Many people do not like cats because of their behavioral generalizations, or observe the seeming oddity of them. What if I told you that humans are closer genetic relatives to cats than dogs..?
That’s fact, but here is my personal opinion- cat behavior often stumps or upsets us because cats behave more like humans than dogs?
Think about it. On the average, cats are much more protective of their personal space and autonomy. How many adult humans would just run up to strangers and act like best buds? How many humans are ok with strangers or acquaintances, even friends or lovers just touching them wherever whenever how ever?
Most people I know, if they are relaxing or napping and you started petting their bellies- your odds of a negative reaction are generally better than positive. Most people don’t run readily to you whenever you call their name for just any reason, especially when that reason doesn’t interest them or they see no direct benefit. Most people won’t just perform a trick..
.. if you tell most people “I’ll give you an Oreo if you roll on your back…” they’d likely say no or just give you a look and walk away no? Exceptions exist of course with people, but many cats don’t behave like stereotypical cats either. The point is that on the whole, when you stop and analyze it, cats tend to react more like your average person than dogs.
Am I saying cats are smarter or better? Lord no. Of course intelligence and measuring it, let alone how we tend to equate intelligence in all life to how it compares to human intuition and culture is tricky- but don’t take this as an attack on dogs or saying cats are better, it is just if you view cats more as another human than a “pet” on certain broad levels concerning their behavior, cat behaviors actually can start to make a lot of sense, or as much sense as humans anyway.
Not something I’d fight you on. Near as we can tell, Id say if cats behave like humans, they are like honest humans. It’s generally simple where you stand with a cat and you only have to worry about that particular moment. They ask for what they want as best they can and it isn’t part of some game or contrived social maneuvering.
Cat wants, cat asks. Cat doesn’t like, cat lets you know. They aren’t apt to sit there and suffer through to try and bank favor and they aren’t likely to think about asking for what they want beyond the fact that they want it. I might speculate that as much of what makes cats enjoyable to so many over people (cuteness asides), is as much internal as it is from the cat. Most people don’t overthink their relationships with cats or second guess everything their cats do. We tend to give cats the benefit of just chalking things up to misunderstanding or inherent nature over malice, and we tend to accept things on a much more face level with cats.
If you pet a cat and it doesn’t come back you might feel sad but you probably wouldn’t spiral over why it didn’t return or whether there was anything “real” to it or stew over how the cat used you for its purposes and left.
It’s not that I’d say things are transactional with cats vs. people or vice versa, it’s that people seem to accept reality readily with cats. Perhaps I might say- people who accept cats tend to accept cats as who they are whereas people in general have a habit of accepting people based on who we want them to be.
That sets the cat/human relationship up better in general as you probably aren’t expecting that your adult cat will suddenly take a love to water if it has always hated it or will enjoy your music- in fact you likely don’t care if the cat enjoys the music. If the cat is content to share your company while you enjoy its company and your music- that’s probably enough for you.
So I suspect there is a deep trove to explore there- but indeed, whatever the reasons and factors, I wouldn’t fault one who enjoys the company of any creature over humans. Not to say that human company is inherently terrible, but for whatever reason we tend to be able to have relationships with animals on realistic terms or not at all, and that cannot be said of human relationships with humans. Animals generally show us who they are and we accept that, humans tend to be more guarded or calculating in revealing themselves to us and regardless if we are shown the true then or not, we tend to impose our expectations and conceptions on other humans in ways we just don’t with animals usually.
That’s fact, but here is my personal opinion- cat behavior often stumps or upsets us because cats behave more like humans than dogs?
Think about it. On the average, cats are much more protective of their personal space and autonomy. How many adult humans would just run up to strangers and act like best buds? How many humans are ok with strangers or acquaintances, even friends or lovers just touching them wherever whenever how ever?
Most people I know, if they are relaxing or napping and you started petting their bellies- your odds of a negative reaction are generally better than positive. Most people don’t run readily to you whenever you call their name for just any reason, especially when that reason doesn’t interest them or they see no direct benefit. Most people won’t just perform a trick..
Am I saying cats are smarter or better? Lord no. Of course intelligence and measuring it, let alone how we tend to equate intelligence in all life to how it compares to human intuition and culture is tricky- but don’t take this as an attack on dogs or saying cats are better, it is just if you view cats more as another human than a “pet” on certain broad levels concerning their behavior, cat behaviors actually can start to make a lot of sense, or as much sense as humans anyway.
Cat wants, cat asks. Cat doesn’t like, cat lets you know. They aren’t apt to sit there and suffer through to try and bank favor and they aren’t likely to think about asking for what they want beyond the fact that they want it. I might speculate that as much of what makes cats enjoyable to so many over people (cuteness asides), is as much internal as it is from the cat. Most people don’t overthink their relationships with cats or second guess everything their cats do. We tend to give cats the benefit of just chalking things up to misunderstanding or inherent nature over malice, and we tend to accept things on a much more face level with cats.
It’s not that I’d say things are transactional with cats vs. people or vice versa, it’s that people seem to accept reality readily with cats. Perhaps I might say- people who accept cats tend to accept cats as who they are whereas people in general have a habit of accepting people based on who we want them to be.
That sets the cat/human relationship up better in general as you probably aren’t expecting that your adult cat will suddenly take a love to water if it has always hated it or will enjoy your music- in fact you likely don’t care if the cat enjoys the music. If the cat is content to share your company while you enjoy its company and your music- that’s probably enough for you.