierarchies built on aggression, they are often correlated to some other factors, such as sex, weight, or age [33,47]. ...
Visual communication involves specific signals. These include the different positions of mobile body elements. We analyzed visual configurations in cats that involve ears and the tail. We aimed at deciphering which features of these configurations were the most important in cats’ interactions with other cats and with humans. We observed a total of 254 cat–cat interactions within a sample of 29 cats, during a total of 100 h of observation scheduled with the “Behavioral dependent onset of sampling” method and using the “All occurences” sampling method. In addition, we sampled 10 interactions between cats and humans. In cat–cat interactions, we noted the positions of ears and tail of both protagonists, as well as the outcome of the interaction, which was either positive/neutral or negative. In a great majority of the 254 interactions sampled, both cats held their tail down. On the contrary, ear position was a critical element in predicting the outcome. When both partners held their ears erect, the outcome was significantly positive, such as rubbing or close proximity. In all other cases of the position of ears in both cats, the outcome was negative, with increased distance of the partners. Although the tail did not seem to play a significant role in visual configurations in cat interactions, the “tail-up” display was important when a cat approached a human being. In the vast majority of cases the cat rubbed itself on a human’s leg(s). Thus, we may conclude that the presence of a human has a specific meaning in the cat’s world, probably as the result of a long period of commensalism. It is important for pet owners to understand the signals that cats use with other cats and with humans in order to promote the welfare of cats.
... Another context where recognition of familiarity might be useful is the occurrence of nepotistic behaviour. Under high density or at clumped food sources social groups of cats can form non-random aggregations of individuals (Denny et al. 2002;Bradshaw 2016). At such sites communal nesting is also reported, mostly between mothers and daughters (Izawa and Ono 1986;Feldman 1993;Bradshaw 2016). ...
... Under high density or at clumped food sources social groups of cats can form non-random aggregations of individuals (Denny et al. 2002;Bradshaw 2016). At such sites communal nesting is also reported, mostly between mothers and daughters (Izawa and Ono 1986;Feldman 1993;Bradshaw 2016). ...
Longevity of odour memories, particularly those acquired during early development, has been documented in a wide range of taxa. Here, we report that kittens of the domestic cat retained a memory into adult life of their mother´s body odour experienced before weaning. Kittens from 15 litters were tested when permanently separated from their mother at weaning on postnatal week 8, and tested again when 4 and 6 months and over 1 year of age. When presented with a simultaneous three-way choice between body odour of their own mother, of an unknown female of similar reproductive condition and a blank stimulus, weaning-age kittens sniffed the cotton swab with the odour of an unknown female longer. This preference, however, changed when as adults the subjects sniffed the cotton swab with their own mother’s odour longer. We conclude that kittens form a long-lasting memory of the body odour of their mother, and by implication, that mothers retain an individual odour signature sufficiently stable across age and changes in their reproductive state to be distinguishable by their adult offspring. What this means in functional or cognitive terms is not yet clear. Does such “recognition” have a specific biological function and a specific cognitive representation? Or is it rather part of a more general phenomenon well known in (human) olfaction of odours that are familiar generally being judged more pleasant, and that might then influence olfactory-guided behaviour in a variety of contexts?
... The study of social play in domestic cats is complicated by the suggestion that they, unlike their ancestral species, are potentially much more social animals, capable of forming social groups (56,57). The core of the group is typically formed by related individuals (56) but also non-related cats may live amicably when they are familiar with each other for a longer period (58). ...
... The core of the group is typically formed by related individuals (56) but also non-related cats may live amicably when they are familiar with each other for a longer period (58). Cats that belong to the same social group usually express affiliative behaviours such as holding their tails up when approaching each other, rubbing against each other, allogrooming, sleeping in close contact together and it widely believed that such individuals are capable of playing together as well (57,59). ...
Play in domestic cats has been largely studied using a contextual approach, i.e., with a focus on what the cat is playing with, such as an object, itself or another cat. Such classification may be superficially attractive scientifically but it limits the ability to investigate function. We propose consideration of a psychobiological approach, which increases attention on hypotheses about the motivational and emotional state of the actors, may be more valuable. This may be particularly important in the case of intercat exchanges that might involve play, for example when one cat may chase another which does not want to be chased, the general interaction should not be considered playful. Key to improving the scientific study of such interactions is the need to adopt a common terminology, thus we synthesise a common ethogram from the published literature. Secondly at the heart of a psychobiological approach is a consideration of both the affective state and motivational goal of each actor in an interaction, since they may not be congruent, and recognition of the hypothetical nature of any such functional classification. However, this bottom up approach provides valuable insights that can be tested. We argue that when one cat treats another as an object or prey, such activity relates to the former cat seeking to learn about its own skills in relation to manipulating its physical environment (prey are not considered part of the complex social relationships and thus social environment of an individual). However, when interaction between cats is reciprocal it may function to facilitate social learning and may be best described as mutual social play. It needs to be recognised that interactions are dynamic and thus our classification of a situation needs to be flexible. So mutual social play may turn into a form of non-reciprocal interaction. We conclude by outlining priorities for future research to help us improve our ability to answer the question “Are these cats playing?” in a wider range of contexts.
... However, Howell et al. [30] adapted the Monash dog-owner relationship scale (MONASH) [29] to develop the cat-owner relationship scale (CORS) to assess the quality of the cat-owner relationship; this scale might provide limited insight into the complexity of the owner-cat relationship given its ultimate grounding in the dog literature. Cats are potentially social animals, able to form stable cooperative intraspecific groups but also interspecific relationships with humans and with other domestic species [31]. In Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America, about one quarter to one third of households have at least one cat [32][33][34]. ...
... The third top level group (44.5% of the population) is characterized by the highest positive score in the "owner's emotional investment in the cat", low levels of aloofness alongside a high score for the specific item "my cat will often lick my hands or face", which is widely recognized as a sign of social affiliation [31]. Thus, this group appear to be an affectionate group of cats. ...
Cats form close emotional relationships with humans, yet little is known about this. This study characterized different types of relationship that cats might establish with their owners. Data were analyzed from 3994 responses to a questionnaire developed using expressions of social support and attachment in relation to everyday cat–owner interactions. Principal component analysis reduced the items to four factors: the “owner’s emotional investment in the cat”, “cat’s acceptance of others”, “cat’s need for owner proximity” and “cat’s aloofness”. Cluster identified three groups of owners with two of these each sub-divided into two. The “open relationship bond” was characterized by a lightly emotionally invested owner and an avoidant cat. The “remote association” and “casual relationship” were characterized by an emotionally remote owner but differed in the cat’s acceptance of others. The “co-dependent” and “friendship” relationship were characterized by an emotionally invested owner but differed in the cat’s acceptance of others and need to maintain owner proximity. In conclusion, as with any complex social relationship, the type of cat–owner bond that develops is the product of the dynamic that exists between both the individuals involved, along with certain personality features, of which, the wider sociability of the cat and owner expectations may be particularly important.
... Although the 37 species of Felidae exemplify great diversity when it comes to size, coloration, vocalization, and habitat requirements [8], virtually all extant species are thought to be solitary in the wild [9]. While lions (Panthera leo) and cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) are purported to be the most socially complex of all Felidae, forming social groups in the wild [10], ecological theory notes that solitary species fare better when hunting dispersed prey in complex environments [11]. Thus, most felids are known to spend the majority of their time unaccompanied, limiting interaction to specific direct social events [8]. ...
The survival of endangered felids is becoming increasingly dependent on the successful management and breeding of reserve populations in captivity. While most felid species are reported to be solitary in the wild, increasing evidence suggests that some big cats have greater social plasticity than is currently acknowledged. This social plasticity allows felids to be sometimes socially housed in environments such as zoos and rescue centers. While the effects of such shared enclosures remain in question, many reports provide evidence of several welfare benefits of maintaining these large carnivores in pairs or even groups. Since 2019, Le Parc des Félins has housed a breeding pair of Malaysian tigers (Panthera tigris jacksoni) alongside their offspring. The purpose of this study was to quantify the social affiliation between the male tiger and his cubs and to investigate the female’s tolerance toward him. The data were collected using video recordings in the outdoor enclosure when social interactions were observed. The data were coded and categorized in the open-source software BORIS, from which behavioral activity budgets were calculated. Data were analyzed using the chi-squared test for association to determine differences in affiliative frequency, with directed and undirected sociograms created to visualize individual relationships. Overall, the male regularly engaged in affiliative behaviors with the cubs, with no significant difference found in the frequency of interactions with them compared to the female. No physical aggression was directed by the male toward the cubs. Although the female maintained a stronger bond with the cubs compared to the male, he displayed a greater range of affiliative behaviors toward them than male tigers are thought to exhibit. Both adults showed a high degree of tolerance toward their conspecifics, suggesting that maintaining breeding pairs with their offspring is a viable management strategy in zoological collections. This study could therefore improve husbandry and conservation practices by developing our understanding of felid sociality and the potential welfare benefits of social housing, allowing for evidence-based captive management decisions.
... (FERREIRA et al., 2016). Segundo Bradshaw (2016), gatos domésticos, especialmente os que vivem em meio urbano, estão submetidos ao estresse crônico e assim, aos distúrbios de ansiedade. Levine (2008) reitera e elucida casos em que o animal expressa comportamentos agressivos em condições que não é capaz de evitar a circunstância causadora do medo. ...
O presente estudo visa discorrer alternativas terapêuticas para gatos estressados e ansiosos através de uma revisão bibliográfica. Nesta busca, verificou-se de que a farmacoterapia designada ao público felino ainda é incipiente. A escassez de estudos pode ocasionar em diagnósticos equivocados e, terapias indicadas a cães, quando aplicadas aos gatos, muitas vezes são inadequadas. Observou-se que dentre os medicamentos alopáticos prescritos, estão os antidepressivos tricíclicos e os inibidores seletivos de serotonina, os quais devem ser constantemente monitorados, pois podem ocasionar potenciais efeitos adversos. Dentre as espécies vegetais empregadas na etnoveterinária, destaca-se a Nepeta cataria, conhecida popularmente como erva-de-gato (catnip). Provavelmente, o seu efeito deva-se à ação de seu principal componente, a nepetalactona sobre o sistema límbico do animal. Ao realizar uma análise in chemico, observa-se semelhança deste composto ao neurotransmissor serotonina, o que poderia justificar o bem-estar dos gatos, porém não há estudos farmacológicos e toxicológicos devidamente validados. Assim, ressalta-se a importância da orientação do uso racional de medicamentos e plantas medicinais, bem como o uso de métodos de enriquecimento ambiental para a redução do estresse e ansiedade em gatos domésticos, proporcionando-lhes maior qualidade de vida.
... Currently, the assessment of personality traits in domestic cats is most often based on surveys of people familiar with the animals, usually their owners (Bradshaw, 2016;Wedl et al., 2011), as this is both a reliable and time-efficient method (Bennett et al., 2017). ...
The domestic cat, Felis catus, is one of the most popular and widespread domestic animals. Because domestic cats can reach high population densities and retain at least some tendency to hunt, their overall impact on wildlife can be severe. Domestic cats have highly variable predation rates depending on the availability of prey in their environment, their owners' practices, and individual cat characteristics. Among these characteristics, cat personality has recently been hypothesized to be an important factor contributing to variations in the hunting activity of cats. In this study, we surveyed 2508 cat owners living in France about their cats' personalities, using the Feline Five personality framework, and the frequency with which cats bring home prey. Personality traits were analyzed using factor analysis and related to predation frequency using cumulative logit models. For both birds and small mammals, cats with high levels of extraversion or low levels of neuroticism had significantly higher frequencies of prey return. Owners whose cats had low levels of agreeableness or high levels of dominance reported a significantly lower frequency of bird return. Personality differences therefore seem to contribute to the high variability in predation rates among domestic cats. We also found that the owner-reported prey return frequencies were significantly higher for cats spending more time outdoors, for non-pedigree cats, and for owners living in rural or suburban areas as opposed to urban areas. By contrast, we did not detect an effect of cat sex or age on their reported prey return rates.
... In particular, cats do not undergo a transparent domestication process similar to dogs [28], and their highly independent behavioral characteristics may make it difficult for owners to train cats. Furthermore, because cats are solitary hunters and territorial animals [29], a visit by a researcher with handling skills may cause a stress response in the cat. One solution to these problems is to utilize physiological samples that allow noninvasive collection, such as feces [30][31][32] and urine [33][34][35][36][37][38]. ...
Physiological samples are beneficial in assessing the health and welfare of cats. However, most studies have been conducted in specialized environments, such as shelters or laboratories, and have not focused on cats living in domestic settings. In addition, most studies have assessed physiological stress states in cats based on cortisol, and none have quantified positive indicators, such as oxytocin. Here, we collected urine samples from 49 domestic cats and quantified urinary cortisol, oxytocin, and creatinine using ELISA. To identify factors influencing hormone levels, owners responded to questionnaires regarding their housing environment, individual cat information, and the frequency of daily interactions with their cats. Using principal component analysis, principal component scores for daily interactions were extracted. These results showed that the frequency of tactile and auditory signal-based communication by owners was positively correlated with the mean concentration of oxytocin in the urine. Additionally, this communication was more frequent in younger cats or cats that had experienced a shorter length of cohabitation with the owner. However, no factors associated with urinary cortisol concentration were identified. Our study indicates that interactions and relationships with the owner influence the physiological status of cats and suggests that oxytocin is a valuable parameter for assessing their health and welfare.
... Our main aim was to directly compare the behavioural responses of companion dogs and cats to a novel environment (laboratory room) as so far, most socio-cognitive tests on cats have been carried out at home (e.g., [9][10][11]) or in a familiar place [12], as cats were reported to be sensitive to changes in the environment [13,14]. ...
Research on the socio-cognitive skills of different species often benefit from comparative experiments, however, the ecology of the species and development of the individuals may differently determine how they react to the same test situation. In this study, our aims were twofold: to observe and compare the spontaneous behaviour of companion cats and dogs in the same novel environment, and to habituate them (if needed) to the novel environment in the presence of their owners and an unfamiliar experimenter. The behaviour of 62 family cats, 31 experienced (which had the opportunity to meet strangers and explore unfamiliar places) and 31 inexperienced cats, and 27 family dogs was compared in an unfamiliar room. The subjects’ behaviour was coded during the first five minutes in the presence of two passive persons, their owners, and an unfamiliar experimenter. Then, based on a set of rules, first the owner, and then the experimenter tried to initiate interactions with the subjects and the subjects’ willingness to interact was evaluated. To pass the habituation test, subjects were expected to play with the experimenter or accept food from them. All dogs passed the test on the first occasion, while almost 60% of the cats failed. The cats’ experience did not play a significant role, in fact, younger cats passed more easily. We found marked differences between dogs and cats in all behavioural variables; compared to dogs, cats spent more time crouching and close to their box, while less time exploring or close to the owner. We did not find a difference in the cats’ behaviour based on their experience. Our results support the hypothesis that unlike dogs, cats need extensive habituation in a novel environment. This could partially be explained by the difference in the ecology and/or domestication process of the species, although developmental effects cannot be excluded. Our findings have fundamental consequences not only for the considerations of the testability of cats and on the interpretation of their data collected in the laboratory, but in a more general sense on developing comparative experiments
... In addition, although the domestic cat (Felis silvestris catus) is now the most popular pet in the world (Driscoll et al., 2007), resulting in access to large samples in a range of settings, domestic cats have most likely also been overlooked due to possibly erroneous assumptions about their asocial nature (although see Vitale Shreve & Udell, 2015). Although nearly all of the thirty-seven felid species are solitary as adults, tending to form strong territorial connections as opposed to bonds with conspecifics, freeranging domestic cats have been known to form colonies within which they display preferences toward particular associates (Bradshaw;Izawa & Doi, 1993;Macdonald, Yamaguchi, & Kerby, 2000). Further, just as domesticated dogs have shown a sensitivity to human communicative cues (Udell et al., 2010), domesticated cats have demonstrated similar abilities, in regards to following human pointing gestures (Miklosi et al., 2005), distinguishing between human voices (Saito & Shinozuka, 2013), engaging in social referencing in uncertain situations (Merola et al., 2015;Merola et al., 2012a;Merola et al., 2012b), and distinguishing between emotional states in their owners (Galvan & Vonk, 2016). ...
Although felids in general tend to be relatively asocial, domestic cats live closely with humans and other domestic species and thus, might be expected to respond to cues indicating, for example, the reputation of others. Furthermore, recent research with other less social species suggests that social learning is not unique to group-housed animals. Therefore, here we tested seven cat dyads with one cat interacting directly with unfamiliar humans, and another indirectly observing the interactions, to determine whether they would learn the ‘friendly’ and ‘aggressive’ reputations of the unfamiliar humans. Cats did not show a tendency to interact less, or more cautiously, with aggressive experimenters based on contact duration and latency to approach. Cats that observed the interactions indirectly spent more time near both experimenters and approached more quickly on test trials compared to cats that directly interacted with the experimenters, but this may have been due to spending more time crated between trials. We hesitate to conclude that cats are incapable of inferring reputation based on this small sample. It is possible that cats would behave more discriminately if tested in familiar environments.
... For intraocular and retinal examinations, be cautious of face-to-face contact, especially for nervous or protective cats. 107 Approach from an angle and avoid direct eye contact ( Figure 15). Clinical interactions are a dynamic process. ...
Practical relevance
The ‘2022 AAFP/ISFM Cat Friendly Veterinary Interaction Guidelines: Approach and Handling Techniques’ (hereafter the ‘Cat Friendly Veterinary Interaction Guidelines’) support veterinary professionals with feline interactions and handling to reduce the impact of fear and other protective (negative) emotions, in so doing enhancing feline welfare and In implementing these Guidelines, team satisfaction and cat caregiver confidence in the veterinary team will increase as the result of efficient examinations, better experience, more reliable diagnostic testing and improved feline wellbeing. Veterinary professionals will learn the importance of understanding and appropriately responding to the current emotional state of the cat and tailoring each visit to the individual.
Clinical challenges
Cats have evolved with emotions and behaviors that are necessary for their survival as both a predator and prey species. A clinical setting and the required examinations and procedures to meet their physical health needs can result in behavioral responses to protective emotions. Cat friendly interactions require understanding, interpreting and appropriately responding to cats’ emotional states and giving them a perceived sense of control while performing the required assessment.
Evidence base
These Guidelines have been created by a Task Force of experts convened by the American Association of Feline Practitioners and the International Society of Feline Medicine, based on an extensive literature review and, where evidence is lacking, the authors’ experience.
Endorsements
These Guidelines have been endorsed by a number of groups and organizations, as detailed on page 1127 and at catvets.com/interactions and icatcare.org/cat-friendly-guidelines .
... Although some social interactions in solitary felids have been observed, they can instead be classified in the framework of social tolerance or spatial organization, and not as a true collaboration within a social group. Such behaviours include, for example, sharing large prey as observed in tigers (Panthera tigris, Schaller 1967), pumas (Puma concolor, Elbroch and Quigley 2017;Elbroch et al. 2017), and Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx, Schmidt et al. 1997), or forming communal breeding colonies at sites with superabundant food resources to raise kittens, as observed in females of feral domestic cats (Macdonald et al. 2000;Bradshaw 2016). ...
Most large felids are classified as solitary species, with only lions ( Panthera leo ) and cheetahs ( Acinonyx jubatus ) exhibiting social, collaborative behaviours. Herein, we present evidence of the formation of male coalitions by jaguars ( Panthera onca ), based on data from five studies conducted with camera trapping, GPS telemetry, and direct observations in the Venezuelan Llanos and Brazilian Pantanal. Out of 7062 male records obtained with camera traps or visual observations, we detected 105 cases of male-male interactions, of which we classified 18 as aggression, nine as tolerance, 70 as cooperation/coalition, and eight as unidentified. In two studies, two male jaguars formed stable coalitions lasting over 7 years each. In the Llanos, each coalition male paired and mated with several females. For male jaguar coalitions, we documented similar behaviours as recorded earlier in lions or cheetahs, which included patrolling and marking territory together, invading territories of other males, collaborative chasing and killing other jaguars, and sharing prey. However, different from lions or cheetahs, associated male jaguars spent less time together, did not cooperate with females, and did not hunt cooperatively together. Our analysis of literature suggested that male jaguar coalitions were more likely to form when females had small home range size, a proxy of females’ concentration, while in lions, the male group size was directly correlated with the female group size. Similarly, locally concentrated access to females may drive formation of male coalitions in cheetahs. We conclude that high biomass and aggregation of prey are likely drivers of sociality in felids.
Significance statement
The division into social and solitary species in large felids has so far seemed unambiguous, with only lions and cheetahs classified as social species, in which male coalitions also occurred. Our data show that, under certain conditions, male coalitions may also form in jaguar populations. Factors that drive formation of male coalitions in lions and cheetahs, but not in other species of large cats, have not been clear until now. Our analyses indicate that in jaguars, lions, and cheetahs, the concentration of females likely plays the most important role. In jaguars, the probability of male coalition occurrence is highest in populations with the smallest mean female home range size (and thus likely high local density of females), while in lions, male group size is most strongly correlated with female group size.
... Presently, in behavioral ecology studies, personality traits are usually estimated with the following approaches (Freeman et al., 2011): behavioral coding in which behavioral observation data are collected by researchers in either natural (i) or experimental settings (ii), and trait assessments (iii) in which the people who know the animal complete a survey describing the degree to which it shows particular personality traits. In domestic cats, although the first studies tended to use behavioral coding (Gartner et al., 2013), personality trait assessments based on a survey of the people familiar with the animals, usually their owners, are now more common (Wedl et al., 2011;Bradshaw et al., 2016), as they are both a reliable and time-efficient method (Bennett et al., 2017). These studies (reviewed in Gartner et al., 2013;Vitale Shreve et al., 2015;Mikkola et al., 2021) usually produced between one and seven personality factors, with the three most common factors being the personality traits of sociable, dominant, and curious, albeit with varying names. ...
The domestic cat, Felis catus, is one of the most popular and widespread domestic animals. Because domestic cats can reach high population densities and retain at least some tendency to hunt, their overall impact on wildlife can be severe. Domestic cats have highly variable predation rates depending on the availability of prey in their environment, their owners’ practices, and individual cat characteristics. Among these characteristics, cat personality has recently been hypothesized to be an important factor contributing to variations in the hunting activity of cats. In this study, we used surveys of 2,508 cat owners living in France to collect information about cat personalities using the Feline Five personality model and about the frequency with which the cats bring home prey. For both birds and rodents, cats with high levels of extraversion or low levels of neuroticism had significantly higher frequencies of prey return. Owners whose cats had low levels of agreeableness or high levels dominance reported a significantly lower frequency of bird return. Personality differences therefore seem to contribute to the high variability in predation rates between domestic cats. We also found that the owner-reported prey return frequencies were significantly higher for cats spending more time outdoors, for non-pedigree cats, and for owners living in rural or suburban areas as opposed to urban areas. By contrast, we did not detect an effect of cat sex or age on their reported prey return rates.
... Moreover, such sociality could have been enhanced by human interventions that affected ecological conditions, such as availability of new food resources in garbage dumps and destruction of preexisting habitats [2]. Although most wild felids live alone [3], domesticated cats (Felis silvestris catus) live in high densities and interact with each other [4]. Incidentally, as humans began to The aim of the present study was to investigate the nature of interactions among cats within a group, and how such interactions are associated with various internal factors. ...
Domestic cats ( Felis silvestris catus ) can live in high densities, although most feline species are solitary and exclusively territorial animals; it is possible that certain behavioral strategies enable this phenomenon. These behaviors are regulated by hormones and the gut microbiome, which, in turn, is influenced by domestication. Therefore, we investigated the relationships between the sociality, hormone concentrations, and gut microbiome of domestic cats by conducting three sets of experiments for each group of five cats and analyzing their behavior, hormone concentrations (cortisol, oxytocin, and testosterone), and their gut microbiomes. We observed that individuals with high cortisol and testosterone concentrations established less contact with others, and individuals with high oxytocin concentrations did not exhibit affiliative behaviors as much as expected. Additionally, the higher the frequency of contact among the individuals, the greater the similarity in gut microbiome; gut microbial composition was also related to behavioral patterns and cortisol secretion. Notably, individuals with low cortisol and testosterone concentrations were highly tolerant, making high-density living easy. Oxytocin usually functions in an affiliative manner within groups, but our results suggest that even if typically solitary and territorial animals live in high densities, their oxytocin functions are opposite to those of typically group-living animals.
... Similar to many other carnivore species, cats rely heavily on their olfactory system to explore the physical and social environment. Even now considered a facultatively social species, cats often chose to live a solitary life with enough space and resources (14,15). Chemical communication is, therefore, involved in many inter-cat activities, such as territory marking, reproduction, and individual recognition (16,17). ...
Domestic cats are descended from solitary wild species and rely heavily on the olfaction system and chemical signals for daily activities. Cats kept as companion animals may experience stress due to a lack of predictability in their physical or social environment. The olfactory system is intimately connected to the brain regions controlling stress response, thus providing unique opportunities for olfactory strategies to modify stress and related behavioral problems in cats. However, the olfactory intervention of stress in cats has been mainly focused on several analog chemical signals and studies often provide inconsistent and non-replicable results. Supportive evidence in the literature for the potentially effective olfactory stimuli (e.g., cheek and mammary gland secretions, and plant attractants) in treating stress in cats was reviewed. Limitations with some of the work and critical considerations from studies with natural or negative results were discussed as well. Current findings sometimes constitute weak evidence of a reproducible effect of cat odor therapy for stress. The welfare application of an olfactory stimulus in stress alleviation requires a better understanding of its biological function in cats and the mechanisms at play, which may be achieved in future studies through methodological improvement (e.g., experiment pre-registration and appropriate control setting) and in-depth investigation with modern techniques that integrate multisource data. Contributions from individual and environmental differences should be considered for the stress response of a single cat and its sensitivity to olfactory manipulation. Olfactory strategies customized for specific contexts and individual cats can be more effective in improving the welfare of cats in various stressful conditions.
... Notwithstanding, it is noteworthy to mention that CAP administration has been found to have a positive effect on social behaviour [35,36] and decrease the agonistic behaviour of domestic cats and to be beneficial in the reunion of new individuals with a social group in Sumatran tigers [2]. Contrary to the former species who show behavioural plasticity in their choice of social vs. solitary lifestyle depending on resources [75], the latter is known to be a highly socially intolerant species [76]. As the European wildcat is also a solitary species, in which adults disperse within one year of age and females tend to have non or minimally overlapped territories [51], one hypothesis could be that pheromones (CAP) were able to mitigate the stress of the reunion for a period after their remanence, with similar positive effects to those found in tigers. ...
The union or reunion of animals with social groups can be a challenging situation, and little has been published about it when solitary species are concerned. Therefore, the aim of the present study was two-fold: (1) to advocate the need for systematic publications about strategies and the outcomes of reunion episodes in zoos and other facilities; and (2) to describe the behaviour of European wildcats (Felis silvestris silvestris) during one such episode, in which a female cat was reintroduced into her family social group using a gradual reunion procedure and cat appeasing pheromone (CAP) (spot-on). The study comprised three periods: the pre-reunion period (10 days, 20 sessions per wildcat), the post-reunion period (A, 5 days, 10 sessions per wildcat; B, 5 days, 10 sessions per wildcat) and the late-reunion period (5 days, 10 sessions per wildcat). In the post-reunion periods, all wildcats were together in the enclosure and were spotted with CAP pheromone. Per period, we collected data on individual and social behaviours. Individual behaviours, such as attention and self-grooming, were performed more in the pre-reunion than in the post-reunion period. Regarding social behaviours, we found that agonistic behaviours were performed more in the pre-reunion than in the post-reunion period. We observed behavioural changes over the course of the study, with behavioural patterns of the late-reunion periods resembling those of the pre-reunion period.
... In this study (unlike in the earlier study), number of cats in the home was also significantly related to reported pARBs, despite a similar distribution of cats per household in the two studies. Although domestic cats display a variety of social affiliation patterns, social stress and agonistic encounters between cats living in the same household are commonly reported (e.g., Bradshaw, 2016;Elzerman, DePorter, Beck, & Collin, 2020). Recent work stresses that the relationship between number of cats in the home and behavioral signs of stress is complex and multifactorial and suggests that other environmental and social factors, such as perceived competition for resources between resident cats and the nature of the initial introduction, may be more important influences than numbers alone (summarized in Finka & Foreman-Worsley, 2021). ...
One common form of play between companion cat guardians and cats involves the use of laser light pointers (LLPs). Although viewed by many as an enjoyable shared interaction, experts have suggested that it may increase the risk of compulsive behaviors. Our earlier study recruited participants through social media to examine the relationship between LLPs and potential abnormal repetitive behaviors (pARBs). Because of possible biases in this form of recruitment, this study was conducted utilizing Amazon Mechanical Turk. A total of 468 responses (54.5% female, 44.0% male, 1.5% nonbinary) were analyzed. Significant associations between the frequency of LLPs and the occurrence of spins or tail chases, chasing lights or shadows, staring "obsessively" at lights or reflections, and fixating on a specific toy were found. Additional associations for these pARBs included declaw status, cat age, and number of cats in the household. Despite differences in recruitment method, the primary conclusions of the two studies were the same: guardians frequently using LLPs with their cats reported significantly more pARBs. These results suggest that LLPs may be associated with compulsive behaviors in cats.
... The trait that sets domestic cats apart is their sociality. Unlike their wildcat cousins, the domestic cat can live socially with humans and each other (Bradshaw 2016;Brown and Bradshaw 2013;Driscoll et al. 2009). It has even been postulated that equilibrium has not been reached, and cats are still in the process of evolving sociality (Brown and Bradshaw 2013). ...
The language of domestication enables humans to wield power over otherthanhuman animal lives. In some cases, being labelled “domesticated” ensures a life free of worry regarding food, water, and shelter. In others, “domestication” embodies a loss of agency, wildness, and potentially life. Companion animals such as cats find themselves at the center of debates regarding their freedom, reproductive agency, and even their status as domesticates. Others, such as captive elephants, are trapped in liminal spaces by virtue of their labels — “endangered,” “domesticated,” “tamed,” or simply “livestock.” As humans venture further into the world of biotech, these labels become increasingly opaque. With the introduction of hybrid xenobots, transgenic organisms grown of various stem cells, and machine-implanted, sentient species built to serve various functions, we are facing the potential that the word domestication will be again transformed allowing humans to further control the future of otherthanhuman bodies. tient beings they did act in ways the trainers could not predict or control. In so doing, in all cases but refusal to attack they contributed to the excitement of events, and in the case of the elephants of the 55BCE games, even caused the normally hostile spectators to empathize with their plight. When Roman spectators or writers attributed human-like traits to animals who did extraordinary things they tacitly acknowledged animal agency, but this was not transformed into any general acceptance that animals might have any moral sense or cognitive abilities comparable in any way to humans.
... The pet-keeping or cross-species adoption hypothesis first proposed by Francis Galton (1865) suggests that domestication was driven by the keeping and nurturing of young animals in hunter-gatherer communities, resulting in the selection of traits that favored co-habitation with humans (Serpell, 2021). While the relationships between humans and common mammalian pets have been extensively researched (Bradshaw, 2016;Hare et al., 2002;Johnson et al., 1992;Riedel et al., 2008;Templer et al., 1981;Zasloff, 1996), it is not clear whether the results extrapolate to reptiles, which seem less fit to fulfill the human need for the expression of nurturing behavior. Attitudes of humans toward reptiles appear to depend on the type of reptile, with turtles and tortoises ranking among the most liked animals, and snakes among the most disliked species (Almeida et al., 2014;George et al., 2016). ...
Owning reptiles (e.g., chelonians, lizards, and snakes) poses a great deal of challenges in terms of welfare and care, as well as conservation and environmental concerns. However, despite the large scale of the reptile trade, little is known about the motives for acquiring and keeping these animals. This research provides the first empirical investigation on the motives for owning reptiles as pets in Portugal as well as on the nature of the human–reptile bond. Using a mixed-methods approach, an online survey was used to gather the views and opinions of 220 reptile owners. Respondents described their affection toward reptiles using terms that denote affective states of increasing intensity: “to like”, “to love,” “fascination,” and “passion.” Four main categories of motivations for the long-term keeping of pet reptiles were identified: convenience, entertainment, companionship, and duty of care. Respondents perceived their pets as family members (64%) and as sentient beings, including the ability to feel “stress or fear” (≥ 80%) and “pain or discomfort” (≥74%). Snakes differed from lizards and chelonians in the sense that they were less frequently considered a “family member” (χ2(2) = 7.14, p = 0.03) and were perceived as less able to communicate (χ2(2) = 9.91, p < 0.01). Results suggest that human–reptile relations are driven by the same feelings as those previously reported for mammalian pets, although they are more diverse and nuanced by a sense of admiration and fascination for their mysterious nature and unusual behaviors. Building on these strong emotional bonds, promoting early education about wildlife conservation, and responsible pet keeping could play a crucial role in improving captive-reptile welfare.
... In addition, we only found four percent of scats with the remains of seabirds. Some studies have shown that in a population of cats, some cats specialize in a particular type of prey, causing higher impacts (Mendl and Harcourt 2000;Dickman 2009;Moseby et al. 2015;Bradshaw 2016). However, even if only some semi-feral cats prey on seabirds, this does not mean that their impact may be regarded as insignificant. ...
Cats (Felis catus) introduced on islands have strong impacts on biodiversity, and the main conservation actions to protect native fauna is cat eradication or control (i.e., regular culling). The situation is more complicated on inhabited islands because unowned cats coexist with owned cats. The social acceptance of cat control implies separating the impacts of unowned and owned cats. We investigated the spatial ecology and impacts of owned and unowned cats at a seabird colony in a periurban area on Reunion Island (Indian Ocean). We used multiple methodologies to investigate this question: GPS-tracking of cats, camera-traps at seabird nests, cat scat analysis and cat control. Owned cats had small home ranges and did not forage at the seabird colony. Unowned cats had larger home ranges and foraged at seabird colony. We identified two kinds of unowned cats, stray cats and semi-feral cats. Stray cats relied on food waste and rarely foraged at seabird colony. Semi-feral cats foraged mostly in natural habitats, including the seabird colony and rarely used food waste. Semi-feral cats were very active at the seabird colony and several preyed upon seabirds. Restaurants are an abundant source of food for cats and help sustain populations of unowned cats. Control of unowned cats during this study resulted in reduced cat activity at the seabird colony. To minimize negative impacts of cats on seabirds, our results suggest that the most effective strategy includes the permanent control of unowned cats, efficient management of food waste and sterilization of owned cats.
... Although most of my results suggest spillover transmissions, there is evidence of at least short-term persistence within cat populations. Domestic cats have evolved alongside humans leading to inter-specific behaviours, such as rubbing (Bradshaw, 2016;Karkaba et al., 2017). Cats engage in rubbing behaviour with humans from different households, which could plausibly lead to human-cat-human transmission of S. aureus. ...
Staphylococcus aureus is an important human bacterial pathogen with a wide host range, including livestock, companion, and wild animal species. Genomic and epidemiological studies show that S. aureus can freely transmit between different species, with some of these transmissions resulting in successful adaptation and ongoing transmission in a new species. Given an ever-increasing risk of zoonotic disease emergence due to changes in the humananimal interface, it is increasingly important that we understand the capacity for human pathogens such as S. aureus to move between and adapt to different host species. In this thesis, I apply comparative genomic analyses to investigate the host range, transmission dynamics and host adaptation of S. aureus in livestock, companion animal, and wild animal populations. Chapters 2 and 3 consider the role of horizontal gene transfer in the adaptation of S. aureus clonal-complex (CC) 398 to livestock. CC398 is the dominant S. aureus lineage in European livestock and is implicated in increasing numbers of human infections. I found that the emergence of livestock-associated CC398 coincided with acquiring a Tn916 transposon carrying a tetracycline resistance gene, which has now been stably maintained for 57 years. This was followed by the acquisition of a SCCmec type V that carries methicillin, tetracycline, and heavy-metal resistance genes, which some lineages have maintained for 35 years. In contrast, a phage containing human immune evasion genes is dynamically gained and lost. These contrasting dynamics result in no loss of antimicrobial resistance but the rapid acquisition of the human adaptive element when methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) jumps from livestock into humans. In later chapters, I address a gap in our understanding of host specificity of S. aureus through using unbiased sampling of both methicillin-sensitive S. aureus (MSSA), and MRSA isolates from both an unsampled wild animal population and an undersampled companion animal species. Chapter 4 investigates the prevalence and risk factors associated with S. aureus carriage in cats in south-eastern Poland. Results suggest that older cats, sick cats, and cats with an S. aureus colonised owner increase the risk of carriage. I then used whole-genome sequences to investigate population structure, showing that S. aureus in cats is diverse and has no dominating lineage. Chapter 5 demonstrates that transmission between cats and their owners can occur within households, and I characterise potential catassociated lineages. In chapter 6, I found no S. aureus isolates in wild populations of brown trout in the Scottish Highlands. This population is phylogenetically divergent from the host species S. aureus is most associated with and is geographically and ecologically isolated. Together these results highlight the considerable transmissibility of S. aureus between host species. Most transmission events that I identify reflect spillover events that are self-limiting in their new populations. Nevertheless, I demonstrate that some level of persistence is common, enough that intermediary hosts can transmit to new species. This highlights the connectedness of S. aureus among different host species and that antimicrobial use in other hosts may impact human health.
... In a comparative review of sociality across Felidae, [126] the author notes that while increases in sociality within a species are usually associated with increases in brain to body mass ratios (i.e., encephalisation), this relationship has not been evident during the domestication of the cat. At a genomic level, however, notable differences between domestic cats and their wild progenitors are evident. ...
Sociality can be broadly defined as the ability and tendency of individuals to reside in social groups with either conspecifics and/or other species. More specifically, sociability relates to the ability and tendency of individuals to display affiliative behaviours in such contexts. The domestic cat is one of the most globally popular companion animals and occupies a diverse range of lifestyles. Despite an arguably short period of domestication from an asocial progenitor, the domestic cat demonstrates an impressive capacity for both intra- and interspecific sociality and sociability. At the same time, however, large populations of domestic cats maintain various degrees of behavioural and reproductive autonomy and are capable of occupying solitary lifestyles away from humans and/or conspecifics. Within social groups, individuals can also vary in their tendency to engage in both affiliative and agonistic interactions, and this interindividual variation is present within free-living populations as well as those managed in confined environments by humans. Considerable scientific enquiry has focused on cats’ social behaviour towards humans (and conspecifics to a much lesser extent) in this latter context. Ontogeny and human selection, in addition to a range of proximate factors including social and environmental parameters and individual cat and human characteristics, have been highlighted as important moderators of cats’ sociability. Such factors may have important consequences regarding individuals’ adaptability to the diverse range of lifestyles that they may occupy. Where limitations to individuals’ social capacities do not enable sufficient e.g. adaption, compromises to their wellbeing may occur. This is most pertinent for cats managed by humans, given that the physical and social parameters of the cats’ environment are primarily dictated by people, but that positive human-selection for traits that enhance cats’ adaptability to such lifestyles appears to be limited. However, limitations in the availability and quality of evidence and equivocal findings may impede the current understanding of the role of certain factors in relation to cat sociability and associations with cat wellbeing, although such literature gaps also present important opportunities for further study. This review aims to summarise what is currently known about the various factors that may influence domestic cats’ sociality and sociability towards both humans and conspecifics, with a predominant focus on cats managed by humans in confined environments. Current limitations, knowledge gaps, and implications for cat wellbeing are also discussed.
... People in the child group owned, on average, more cats than people in the other groups, which might be explained by a higher proportion of women in the child group, as women tend to own more cats than men [89,90]. Although domesticated cats are capable of living in close proximity to each other [19,91], the presence of other cats in their living environment can be pleasant or stressful, depending on the number of cats, the size of the area, access to food and other resources (litter boxes, water bowls, scratching posts, places to sleep/hide out), and the quality of the relationships between the cats [92,93]. As owners that see their cats as children less often provide outdoor access, the welfare of these cats might be compromised when the indoor environment is suboptimal (small, limited resources and absence of environmental enrichment such as food puzzles or (scented) toys) [94,95]. ...
Describing the relationship with one’s cat in human terms might reflect an underlying anthropomorphic view of the relationship which might be associated with an owner’s behavior towards their cat and the cat’s living environment. Owners self-categorized the relationship with their cat as either a ‘member of the family’, ‘as a child’, ‘best friend’, or ‘a pet animal’. The extent to which owner- and cat-related factors influence these four relationship descriptions are examined in survey data of approximately 1800 cat owners. Differences in outdoor access, care during absence of the owner, and access to the bedroom are examined between the four relationship perceptions. The owner’s age and household composition, ideas about their cat’s equality, support, and dependency, and whether their cat is a pedigree were significantly associated with relationship description and explained 46% of the variance. Owners who perceive their cat as a child or best friend see their cat as loyal, empathetic, equal to family, and dependent on them for love and care. Their cats are less often left in the care of others, are allowed more often in the bedroom and have less often (unrestricted) outdoor access. Moreover, cats perceived as children are more likely to live in a multi-cat household. Our results provide insight in the factors that are related to different (anthropomorphic) perceptions of the human–cat relationship and how perceptions relate to the living environment of cats.
... Rochlitz (2007) ainda afirma em seus trabalhos que as interações entre os gatos, como interações táteis e/ou olfativas, são essenciais para estabelecerem a comunicação, reconhecimento de indivíduos e demarcação de local, sendo tais, uma possível justificativa para esse tipo de interação entre gato-lagarto aqui descrito, como impulsionado pela curiosidade de identificar esse novo indivíduo que não faz parte de seu grupo, bem como tentar demarcar território para estabelecer limites em sua área ou vínculos, pois como relata Bradshaw (2018) Do sexto ao oitavo dia os barulhos externos (veículos e sons de outros animais), atraíram os filhotes mais que a presença do réptil, a priori devido a sua audição bem desenvolvida, sensível com sua a capacidade de mover os pavilhões auditivos independentemente, assim, detectando sons como forma de adaptação para caçar (BROWN; BRADSHAW, 2014). Passaram também a interagirem entre si, lambendo e brincando como se o lagarto não estivesse no cômodo, linguagens corporais amigáveis entre si que permitem trocas de cheiros, como descrito por Bradshaw (2016). ...
O comportamento exploratório pode ser entendido como o tipo de atividade que o animal realiza no seu ambiente a qual se está presente, a fim de aumentar a interação com o mesmo. Assim, animais apresentam comportamentos bastante curiosos a serem observados quando expostos a indivíduos de outra espécie. Desse modo, objetivou-se com esta pesquisa identificar os comportamentos exploratórios manifestado em filhotes de gatos na presença de espécime de lagarto Teiú. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida em um cômodo fechado com as medidas 4,24 m X 3,82 m, totalizando uma área de 16,20 m², localizado no Sítio Lagoa Nova Zona Rural de Craíbas/AL. Para isso, foram observados quatro filhotes de gatos domésticos com 80 dias de idade durante 15 dias por 30 minutos sem a presença de um espécime de lagarto Teiú (Selvator merianae) e em seguida por mais 30 minutos com a presença do lagarto, iniciando a observação às 12h. O cômodo fechado foi limpo e a areia trocada a cada 2 dias, contando com uma vasilha com comida e outra com água. Os comportamentos exploratórios observados foi o de olhar de forma focada, lamber, cheirar o lagarto e o caminho do mesmo ocorrendo majoritariamente nos primeiros 3 dias e ausentando ao passar dos dias de observação. Foi possível identificar os comportamentos exploratórios manifestado em filhotes de gatos na presença de espécime de lagarto Teiú, bem como descrever as interações entre os filhotes-filhotes e filhotes-lagarto.
... Despite this, domestic cats living in feral colonies can form cohesive social groups, typically consisting of a core group of related females which may be associated with several roaming males, where resource availability and distribution allows [6]. However, commonly occurring social groupings in domestic environments, such as the co-habitation of cats introduced as adults, and behaviours observed between co-habiting cats, are considerably different from those in naturally occurring groups [7,8]. Close contact between incompatible cats has been suggested to be an important cause of undesirable stress-related behaviours [2,9]. ...
Although agonistic interactions between cats are often regarded clinically as a source of stress, there is currently limited research evidence regarding the welfare impact of keeping multiple cats as pets. The aim of this study was to compare welfare indicators between cats living in domestic single and multi-cat households, as well as between multi-cat households where agonistic behaviour was/was not reported by owners. Indicators included a spatial judgment bias task (JBT), where longer latencies to ambiguous probes are interpreted as being related to a more ‘pessimistic’ mood state, and the cat stress score (CSS), where high scores are indicative of high stress levels. Of 128 focal cats between the ages of 9–22 months, 94 were from multi-cat households, 126 had useable CSS data and 42 had JBT results suitable for analysis. CSSs were significantly lower for cats showing a more ‘pessimistic’ response in the JBT. It is possible that the cats that appeared to be the most relaxed may have been showing inactivity relating to negative affective states and/or were the least active/food motivated, and therefore slower in the JBT. CSSs were significantly higher in cats from single compared with multi-cat households, and did not vary with reports of agonistic interactions in multi-cat households. JBT results did not vary depending on the presence of, or reports of agonistic behaviours between, cohabiting cats. These data suggest that cats from single-cat households may be more likely to show signs of acute stress than those in multi-cat households. Alternative explanations are possible. For example, lower CSSs in the multi-cat group may reflect ‘relief’ effects resulting from separating cats for the test period, or inactivity relating to negative affective states. Due to the narrow sample population and broad scope of husbandry conditions, the potential for confounding variables limits the degree by which results can be used to inform causation of the relationships identified. Further research is warranted to replicate this work and explore potential confounders.
... 24 Here, variations in the nature of conspecific relationships are evident, but with agonistic encounters seemingly commonplace. 25,26 Additionally, with a limited repertoire for proximal forms of conflict diffusion in confined environments, 27 cats may utilise remote communicative strategies such as scratching and urine marking 14 inside the home. 28 These behaviours can be problematic for owners to manage successfully and may result in cat relinquishment. ...
Objectives:
The primary objective of this review was to conduct a systematic critical appraisal of published literature, in order to assess the evidence regarding the impact of cat group size on cat wellbeing in the domestic home. The secondary objectives were to: (i) identify additional social and environmental mediators of cat wellbeing in these contexts; and (ii) identify general limitations within the current evidence and provide recommendations for future studies.
Methods:
A systematic search of electronic databases (Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar) was conducted using targeted Boolean phrasing. Papers were retained for appraisal of full text where they included a comparison of both single (n = 1) and multi-cat (n ⩾2) domestic housing conditions and/or comparison of different multi-cat group sizes, within a single study; or where they compared outcome measures that were either behavioural and/or physiological and deemed as relevant indicators of cat wellbeing.
Results:
A total of 1334 unique papers were returned, 15 of which were retained. Of these papers, only four stated their primary aim to be an investigation of links between cat group size and cat wellbeing. Overall, the reviewed papers did not indicate consistent directions of effects regarding cat group size and outcome measures relevant to wellbeing. This was similar for the other social and environmental mediators identified.
Conclusions and relevance:
Inconsistency in results is likely due to the substantial methodological variation, limitations in measures used as indicators of wellbeing and limitations in general study designs and reporting. Results also highlight the complex, multifactorial relationships between cat wellbeing and various social and environmental factors. These may be as, if not more, important than absolute numbers of cats residing within a household. Due to the various limitations and general paucity of research, further studies are recommended to provide a suitable evidence base regarding impacts of multi-cat living on cat wellbeing in domestic environments.
... Paul Leyhausen observed cats in Paris gathering in a single location without displaying the usual territorial aggression and described the tradition as "social gathering" [9]. The generational continuity of behavioral characteristics is exemplified by the fact that during a sensitive period (3-8 weeks of age), kittens adopt from their mothers the manner of relating to other cats and to people, and these early experiences have long-lasting effects into adulthood [29][30][31]. Mistrust of humans is transmitted intergenerationally in feral communities, while among pets the need for physical and social contact with people is an important component of their welfare. ...
Urban environments are inhabited by several types of feline populations, which we can differentiate as feral cats, free-roaming pets, and confined pets. Due to a shift in the cultural representation of cats from pest controllers to companion animals, cats living semi-independently of humans are perceived increasingly negatively, while the pet population has become the object of intense care. A regulative approach converges with a concern for welfare in the operation and educational campaigns of municipal shelters, which through their implementation of neutering policies have proven to be key players in the contemporary relation of urban cats and humans. The generally widespread notion of cat welfare associated with a secure life comes into tension with the fact that the psychobiological needs of feral cats are significantly different than those of pets. It becomes apparent that individual interactions between humans and cats in urban environments in the Anthropocene are increasingly influenced by the intervention of institutions that can be characterized as seeking to administer the wild.
... By contrast, aggressive behaviour towards familiar cats is calculated on the basis of only 4 items. The choice of these two features not only allows us to illustrate the breadth of the issue, but also the potential impact on two features of cat behaviour used to draw opposing conclusions about their welfare: i.e., positive in the case of play (20,21) and negative in the case of signs of social stress leading to intercat aggressive behaviour (22)(23)(24). ...
Using a popular method of behaviour evaluation which rates the intensity of behaviour in different contexts, we demonstrate how pooling item scores relating to a given construct can reveal different potential risk factors for the dependent variable depending on how the total score is constructed. We highlight how similar simple total scores can be constructed through very different combinations of constituent items. We argue for the importance of examining individual item score distributions, and the results from different intensity thresholds before deciding on the preferred method for calculating a meaningful dependent variable. We consider simply pooling individual item scores which conflate context with intensity to calculate an average score and assuming this represents a biologically meaningful measure of trait intensity is a fallacy. Specifically using four items that describe intercat aggression and eleven that describe playfulness in cats in Fe-BARQ, we found sex and neuter status, social play and fearfulness were consistently significant predictors for intercat aggression scores; and age, age when obtained, social play and fearfulness were significant predictors of playfulness scores. However, the significance of other factors such as scratching varied with the threshold used to calculate to the total score. We argue that some of these inconsistent variables may be biologically and clinically important and should not be considered random error. Instead they need to be evaluated in the context of other available evidence.
... Unlike the domestic dog Canis familiaris, which has undergone strong artificial selection, the domestic cat remains largely a product of natural selection (Driscoll et al. 2009b). It remains morphologically (Yamaguchi et al. 2004), physiologically and behaviourally similar in most respects to its progenitor: a solitary, territorial and obligate carnivore that kills several small animals per day (Bradshaw 2006(Bradshaw , 2016. The very recent history of 'true' domestication, beginning perhaps as little as ~200 years ago, means that domestic cats effectively remain genetically 'wild' (Tamazian et al. 2014). ...
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• Domestic cats Felis catus are distinct from other domesticated animals because their phenotype and genotype are relatively unchanged. While they live with people as pets or pest controllers, they retain capacity for survival independent of human support and readily persist as feral animals. Most cats retain some propensity to express hunting behaviours, even if hunting is not required for nutrition. In some settings, depredation by cats is a threat to biodiversity conservation, leading to attempts to mitigate their impacts.
• We characterise drivers and facilitators of the hunting behaviour of domestic cats: evolutionary origins, diet, life history, personality and environment. Hunting is driven particularly by evolutionary constraints and associated physiological and nutritional requirements. Proximate causes of variation in hunting behaviours relate to prey availability, husbandry and degree of domestication, while early life history and personality play further roles.
• We review cat management approaches in terms of effectiveness, feasibility and welfare. Amongst lethal, large‐scale methods of population control, poisoning is most frequently used in cat eradications from islands. Because poisoning is challenged on welfare grounds, euthanasia is used at smaller scales and in inhabited, mainland settings. Non‐lethal approaches, primarily surgical sterilisation, are favoured by cat advocates but entail challenging logistics and scale. In attempts to inhibit predation of wild species by pet cats, owners restrict outdoor access and use collar‐mounted devices, including bells, sonic devices, collar covers and bibs. Other individual‐level interventions, such as dietary and behavioural enrichment, some of which may improve cat welfare, have potential, but effects on hunting remain untested.
• Understanding and managing the hunting behaviour of cats are complex challenges. We highlight drivers and facilitators of this behaviour, representing starting points for formulating solutions that might be acceptable to cat owners and wider groups of people who value cat welfare, while also being effective for wildlife conservation.
RIASSUNTO IN ITALIANO
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• I gatti domestici Felis catus si distinguono dagli altri animali domestici poiché i loro fenotipo e genotipo sono rimasti relativamente invariati. Nonostante vivano con le persone come animali domestici o vengano impiegati per il controllo dei roditori infestanti, i gatti domestici hanno mantenuto la capacità di sopravvivere indipendentemente dal supporto umano, e possono facilmente persistere come animali ferali (rinselvatichiti). La maggior parte dei gatti ha mantenuto una certa propensione alla caccia, nonostante questa non sia necessaria a sopperire a esigenze nutrizionali. In determinati ecosistemi la massiccia predazione da parte dei gatti rappresenta una minaccia per la conservazione della biodiversità, determinando quindi la necessità di adottare soluzioni per mitigare i possibili effetti negativi.
• In questo studio vengono caratterizzati i fattori chiave che inducono i gatti domestici a cacciare, nonché quelli che ne facilitano l’espressione: le origini evolutive, il regime alimentare, le esperienze fatte nel corso della vita, la personalità e l’ambiente. Il comportamento di caccia è primariamente determinato da vincoli evolutivi e da fabbisogni fisiologici e nutrizionali ad esso associati. Le cause prossime coinvolte nelle variazioni di tale comportamento sono legate alla disponibilità di prede, dal metodo di allevamento del gatto e dal suo grado di addomesticamento; le esperienze fatte nei primi mesi di vita e la personalità del gatto ricoprono anch’essi un ruolo importante.
• Abbiamo revisionato i diversi approcci impiegati nella gestione dei gatti in termini di efficacia, fattibilità e benessere. Tra i metodi letali impiegati su larga scala nel controllo di popolazione, l’avvelenamento è risultato essere quello più frequentemente utilizzato per l’eradicazione dei gatti dalle isole. Poiché l’avvelenamento è contestato per motivi legati al benessere, su scala più piccola e in posti abitati sulla terraferma viene preferita l’eutanasia. Gli approcci non letali, in particolare la sterilizzazione chirurgica, sono favoriti dai sostenitori dei diritti dei gatti, ma implicano complicazioni sul piano logistico e risultano comunque essere di portata più limitata. Nel tentativo di inibire la predazione dei gatti domestici sulle specie selvatiche, i proprietari ne limitano l’accesso all’esterno e utilizzano dispositivi che si attaccano ai collari, come campanelle, dispositivi sonori, copri collari colorati e bavagli ingombranti. Altri interventi a livello individuale come, ad esempio, l’arricchimento alimentare e quello comportamentale hanno un potenziale (alcuni potrebbero incrementare il benessere del gatto stesso), ma gli effetti sul comportamento di caccia non sono stati ancora testati.
• La comprensione e la gestione del comportamento di caccia dei gatti rappresentano delle sfide complesse. Il presente lavoro evidenzia i fattori che guidano e quelli che facilitano tale comportamento, che rappresentano i punti di partenza per formulare soluzioni che potrebbero essere accettate dai proprietari dei gatti e da tutte le persone che ne valorizzano il benessere, e che al contempo siano efficaci nel salvaguardare gli animali selvatici.
... Cats looked at a familiar human for a shorter duration when the cats were directed gaze than when the cats were not, suggesting that, unlike dogs, they exhibit the behavior of avoiding a familiar gaze. Cats may see a human gaze as the same thing as a cat's gaze, which indicates a threat in a social situation with no goal or threat (Bradshaw, 2016). ...
Dogs ( Canis familiaris ) and cats ( Felis silvestris catus ) have been domesticated through different processes. Dogs were the first domesticated animals, cooperating with humans by hunting and guarding. In contrast, cats were domesticated as predators of rodents and lived near human habitations when humans began to settle and farm. Although the domestication of dogs followed a different path from that of cats, and they have ancestors of a different nature, both have been broadly integrated into—and profoundly impacted—human society. The coexistence between dogs/cats and humans is based on non-verbal communication. This review focuses on “gaze,” which is an important signal for humans and describes the communicative function of dogs’ and cats’ eye-gaze behavior with humans. We discuss how the function of the gaze goes beyond communication to mutual emotional connection, namely “bond” formation. Finally, we present a research approach to multimodal interactions between dogs/cats and humans that participate in communication and bond formation.
... They have a long history of domestication and close association with humans [26,27], are beloved companion animals living in the human household, and are widely viewed as important social partners by their owners [28]. In some countries, cats are rapidly becoming extremely popular domestic animals not just for practical reasons, but also thanks to their flexibility in adapting to human environments and to their capacity to communicate in a complex way with humans, forming well-established relationships with them [29][30][31]. Differently from their wild ancestors (Felis silvestris), domestic cats are often defined to be social [32,33], as they show certain social interactions in particular circumstances (for example, around an abundant food source), and have sociocognitive and communicative abilities probably developed to maintain social groups [34,35] and to manage different social interactions with humans as well as other pets [2,36,37]. ...
Simple Summary: Cat-human communication is a core aspect of cat-human relationships and has an impact on domestic cats' welfare. Meows are the most common human-directed vocalizations and are used in different everyday contexts to convey emotional states. This work investigates adult humans' capacity to recognize meows emitted by cats during waiting for food, isolation, and brushing. We also assessed whether participants' gender and level of empathy toward animals in general, and toward cats in particular, positively affect the recognition of cat meows. Participants were asked to complete an online questionnaire designed to assess their knowledge of cats and to evaluate their empathy toward animals. In addition, they listened to cat meows recorded in different situations and tried to identify the context in which they were emitted and their emotional valence. Overall, we found that, although meowing is mainly a human-directed vocalization and should represent a useful tool for cats to communicate emotional states to their owners, humans are not good at extracting precise information from cats' vocalizations and show a limited capacity of discrimination based mainly on their experience with cats and influenced by gender and empathy toward them. Abstract: Although the domestic cat (Felis catus) is probably the most widespread companion animal in the world and interacts in a complex and multifaceted way with humans, the human-cat relationship and reciprocal communication have received far less attention compared, for example, to the human-dog relationship. Only a limited number of studies have considered what people understand of cats' human-directed vocal signals during daily cat-owner interactions. The aim of the current study was to investigate to what extent adult humans recognize cat vocalizations, namely meows, emitted in three different contexts: waiting for food, isolation, and brushing. A second aim was to evaluate whether the level of human empathy toward animals and cats and the participant's gender would positively influence the recognition of cat vocalizations. Finally, some insights on which acoustic features are relevant for the main investigation are provided as a serendipitous result. Two hundred twenty-five adult participants were asked to complete an online questionnaire designed to assess their knowledge of cats and to evaluate their empathy toward animals (Animal Empathy Scale). In addition, participants had to listen to six cat meows recorded in three different contexts and specify the context in which they were emitted and their emotional valence. Less than half of the participants were able to associate cats' vocalizations with the correct context in which they were emitted; the best recognized meow was that emitted while waiting for food. Female participants and cat owners showed a higher ability to correctly classify the vocalizations emitted by cats during brushing and isolation. A high level of empathy toward cats was significantly associated with a better recognition of meows emitted during isolation. Regarding the emotional valence of meows, it emerged that cat vocalizations emitted during isolation are perceived by people as the most negative, whereas those emitted during brushing are perceived as most positive. Overall, it emerged that, although meowing is mainly a human-directed vocalization and in principle represents a useful tool for cats to communicate emotional states to their owners, humans are not particularly able to extract precise information from cats' vocalizations and show a limited capacity of discrimination based mainly on their experience with cats and influenced by empathy toward them.
... Predatory aggression was also unlikely, as cat 1 consistently vocalized when encountering cat 2. 1,3 Some authors consider status-related 2 or dominance aggression 13 as differential diagnoses for intercat conflict, but this is not widely accepted because the social structure of cats is complex. 3,12 Cat 1 had signs of anxiety, including frequent pacing and reduced social interactions with the owners and other household cats. Generalized anxiety disorder was diagnosed because cat 1 had signs of heightened anxiety in the home over the past year and these signs were not solely associated with novel sights, sounds, smells, or social contexts. ...
... Feuerstein and Terkel (7) highlight the suspected difficulty inherent in cat-dog communication; a stereotype that has permeated popular culture and is exemplified in the media by shows such as Nickelodeon's "CatDog, " Warner Bros. "Cats & Dogs" (2001), and Spike the dog in MGM's cartoon "Tom and Jerry". Challenges in the catdog relationship can arise as a result of their differing behavioral tendencies and differences in typical social structure, for example cats lack a widely understood deference signal unlike dogs, and appear to place little importance on any observed hierarchy when determining access to key resources (8). Cats may also be seen as prey to some dogs, particularly those bred for hunting smaller mammals such as sighthounds or terriers. ...
Seven percent of UK households are estimated to own both a cat and a dog, despite a popular view that the two do not live well together. This is the first study to evaluate the effects of pheromone products Feliway FriendsTM and AdaptilTM on cat-dog interactions, in homes where owners perceived the potential for improvement in the relationship between their cat and dog. A blinded parallel randomized trial design over a 6-week period was used to evaluate the effect of each of the two products, with 17 participants in each group completing the trial. Owners reported weekly on the frequency of 10 specific undesirable interactions and seven specific desirable interactions. Total undesirable and desirable interaction scores both showed significant linear contrasts over time (undesirable score decreased; desirable score increased). Undesirable interaction scores were significantly lower (with a very large effect size) during treatment compared with baseline. There were no significant differences between the two pheromone products in relation to these outcome measures. AdaptilTM and Feliway FriendsTM were both associated with a significant decrease in: dog chasing cat/cat runs away; cat hiding from dog; cat/dog staring at the other; and dog barking at cat. With AdaptilTM a significant increase was also seen in: friendly greeting and times spent relaxed in the same room. From baseline (Week 2) to the end of the study (Week 6) there was a significant improvement in owners' perception of dog relaxation in those participants who received AdaptilTM and of cat relaxation in those participants who received Feliway FriendsTM. Similarity in the core chemical structure of the appeasing pheromones might explain the main effects, whilst different species-specific additions may explain the product-appropriate species-specific increases in relaxation scores. Specific behavioral improvements seen with AdaptilTM may reflect a greater calming of dogs in this group, reducing their interest in seeking interaction with cats in the same home and the tension in the cat as a result. In conclusion, both products appear to improve the cat-dog relationship and it would be beneficial to further study their use in combination and against placebo. If selecting one product AdaptilTM may be preferable, unless there is a particular need to increase the cat's relaxation.
... This was because of the difficulty of conducting this experiment in cat owners' homes. Domestic cats are territorial animals [49], and would not behave typically with their owner if an unfamiliar person and apparatus were to be in their territory. Thus, we utilized a laboratory cat. ...
Cats positive effects on their owners’ physiological and psychological health, including improved mood and activation of the human prefrontal cortex and inferior frontal gyrus in the brain. However, the association between the health benefits provided by cat ownership and the characteristic behaviors and reactions of cats is unclear. We recruited 29 participants to measure human prefrontal cortex activity, using functional near-infrared spectroscopy, during interactions with a cat. After the experiments, participants subjectively responded to a questionnaire regarding success rates for interactions with the cat, and completed the Self-assessment Manikin—a scale used to measure emotion. Interactions comprised eight types in four categories (touch, play, train, and feed). This study showed that interactions with a cat significantly activated the prefrontal cortex, regardless of interaction type. During training, the integral values of oxygenated hemoglobin in the left inferior frontal gyrus were the highest in all the interaction categories; however, success rates were lower than in the touch and feed interactions. Regarding the Self-assessment Manikin scores, all interaction categories showed a positive correlation between success rate and valence score, especially in the train and play interactions than in the touch and feed interactions. These results indicate that interactions with a cat activate the prefrontal cortex in humans, including the inferior frontal gyrus region. Moreover, cats’ autonomous behaviors and reactions positively influenced the participants. The characteristic temperament of cats may be a key factor influencing the health benefits of owning cats.
... Most of these seemed to be connected with humans; for example, cats that readily approached the unfamiliar human in the passive human approach test also struggled sooner in the struggle test, which may suggest that these cats were more confident around humans. Cats that struggled sooner also tended to vocalize (meow) more during the confinement test when separated from humans and other cats, suggesting that these individuals may seek the company of humans more, since meowing is considered a human-oriented behaviour ( [83,84] our observation). Such correlations may indicate the existence of behavioural syndromes as defined in the Introduction. ...
Consistent inter-individual differences in behaviour have been previously reported in adult shelter cats. In this study, we aimed to assess whether repeatable individual differences in behaviours exhibited by shelter cats in different situations were interrelated, forming behavioural syndromes. We tested 31 adult cats in five different behavioural tests, repeated three times each: a struggle test where an experimenter restrained the cat, a separation/confinement test where the cat spent 2 min in a pet carrier, a mouse test where the cat was presented with a live mouse in a jar, and two tests where the cat reacted to an unfamiliar human who remained either passive or actively approached the cat. Individual differences in behaviour were consistent (repeatable) across repeated trials for each of the tests. We also found associations between some of the behaviours shown in the different tests, several of which appeared to be due to differences in human-oriented behaviours. This study is the first to assess the presence of behavioural syndromes using repeated behavioural tests in different situations common in the daily life of a cat, and which may prove useful in improving the match between prospective owner and cat in shelter adoption programmes.
Intraspecific social interactions in domestic cats are often categorised as affiliative or agonistic. However, public or professional assessment of encounters can have difficulty distinguishing rough-and-tumble play from true agonism. One possible issue is the potential occurrence of elements of both, play and agonism, within inter-cat play, for example when one cat wants to terminate a bout of play but the other seeks to continue the interaction, which subsequently may provoke more overt agonistic behaviour. To test this hypothesis, we conducted behavioural observations of 105 unique dyadic interactions of domestic cats (N = 210) captured on videos collected from owners and YouTube. We assessed cats for the frequency and duration of six behavioural elements. The dataset was reduced using PCA with a varimax rotation and factor scores were used to classify the population using hierarchical cluster analysis. To validate the identified clusters, the average scores of the constituent factors were compared and the data on interactions were labelled by four cat behaviour experts as “playful”, “intermediate” or “agonistic”. In addition, to evaluate properties of expert-labelled categories we used linear discriminant analysis followed by an ordinal regression. The results showed considerable convergent validity in factor distributions between clusters and expert-labelled groups: reciprocal wrestling was most closely associated with a group of playfully interacting cats, while vocalisation and chasing were associated with the agonistic group. The intermediate group, while having characteristics of both, was more closely related to the playful group than the agonistic group, with prolonged exchanges of interactive behaviours being a predominant feature. Thus, our findings support the suggestion of there being an intermediate category between mutual social play and agonism. This might escalate into a fully agonistic encounter, but does not necessarily reflect a break down in their social relationship but rather a short-term disagreement in social priorities.
Self-propelled motion cues elicit the perception of inanimate objects as animate. Studies usually rely on looking behaviour of subjects toward stimuli displayed on a screen, but utilizing artificial agents (Unidentified Moving Objects, UMOs) provides more natural, interactive context. Here we investigated whether cats and dogs discriminate between UMOs showing animate vs inanimate motions, and how they react to UMOs’ interactive behaviour. Subjects first observed in turn the motion of an animate and inanimate UMO, and then they could move freely for 2 min while both UMOs were present (Two-way choice phase). In the following Specific motion phase, only the animate UMO showed one of three interactive behaviours: pushing a ball, luring motion, moving toward the subject (between-subject design). Then, subjects could move freely for 2 min again while the UMO was motionless. At the end, subjects were free to move in the room while the UMO was moving semi-randomly in the room. We found that dogs approached and touched the UMO(s) sooner and more frequently than cats, regardless of the context. In the Two-way choice phase, dogs looked at the animate UMO more often, and both species touched the animate UMO more frequently. However, whether the UMO showed playing, luring or assertive behaviour did not influence subjects’ behaviour. In sum, both species displayed distinctive behaviour toward the animate UMO, but in dogs, in addition to the physical contact this was also reflected by the looking behaviour. Overall, dogs were more keen to explore and interact with the UMO than cats, which might be due to the general increased stress of cats in novel environments. The findings indicate the importance of measuring multiple behaviours when assessing responses to animacy. Live demonstration by artificial agents provide unique opportunity to study social perception in non-human species.
Timely adoption is essential for shelters to prevent unnecessary illness or euthanasia in cats ( Felis catus ). Many studies have examined the role of individual cat characteristics and environmental factors in facilitating cat adoptions, but none have looked at the role the number of cats being adopted plays. In this study, we examined whether or not adopting cats in pairs influences adoption times, in addition to commonly studied factors. We then collected video data on a small subset of cats to determine whether pairs that were adopted together differed behaviourally from pairs who were not. Our results demonstrate that cats who are adopted as part of a multi-cat outcome spent three days (42%) longer on the adoption floor than those adopted individually, independently of other factors such as age and coat colour. This difference increased to 13 days (185%) longer if the cat had a notification indicating they must be adopted together with another cat. While behavioural data show that these pairs of cats engage in significantly more affiliative behaviour with each other than cats who were adopted singly, there was a large discrepancy between which pairs the shelter classified as multi-outcome and those who would be classified that way based on behaviour alone. We suggest that decisions to place cats together should be made carefully given the potential adverse impacts of keeping cats in the shelter longer. Further, we suggest that guidance should be developed to help shelters accurately and consistently identify which cats merit a multi-outcome adoption.
Vocalization may transmit information from the emitting animal, including information about his or her emotional state. This study aimed to compare the vocal and behavioral responses of domestic cats during an aversive and a pleasant situation. A total of 74 cats (29 males and 45 females) in the city of Curitiba, Southern Brazil, participated in the study; 68 (26 males and 42 females) were divided into two treatments: an aversive situation (AS), which was a car transport event where the cat was in a crate, or a pleasant situation (PS), where the cat was were offered a snack. The other animals (three males and three females) participated in both situations. Behavioral signals and individual vocalizations were registered through video recordings and further evaluated in each scenario. Cats in the PS had a higher fundamental frequency of vocalizations (10.1%), a lower range of pitches (tessitura) (33.9%) and twice the rate of head movement rates as compared to AS. For call duration there was significant interaction between treatment and sex. Additionally, there were differences in vocal parameters and behavioral signals due to sex, age and coat color. Females and kittens have higher fundamental frequencies may be due to anatomical characteristics. Solid-colored coated cats presented higher fundamental frequency than other coat colors. Overall, vocal parameters and behavioral signals seem useful indicators for studying the emotions of cats in different situations. Further studies are warranted to understand the subtleties of cat vocalization across sex, age and coat color.
Early deprivation of adult influence is known to have long‐lasting effects on social abilities, notably communication skills, as adults play a key role in guiding and regulating the behavior of youngsters, including acoustic repertoire use in species in which vocal production is not learned. Cheetahs grow up alongside their mother for 18 months, thus maternal influences on the development of social skills are likely to be crucial. Here, we investigated the impact of early maternal deprivation on vocal production and use in 12 wild‐born cheetahs, rescued and subsequently hand‐reared either at an early (less than 2 months) or a later stage of development. We could distinguish 16 sound types, produced mostly singly but sometimes in repeated or multitype sound sequences. The repertoire of these cheetahs did not differ fundamentally from that described in other studies on adult cheetahs, but statistical analyses revealed a concurrent effect of both early experience and sex on repertoire use. More specifically, early‐reared males were characterized by a high proportion of Purr, Meow, and Stutter; early‐reared females Mew, Growl, Hoot, Sneeze, and Hiss; late‐reared males Meow, Mew, Growl, and Howl; and late‐reared females mostly Meow. Our study demonstrates therefore the long‐term effects of maternal deprivation on communication skills in a limited‐vocal learner and its differential effect according to sex, in line with known social differences and potential differential maternal investment. More generally, it emphasizes the critical importance to consider the past history of the subjects (e.g., captive/wild‐born, mother/hand‐reared, early/late‐mother‐deprived, etc.) when studying social behavior, notably acoustic communication.
Cats are unique amongst domestic species in that they have evolved from a solitary ancestral species to become one of the most beloved household pets today. Interestingly the cat's physical appearance and sensory systems remain almost identical to their wild counterparts. Recognition of the perceptual parameters allows us to better understand how the domestic cat responds to environment and communicates with social partners. Sociality is unequivocally the aspect of feline life most affected by the domestication process. Cats can display a wide range of social behaviors, and evidence indicates that early exposure to a variety of social and environmental stimuli is the most important postnatal factor for a well‐adjusted life in a domestic setting and resiliency to basic stressors. By gaining an understanding of feline natural behavior, communication, learning, and cognition, shelter staff can provide cats with an ideal environment, change unwanted behaviors, and improve the welfare of our cats.
Social tolerance is generally treated as a stable, species-specific characteristic. Recent research, however, has questioned this position and emphasized the importance of intraspecific variation. We investigate the temporal stability of social tolerance in four groups of sanctuary-housed chimpanzees over eight years using a commonly employed measure: experimental cofeeding tolerance. We then draw on longitudinal data on the demographic composition of each group to identify the factors associated with cofeeding tolerance. We find appreciable levels of variation in cofeeding tolerance across both groups and years that correspond closely to changes in group-level demographic composition. For example, cofeeding tolerance is lower when there are many females with young infants. These results suggest that social tolerance may be a ‘responding trait’ of chimpanzee sociality, reflecting individual-level behavioral responses to social changes. Additional, experimental research is needed to better model the causal drivers of social tolerance within and among species.
Feline house soiling, or the elimination of waste products outside the litter box on horizontal and/or vertical surfaces, is one of the most common owner-reported reasons for cat relinquishment. Due to these cats’ perceived low potential for adoption, many sheltering organizations do not accept cats with house-soiling histories or euthanize without further interventions. In this study, cats with periuria were accepted into a limited intake shelter and rehomed. Retrospective data was collected from 294 cats with periuria to assess adoption outcomes over a six year period. Outcome data included length of stay within the shelter, returns, and euthanasias. Non-parametric statistical tests of significance were used to determine differences in outcomes between cats with periuria and the general cat population in this shelter. Year-by-year analyses demonstrated no significant differences in length of stay for four of the six years analyzed. The rates of returns and euthanasias for both populations were low. These results provide evidence that cats with urinary house-soiling behaviors had similar outcomes as the general cat population. These results argue against immediate refusal or disposal of cats who present to shelters with house-soiling behaviors.
The recent explosion of studies on dogs' social behaviour and cognitive abilities are impressive, opening a new field of studies on a species that has economic, social, and emotional significance to humans across the globe. The origin of domestic dogs has been firmly established to be from an ancestor common to wolves, but the 'where, when, and how' of domestication, as well as the effects of this event on the dogs' mind and behaviour have engendered lively debates in journals and at conferences. In this chapter, we aim to introduce the reader of this book to some of the more salient and some of the more neglected aspects in the field. Hence, in the first part of this chapter (Section 1.1), we set dogs within the framework of their canine family, presenting some of the intriguing features that appear to set canids apart from other mammal families and that may have set the ground on which the wolf-human encounter took place. We also highlight areas where more research is needed because so little has been carried out to compare different canid species from a behavioural and cognitive perspective. In the second part (Section 1.2), we focus more on the dog-human story, summarising the archaeological evidence and genetic data helping us to draw the picture of the early history of men and dogs and presenting a brief overview of the different hypotheses put forward as regards the effects of domestication on dogs' social behaviour and cognition. Finally, in this section, we also outline some of the key issues that need to be addressed to assess the competing hypotheses and move the field of canine cognition forward. We conclude (in Section 1.3) by suggesting that dogs' sociality and their potentially 'special' socio-cognitive skills likely emerge both from the specific characteristics of their canid ancestry and the unique event of having encountered and started living alongside humans. We further present an overview of the chapters in this book, highlighting how contributions cover studies looking at both dogs' social behaviour and cognitive skills directed at both conspecifics and humans, because both are equally necessary for a well-rounded understanding of our four-legged companion.
Significance
We present highlights of the first complete domestic cat reference genome, to our knowledge. We provide evolutionary assessments of the feline protein-coding genome, population genetic discoveries surrounding domestication, and a resource of domestic cat genetic variants. These analyses span broadly, from carnivore adaptations for hunting behavior to comparative odorant and chemical detection abilities between cats and dogs. We describe how segregating genetic variation in pigmentation phenotypes has reached fixation within a single breed, and also highlight the genomic differences between domestic cats and wildcats. Specifically, the signatures of selection in the domestic cat genome are linked to genes associated with gene knockout models affecting memory, fear-conditioning behavior, and stimulus-reward learning, and potentially point to the processes by which cats became domesticated.
Examples of interspecific interactions have been described for mammalian predators, but less is known regarding disturbances of native predator guilds by domestic predators. We investigated intraguild interactions among three opportunistic predators (dog (Canis lupus familiaris L., 1758), cat (Felis catus L., 1758)), and red fox (Vulpes vulpes (L., 1758)) co-occurring in the extensive farmlands of central Poland. Their space use was monitored using tracking stations distributed in field and forest plots along a distance gradient from buildings and analyzed using the occupancy-modeling framework. For all three species occupancy decreased with increased distance from buildings, although for the fox the pattern was relatively weak. The occurrence of cats at the stations was higher in the forest than in the field; for fox and dog, there was a strong variation between study plots. For all three predators, the probability of detection was higher during the night than during the day and varied between the seasons; however, the exact patterns were species-specific. The presence of one predator was also linked to the presence of the other two species generally, a given species was detected more frequently in the absence of the other two species. We recorded spatiotemporal niche segregation among the three species. We conclude that interspecific antagonistic interactions and differences in foraging ecology are the main drivers shaping co-occurrence of the three species in the agriculture landscape.
Domestic cats have evolved from solitary, asocial predators and whilst they may display social behaviours, they can still exist as solitary survivors. Over-population and relinquishment of pet cats are ubiquitous problems worldwide, and rehoming centres (also known as rescues/ shelters) aim to ameliorate this by holding cats in confinement for a variable period until a new home is found. The provision of optimal housing for large numbers of cats in close confinement, such as in rehoming centres, is therefore inherently difficult. Under these conditions there is the potential for individuals to develop signs of physical and psychological ill health, and thus experience compromised welfare. Available information regarding housing practices that maximise welfare currently provides conflicting results, and as a consequence there are no unanimous housing recommendations. The aim of this study was therefore to review the evidence on the impact of single housing compared to multi-cat housing on stress in confined cats, as measured by physiological and/or behavioural outcomes. The review was conducted using a Critically Appraised Topic (CAT) format. A systematic search of electronic databases (CAB Abstracts, Zoological Records and Medline) was carried out to identify peer-reviewed literature comparing single and multi-cat housing in confined environments.
A total of 959 papers were initially identified, six of which met sufficient criteria based on their relevance to be included within this review. All of the studies had significant limitations in design and methodology, including a lack of information on how groups were assigned, inconsistent handling and enrichment provision between groups, and lack of information on the socialisation status of cats.
Whilst some studies suggested that single housing may be less stressful for cats, others suggested group housing was less stressful. Several other important factors were however identified as potential mediators of stress within the different housing systems, and recommendations based upon these findings are presented.
Genetic and archaeological findings hint that wildcats became house cats earlier—and in a different place—than previously thought
Existing definitions can be structural or functional, refer to roles or to agonistic behaviour, regard dominance as a property of individuals or as an attribute of dyadic encounters, concentrate on aggression or on the lack of it, and be based either on theoretical constructs or on observable behaviour. Thirteen definitions of dominance are reviewed, and their usefulness assessed with respect to their descriptive value. By virtue of its high descriptive value, the original definition of dominance by Schjelderupp-Ebbe (1922) emerged as the basis to formulate a structural definition with wide applicability and which reflects the essence of the concept: Dominance is an attribute of the pattern of repeated, agonistic interactions between two individuals, characterized by a consistent outcome in favour of the same dyad member and a default yielding response of its opponent rather than escalation. Dominance status refers to dyads while dominance rank, high or low, refers to the position in a hierarchy and, thus, depends on group composition. Dominance is a relative measure and not an absolute property of individuals. Discussion includes reference to the heritability of dominance, application of dominance to groups rather than individuals, and the role of individual recognition and memory during agonistic encounters. -from Author
Factors affecting the feeding order of the group-living feral cat (Felis catus) were investigated by feeding experiments. The cats in the study area formed ‘feeding groups’ at garbage sites. The members of each feeding group consisted of males, which were immigrants from other groups, kin-related females and their offspring. We placed a container filled with food at three garbage sites and observed the feeding order. The results revealed that sex, body size, and age of the adult cats affected the feeding rank within the group: males ate before females, and larger and older cats ate before smaller and younger ones more frequently than expected. Among adult females, body size affected the feeding order, while age affected the order among adult males. Kittens were given priority in feeding, not only by the adult females, but also by adult males of the same group. This social tolerance within the group suggests that the feral cat forms a social feeding group, as has been reported in some other group-living mammals.
We suggest that variation in mammalian behavioural flexibility not accounted for by current socioecological models may be explained in part by developmental constraints. From our own work, we provide examples of constraints affecting variation in behavioural flexibility, not only among individuals, but also among species and higher taxonomic units. We first implicate organizational maternal effects of androgens in shaping individual differences in aggressive behaviour emitted by female spotted hyaenas throughout the lifespan. We then compare carnivores and primates with respect to their locomotor and craniofacial adaptations. We inquire whether antagonistic selection pressures on the skull might impose differential functional constraints on evolvability of skulls and brains in these two orders, thus ultimately affecting behavioural flexibility in each group. We suggest that, even when carnivores and primates would theoretically benefit from the same adaptations with respect to behavioural flexibility, carnivores may nevertheless exhibit less behavioural flexibility than primates because of constraints imposed by past adaptations in the morphology of the limbs and skull. Phylogenetic analysis consistent with this idea suggests greater evolutionary lability in relative brain size within families of primates than carnivores. Thus, consideration of developmental constraints may help elucidate variation in mammalian behavioural flexibility.
Anthropological theory suggests direct links between the origins of cooperation in hominins and a shift toward an energy-rich diet. Although the degree to which early hominins ate meat remains controversial, here we reevaluate the notion, originally suggested by Schaller and Lowther in 1969, that mammalian carnivores can shed light on human origins. Precisely when cooperation evolved in hominins or carnivores is unknown, but species from both groups cooperatively hunt large game, defend resources, guard against predators, and rear young. We present a large-scale comparative analysis of extant carnivore species, quantifying anatomical, ecological, and behavioral correlates of cooperation to determine whether metabolic rate, body and relative brain size, life history traits, and social cohesion coevolved with cooperation. We focus heavily on spotted hyenas, which live in more complex societies than other carnivores. Hyenas regularly join forces with kin and nonkin to hunt large antelope and to defend resources during intergroup conflicts and disputes with lions. Our synthesis highlights reduced sexual dimorphism, increased reproductive investment, high population density, fission-fusion dynamics, endurance hunting of big game in open habitats, and large brains as important correlates of cooperation among carnivores. We discuss the relevance of our findings to understanding the origins of cooperation in hominins.
The goal of our study was to describe tween a human and a cat and to determine the social behavior during the first encounter beinfluence of the sex of the cat, individuality of the cat, activity state of the person, and person type on the cat's behavior; and the influence of the age and sex of the human partner (person type) on his/her behavior. Nineteen colony cats encountered 240 unfamiliar test persons in a standardized one-cat/one-person situation. In half of the encounters, the behavior of the cat was recorded (A experiments); during a first five-minute phase (Ph 1), the test person was not allowed to interact with the cat; during the second five-minute phase (Ph 2), he/she was allowed to behave without any restrictions. In the other half of the encounters (B experiments), the behavior of the human partner was recorded, and the test person was allowed to behave freely from the start for the duration of five minutes. The influence of the factors listed above was tested by analyses of variance and t-tests. Cats show an enormous individual variation in their behavior. Neither their sex nor the age-sex class of the partner influences their behavior nearly as much as their own individuality. The activity state of the test person (reading a book versus interacting freely) influences the behavior of the cat with respect to most of the parameters observed. Human behavior toward the cat is influenced by the person's age (adults versus children from six to ten years of age) and, to a lesser extent, by the person's sex. The first body contact is a key event and occurs more quickly in the dyadic situation than when the person is looking at a book, since the human partner usually initiates social interactions and motivates the cat to accelerate coming into contact. In addition to the speed and chronology of contact initiation, proximity and behavior regulating the distance between the partners are useful measures for describing human-cat interactions in different social contexts. Single behavioral elements of the cat and the human also may be used as indicators of the character of the relationship.
Male homosexual behaviour in the feral cat (Felis catus) living on a small island was investigated in order to test five possible hypotheses for male-male mounting; mistaken-identity, dominance-assertion, sexual play for practice, fighting, and outlet for sexual tension. During female estrus, 26 cases of male-male mounting by 14 male pairs were observed. No male homosexual behaviour was observed outside the estrous season. Males that mounted males (MM male) were heavier, older and more dominant, while males that were mounted (RM male) were lighter, younger and sexually immature. All MM males not only mounted males, but also copulated with receptive females during the estrous season. The sexual-play for practice hypothesis is not supported, since it is unlikely that practice for heterosexual copulation is necessary for elder and dominant males. The fighting hypothesis is also ruled out as an explanation, because young and sexually inactive RM males are unlikely to be serious competitors for heterosexual copulation. The three remaining explanations have strong supporting evidence, but dominance-assertion and mistaken-identity hypotheses also have counterevidence. It is concluded that the hypothesis of outlet for sexual tension is the most valid explanation for the male homosexual mounting observed in the population.
This chapter reflects an amazing ‘success story’, the story of a predator species, the domestic cat, which has more or less conquered the world within a few thousand years - partly with the help of humans, but mostly because of its amazing flexibility. It is not a new story and therefore easy to summarise. The summary is based upon three chapters in the second edition of this book, namely Macdonald et al. (2000), Liberg et al. (2000), and Fitzgerald and Turner (2000), but of course updated with later findings. Nor is that success story without ecological consequences which continue to fire the debate between cat friends and cat foes - or at least cat lovers and conservationists. Both sides of this debate should view the evidence before making hasty judgements. Solitary life versus group-living: a question of resource availability. The domestic cat as a species and quite possibly as an individual shows amazing flexibility in its sociality toward conspecifics. Its ancestor, the North African wildcat, F. s. libyca, was (and is) indeed a solitary, territorial species, which presumably made use of the rodent populations concentrated in and around grain storage facilities of early farming settlements (see Chapter 7). As the likely story goes, this was beneficial to the farmers and they began provisioning the ‘wild’ cats with extra food, their home ranges became concentrated - and overlapping - around these human settlements and storage facilities, representing the first step toward domestication. The Resource Dispersion Hypothesis proposes that the dispersion of resources may be such that the smallest territory providing adequate security for the primary social unit (mother and offspring) may also support additional group members (Macdonald et al., 2000).
The young of several species of carnivores are often cared for by individuals that are not their parents. Tending to infants other than one’s own is termed alloparental behavior and may involve either “helpers” with no young of their own, or adults with their own offspring who also tend to those of other parents. We review the incidence of alloparental behavior among Carnivora, and consider the evidence for the evolution of such behavior in terms of the processes of kin selection, reciprocity and mutualism. In particular, we emphasize the view that the social organizations of carnivores are adapted inter- and intraspecifically to ecological circumstances. These social adaptations involve different individual strategies (such as helping or dispersing), and the development of complex social relationships. Although the functional significance of different reproductive strategies has received some thought, the developmental processes involved have been neglected. We suggest that studies of the processes that direct an animal towards a given reproductive (or social) role would be fruitful, and that they might most usefully be approached in terms of the effects of ecological circumstances on social organization, and on the development of individuals and their social relationships.
Discusses variation in Felis catus social behaviour, distinguishing between: 1) populations in which adult females are generally solitary and those where they are gregarious; 2) variation in group size and social structure, and 3) individual variation within and between age and sex classes in terms of the nature of social relationships. Specifically, note is taken of the significance of spacing, encounters, use of social odours, group size and structure, and social dynamics. Attention is paid to the nature and consequences of the social hierarchy that is established in farm cat societies, which varies considerably between populations. -S.J.Yates
Treatment of patients with epilepsy who also suffer from learning disability represents a significant problem, as this subgroup may account for as many as two sevenths of the population with epilepsy. A multidisciplinary approach to management is a valuable tool. Treatment of these patients has at least three dimensions, namely biological, psychological and social. Anti-epileptic drugs (AEDs) may have treatment effects in addition to seizure reduction, for instance a reduction in the number of seizure-related accidents and associated healthcare costs. There is still considerable controversy surrounding the issue of whether AEDs may directly produce psychotic episodes. The effect of an AED may be to unmask the personality that the patient has in the absence of seizures. There is also anecdotal evidence for vigabatrin rarely to produce psychosis when starting doses of 2 g per day are used, but not with lower doses. Evidence exists to suggest that there may be a role for behavioural treatment in patients with epilepsy and learning disability. The epileptiform activity of patients tends to be reduced when they are occupied, and this may be valuable in patient management. Moreover, anecdotal experiences suggest that seizure frequency of epilepsy varies with expressed emotion in carers and relatives. As carers may experience difficulty in coping with the restoration of personality in a patient who has previously required a considerable amount of care, explanation for the basis of this change should be provided. Care staff should be made aware of the relevant factors that should be monitored when auditing patient status. During patient follow-up, there should be communication between home, day centre and healthcare services, so that a complete patient record is available.
Domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus) are often housed indoors both singly and in groups. However, there is a lack of studies dealing with cat-cat relationships, group composition and effects of environmental parameters on the well-being of privately-owned cats. One way to index the effects of stressful situations is to measure glucocorticoid levels, as glucocorticoids are released from the adrenal cortex in response to stress-induced activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. Therefore, we investigated the influence of single and group housing on basal urinary cortisol levels of indoor-only domestic cats in private households, taking into account dominance
status and environmental parameters. Urine samples were collected non-invasively by owners from six single-housed cats and six alphaomega animal pairs of multi-cat households. Dominance status in group-housed cats was determined by competition test series.
Additionally, we compared cortisol levels of privately-owned cats with those of shelter cats. Results showed that basal urinary cortisol levels of cats in private households are neither influenced by housing style (single cat vs multi cat) nor by individuals’ dominance status. Correlations indicated a positive influence of human density, number of persons per household, and number of m2 available to cats on basal urinary cortisol levels, whereas cat-related parameters such as number of cats per household, number of m2 per cat, and number of persons per cat, did not have any significant influence on basal urinary cortisol levels. A comparison of basal urinary cortisol levels of privately-owned and shelter cats revealed no influence of location (private household, shelter) and group type (single, group [dominant or subordinate]) on basal urinary cortisol levels. This study is the first to investigate basal urinary cortisol levels of domestic cats in private households and an animal shelter considering housing style, dominance status, and environmental parameters.
Discusses patterns in density and home range size, there being great variability in each for both sexes in Felis catus. Group living is usually associated with females and kittens, though adult males are sometimes included. Roaming behaviour and overlap in male home ranges are noted. Mating tactics are discussed: there is no active mate choice in females, who mate with the most dominant male present; and although close kin matings are not uncommon, inbreeding is often avoided by females in oestrus temporarily leaving groups which contained related males. Comparison is made with spatial behaviour in other felids. -S.J.Yates
The objective of this study was to survey owners regarding the frequency and duration of their daily interactions with their indoor cats, the provision of toys and activities by cat owners and the prevalence of six selected behavior problems (aggression to owner, aggression to visitors, periuria, inappropriate defecation, inter-household cat aggression and intercat aggression to outdoor cats). The sample population was 277 clients from five veterinary practices who presented their domestic cat for anything except a behavior problem. The average number of toys and activities reported by owners per cat was seven, and the most common toys/activities used by owners in this survey were furry mice (64%), catnip toys (62%) and balls with bells (62%). Seventy-eight percent (78%) of owners reported that they leave the cat’s toy(s) available all the time. All owners reported playing with their cat, while most owners (64%) played with their cat more than two times per day and reported play bout durations of five minutes (33%) or 10 minutes (25%). Owners who reported play bout time equal to or greater than five minutes reported fewer behavior problems than those with play bouts of one minute (p<0.05). Sixty-one percent (61%) of owners reported that their cat engaged in one or more of the six selected behavior problem(s), but only 54% of the owners who reported behavior problems in their cats reported that they had talked to their veterinarian about the problem. The two most frequently reported behavior problems were aggression to owners (36%) and periuria (24%). Female cats were 50% less likely to be reported to have one or more behavior problems than males, in spite of an equal sex distribution in the survey population (p<0.05). The relationship between individual behavior problems and individual toys and activities was evaluated by use of a logistic stepwise regression. These findings are discussed as they relate to the understanding of behavioral needs of indoor-housed cats and the potential role of environmental enrichment in the home setting.
Intercat aggression is a common problem within multicat households. Diagnosis and treatment requires an understanding of the social structure of free-living cats and of how those interactions are impacted by confinement and household management practices. There are multiple causes of aggression between cats within a home, and treatment plans should be customized to account for the diagnosis and behavior pattern identified. Some cases of intercat aggression can be treated successfully without requiring full separation of the involved cats. In cases where separation is required, treatment includes steps for successful reintroduction and reintegration. Several situational and maintenance medication options can be used to improve the response to treatment.
Given the social and territorial features described in feral cats, it is commonly assumed that life in multi-cat households is stressful for domestic cats and suggested that cats kept as single pets are likely to have better welfare. On the other hand, it has been hypothesized that under high densities cats can organize themselves socially thus preventing stress when spatial dispersion is unavailable. This study was aimed at comparing the general arousal underpinning emotional distress in single housed cats and in cats from multi-cat households (2 and 3-4 cats) on the basis of fecal glucocorticoid metabolites (GCM) measured via enzyme immunoassay (EIA). GCM did not significantly vary as a function of living style (single, double or group-housing); highly stressed individuals were equally likely in the three groups. Young cats in multi-cat households had lower GCM, and overall cats that tolerate (as opposed to dislike) petting by the owners tended to have higher GCM levels. Other environmental aspects within cat houses (e.g. relationship with humans, resources availability) may play a more important role in day to day feline arousal levels than the number of cats per se.
Examined the social behaviour of Rangifer tarandus caribou at a time when their main food (ground lichens Cladina sp) is available only at snow craters dug by the animals. The competition for access to such craters was severe, the animals constantly trying to take over the craters of others. During a 2 month period when a group maintained a constant size (20) and composition (all age-sex classes represented), animals could be ranked in a rather linear dominance hierarchy. Rank was correlated with access to resources, percent of time spent active, and percent of time feeding in craters. It was also correlated with age and antler size. However, rank is not an attribute of individuals, but of a relationship between individuals. As such it is only an intervening variable between physical attributes and access to resources. Among the 3 attributes studied (age, sex, antler size), the latter was by far the best predictor of the occurrence and outcome of interactions. When their antlers were larger than those of an adult male target (ie males that had shed their antlers), adult females won almost all their interactions with adult males even though they escalated only 1/4 of them. This clarifies the speculation that female caribou have antlers and shed them later than males in order to overcome their sexual handicap in competition for food in the winter.-from Authors