A recent study has found that cats grieve the death of other pets, even their canine companions. The study challenges the notion that cats tend to be antisocial and moody. Researchers noticed common signs that indicate your cat is grieving the death of another pet, which many cat lovers have reported in the past.
Studies have found that cats grieve and mourn the death of companion pets, including the family dog.
Cat owners have believed that their cats can feel the sadness of losing a friend. Recent Research This is further evidence that they may have been right: Cats may be independent and aloof, but it’s not uncommon for them to grieve the loss of a loved one — and that grief can extend beyond just their fellow felines to the pet dog that lived with them.
The researchers noticed that the cats in the study had trouble sleeping and refused to eat. Cats are known to spend more than half of the day sleeping, so cats struggling to sleep could be a sign of a grieving pet companion. The cats also meowed to get their owners’ attention in order to cope with the grief of losing their friend. Additionally, some cats refused to play their favorite games when they were grieving the loss of their pet companion.
“Dogs, descended from pack animals, may react more strongly to the death of a conspecific, but cats living in human care are adapted to living with conspecifics and their ability to react to the death of a companion needs further study,” the researchers said. They studied more than 450 cats living with other pet animals. Pet owners were asked to record their behavior after the loss of their furry siblings.
“I think we’ve got cats wrong,” exclaimed Professor Jennifer Vonk of the University of Auckland. The study also said the longer a cat lived with other pets, the greater the impact the death of that pet had on the cat. But the impact was the same whether the cat witnessed the death or had other furry siblings to keep them company.
