Cats aren’t all bad after all, boffins have found.
Moggies have previously been written off as aloof and standoffish.
But researchers have discovered the sensitive pussies have been known to grieve alongside their owners when the family dog dies.
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Jennifer Vonk, a professor at Oakland University in the US, studied the behaviour of 400 recently bereaved cats.
She said: “If we’re grieving we tend to sleep more, eat less and definitely feel less playful.”
(Image: Getty Images/Westend61)
The professor went on to explain she saw the same evidence of mourning in felines – even those who had lost a dog.
She added: “And so the changes did seem to mimic what we think would be grief, based on our own experience.”
The professor also pointed out even when feral cats group together and form colonies with hierarchies.
She went on: “Unlike dogs, we tend to think that cats are aloof and not social.
(Image: Getty Images)
“I think we’ve been mischaracterizing them.”
Vonk also explained the closer the bond between the owner and the cat and the cat and the dog the deeper the apparent grief.
She said: “If they had a more positive relationship they’re showing a bigger change in behaviour.
“To me that is compelling evidence that the relationships they have matter.”
The research was published in the Applied Animal Behaviour Science journal.
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