# How attached are cats to their owners?



## 0ozma (Sep 22, 2012)

Kind of interesting, even though I don't agree with it. 






I can say first hand that 1) my cat would NEVER go jump on a stranger's lap and accept pets. He'd go up to them sure, but never on their lap and 2) My cat sits at the door meowing loudly when I leave, waits at the top of the stairs where the door is until I walk back in, and is completely all over me when I get home for at least 1-2hrs... I'd like to go into that room and ruin their previous 20 tests  :evil:


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## 10cats2dogs (Jun 16, 2013)

Hmmmm...Another one of those 'Studies' that I can't help but wonder...How much did this one cost!!
Three of my cats might say 'Hi'...
Three would be looking for a place to hide!
And one would be 'Observing' from a safe distance!!


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## cat face (Apr 4, 2013)

As soon as the stranger walks in mine would become vapor clouds. This is their reaction to any alien introduction in their world.

IF the _stranger leaves_, (instead of me, the owner) the vapor clouds would solidify into my cats again, milling around, sniffing the ground where the stranger was.


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## gizmothecat (Jun 26, 2013)

Gizmo would definately say HI-EEEEEEEEE and marshall might run first but curosity might get him to come back. Honesly I think they sense our feelings...when my sisters come over, my voice is very high pitched for them to come see whose here...but anyone else its my normal tone...they must pick up on that


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## lechon10 (Jul 23, 2013)

*Very cool*

Thanks for posting


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## cat face (Apr 4, 2013)

gizmothecat said:


> Gizmo would definately say HI-EEEEEEEEE and marshall might run first but curosity might get him to come back. *Honesly I think they sense our feelings.*..when my sisters come over, my voice is very high pitched for them to come see whose here...but anyone else its my normal tone...they must pick up on that


8O sooooo, based on your theory, of cats getting their cue from the owner's feelings, I think I need some kind of management class then if my cats <poof> when strangers approach!! lol


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## 10cats2dogs (Jun 16, 2013)

Cat face,
ROFLMAO!! Cat 'POOFING' Intervention needed for Cat face and entourage!!!


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## Tiliqua (Jan 22, 2013)

Haha - that study must have been done on Orion. He likes me. But if he had to choose between me and a stranger... it could go either way. If that stranger had a toy, well, no contest. He likes me and comes for pats and loves it when I feed him, but I think he has zero fear of anything and doesn't see new people as any sort of threat. And strangers have new smells and might have food or toys, so he has to check them out!

Aries would eventually come to check up with me but he is also very curious and I don't think he'd see me not being there as anything scary. I'm not sure about Gia and Karina, I've never had them out since I foster failed. They might be more attached to me and more nervous (although they do fine with strangers coming into the house). I take the boys out to my friends place or my parents place quite often and they don't get nervous. Someone feeds them and I'm usually somewhere and I always take them home again... so whether or not I'm there makes no difference, they will still play, explore and do their thing!


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## gizmothecat (Jun 26, 2013)

Hahahaha catface!!!! I just noticed that even shy marshall came to see what the hub-bub was when my voice was more of a high pitched tone


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## Jakiepoo (Jan 5, 2013)

Experiments like that can be so frustrating to watch just because of the fact that it seems to be a little biased towards proving that cats aren't really attached to their owners. I mean, when the owner left with the dog version the stranger immediately sat down and stopped playing with the dog. When the owner left with the cat, the stranger was still playing with that little string toy, obviously the cat wouldn't care, and I know many dogs who wouldn't care so long as someone was still playing with them. Not to mention the stranger interacting with and petting the cat when it walked over to her. The video just shows a little too much bias for my liking. 

I mean, I know I tend to need my cat for snuggles more than he needs me, but he does have a tendency to get restless when one of us (the immediate family) are gone for the weekend, and he gets rather content after a "stranger" (not a stranger to us obviously) leaves after spending a weekend. Which leads me to believe that he is pretty attached to us.


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## Kneazles (Nov 18, 2013)

To me this just says that cats are more independent. It has nothing to do with love. My son was super clingy when he was very little. He obviously isn't that way at 17. (That would be weird.) Does that mean he loves me less? Of course not. 

The narrator kind of mashes up the two things. 

And now I have over analyzed the whole thing. Sorry!


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## Cat'sHouse (Apr 5, 2012)

hmmmm. I got a different take on what I saw and believe. So here goes?

1st...the toddler has an attachment of course and a brain that is developing...I would say one that is about as developed as a two year old raised in a normal environment...i.e. nurture and needs met. The child is aware when something changes, but not yet capable of understanding what that means in the long run.

2nd, the dog.....old enough to have learned things and has a brain capable of memory and ability to form attachments and like a two year old child, can know when something has changed but never capable of understanding what that means in the future..they just worry about the NOW aspect.

3rd, the cat....possessing superior intellect it has already processed the changes and isn't going to worry about it for now. After all it isn't feeding time yet so no need to waste valuable brain cells over what isn't of immediate importance. time to play with this new toy (human) first.

4th: I like the clock...mine has birds on it but the sounds are weak..


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## zuma (Nov 5, 2009)

This reminds me of a story a prof told me a long time ago:

A scientist takes a frog, sets it down and it jumps 5ft. He jots down that a healthy frog can jump 5ft. Then he cuts off a front leg, sets the frog down and it jumps 4ft. He jots down that a frog without a front leg can jump 4ft. The then cuts off the other front leg and one back leg, sets the frog down and it jumps 1ft. He jots down that the frog with one leg can jump 1ft. He cuts off the last leg, sets the frog down and it doesn't jump. He tells the frog to jump and nothing happens. He yells at the frog to jump and nothing happens. He notes down that a frog without any legs is deaf. 

You can see and conclude anything you want. 
(and no, no frogs were harmed in the making of this)


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## 0ozma (Sep 22, 2012)

Well obviously the experiment was rigged. If no frogs were harmed, it wasn't a real frog he was using!


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## zuma (Nov 5, 2009)

It's not a real experiment 0ozma.  Just a story to illustrate that you can see whatever you want to see. 
The frog wouldn't be deaf either, but rather couldn't jump without any legs. So the conclusion is ridiculous. Just like the video above, to me it doesn't mean that the cat loves its owner less. You can't measure love whether one cat comes running as soon as the owner walks in the door. 


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## katrina89 (Jul 30, 2013)

Lol I think oozma was being sarcastic

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## zuma (Nov 5, 2009)

Oh, duh! Haha


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## Cat Lover Lennie (Jan 7, 2013)

Oh geez.....I'm a visual person.....the frog story had my face and lips all twisted up in an "ugh" look.
Cat Face.....I totally understand cats vaporizing. In fact, they anticipate stranger danger and vaporize if the doorbell rings. All but Rambo....he thinks he is responsible for my well-being. He will stand right BEHIND me and make sure I'm okay. I'm betting he would disappear if the going got tough. Everyone else would wander out when they were sure the coast was clear!
I think cats are awesome in their independence......probably why there are so many ferals. They know how to survive and help each other. Dogs....not so much! 
But there is nothing sweeter than going to sleep with Rambo beside me with his paw on my hand...and Little Lilah curled up against my leg. I know they love me and that's all I need to know!


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## NOLAKitties (May 30, 2013)

Kneazles said:


> To me this just says that cats are more independent. It has nothing to do with love.


Totally agree.

Being independent is one of cat's strongest traits. It takes a lot of work to earn their love, trust and respect.


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## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

It's really going to depend on the cat. Some cats are _extremely_ clingy to their people and others are _extremely _independent. Dogs aren't usually independent at all.

A cat comfortable in a strange environment with a strange person like the one(s) in this study are the extroverts and that lends more to an outgoing personality where they don't need their owner around to have fun.

Yesterday Jasper got outside (again... I've lost count of the number of times he has escaped and not one of them I've been responsible for - I've been the one to notice he's missing 99% of the time though *sigh*) and I found him right away in the backyard. He came _running_ over to me when I called him. I know he wouldn't have come running over to a stranger, he came to me because he wanted safety and was happy to see me.


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## 0ozma (Sep 22, 2012)

Sorry zuma!


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## Jetlaya67 (Sep 26, 2012)

I don't know about that research as far as Winston is concerned at least. When we go to the vet, he hides behind me when we go to the examination room. But, then again he IS a mama's boy.


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## Claiken (Dec 18, 2007)

I dont know... My cats pretty routinely greet me when i get home. they arent really too snuggley, except sometimes when its their idea. but a stranger, i think they would stand back and watch with interest.


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## FurbyFace (May 13, 2013)

Numly loves meeting strangers. She will walk right up and ask pets. I've seen her sit on the lap of someone she's known for a few minutes. She's oddly friendly. 


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## amy22 (Jul 5, 2013)

The cat in the video acted differently from all my cat experiences. Anytime I take a cat to a new place, they immediately hide. Whenever I have guests over, Freja usually says "hi" and may even get up on a lap; but if I leave the room she follows me regardless. She even sleeps on the air mattress with me if I've given up my bed to visitors


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## Straysmommy (Dec 23, 2010)

Totally disagree with that experiment. The strays downstairs will dash towards me when they see me coming with dinner because they ate last 24 hours before. They'll be all over me, the "provider of resources". They'll eat till they're stuffed full, then I'll appear again a half hour later without any food, and guess what - they dash to me and are all over me, rubbing against me, same as before - provider of safety and comforting and happy moments.


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## Aerona (Aug 9, 2013)

Isa hears someone at the door and bam! She is there begging for pets, practically crawling up the poor innocent visitor's leg. I don't think she has met a stranger she doesn't like. However, if I come in the door with someone else, she always greets me first. I get my normal vocalization (not a meow, not a purr, I'm not sure what it is but I translate it as "it is about time you got home!"), and leg rubbing and purrs. Then off to accost the other person.  Then as soon as I sit down, she generally curls up in my lap for a nap. 

When I first brought her home from the shelter, she was a little uncertain about the house. She wouldn't get very far away from me. It took her a few weeks to get the courage to go out of my sight. Now she goes off on her own occasionally but she is usually in the same room as me, if not on my lap. She likes to have conversations...I talk to her and she meows or vocalizes back. Someday, maybe I will figure out what she is saying. She has quite a few distinct sounds she makes.


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## miatetangco (Dec 13, 2013)

My brother showed me this and, seeing a bit of truth in the theory, I felt more proud than betrayed or unloved. Cats are tough, in my opinion. If they suddenly find themselves abandoned, they can survive. The way they act compared to dogs... to me, cats earn more of my respect with their behavior than if they were to come running up excited and panting, tail wagging.

Seeing them stalk and pounce and show great agility, flexibility, grace, etc is a lot more entertaining for me than running around playing tag (though I wouldn't mind if my cats played tag with me, sans claws and teeth). And to me there's nothing more relaxing or fulfilling to hear a cat purr in my lap or beside me while I'm petting him/her.


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