Cats can seem mysterious and aloof. But a new study from animal behavior researchers suggests they’re not actually above it all. It’s possible that felines attach to their people just like dogs and babies do.
from animal behavior researchers suggests they’re not actually above it all. It’s possible that felines attach to their people just like dogs and babies do.
Both babies and dogs display the same basic attachment styles—secure or one of two types of insecure attachment—although they manifest differently in different species, Vitale says. Individuals with secure attachment are able to use their caregiver as a base and approach the world with confidence.
That reaction is the crux of the experiment, as it reveals how the cat thinks about their human. The researchers filmed the two minute period, then reviewed the clips with someone specially trained in identifying and recording the clinical signs of attachment, known as an “attachment coder.” The attachment coder looked for signs that mirror how babies and dogs react to this test, and grouped the cats into an attachment category.
“What’s really interesting is that we see the same patterns of behavior in dogs and babies,” says Vitale. The fact that the majority of all these species seek out their caregiver for a sense of security suggests there is an evolutionary advantage to doing so. And importantly, attachment style seems to be very difficult to change: The researchers enrolled about half the kittens in a six-week training course, but found that working with their human didn’t change their attachment style.
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