Experimental evaluation of attachment behaviors in owned cats

Abstract 

Attachment, a normal behavior among social animals, is quite significant since owners worry about their pets and take care of them because of this affective connection. There are not enough research studies that focus on attachment between owners and their cats. The general objective of this study was to identify attachment behaviors, directed toward their owners, in cats of different body types, age groups, and sexes in an experimental situation.

Twenty-eight cats, ranging from 1 to 7 years of age and having different body types, were used in the study without taking into account sex or reproductive status. These cats underwent an Ainsworth’s Adapted Strange Situation Test. Event frequencies and behavioral state durations in individual type behaviors such as exploration/locomotion, alertness, and inactivity were registered using direct focal sampling. For data analysis, cats were divided by body type, sex, and reproductive status. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) of locomotion/exploration revealed a statistically significant difference (N = 28, F = 13.55, P < 0.001) between the episodes with the owner, alone, and with a stranger with cats spending more time engaged in locomotion/exploration while accompanied by their owner. On the alert behavior event frequency, difference (ANOVA, F = 7.44, P < 0.05) was found, which showed a higher frequency while in the company of a stranger. Last, in the inactivity time ratio, a significant difference was found (ANOVA, F = 18.55, P < 0.001), where the time spent on this behavior was considerably higher when the animal was alone.

These results are consistent with the ones obtained by Ainsworth in children attached to their mothers; therefore, it can be said that cats can manifest attachment behaviors toward their owners. Further studies are indicated to see whether cats can develop separation anxiety.

Keywords: attachment behavior, owned cats, Ainsworth Strange Situation Test