When you’re feeling down, you might be tempted to turn to your pet for comfort.
But if you have a cat, scientists warn that this probably isn’t a good idea.
A new study has revealed that cuddling cats can actually make you feel worse when under stress.
Researchers from The Open University in the Netherlands set out to understand the effects of interacting with pets during stressful moments.
Their results revealed that cuddling a dog did not have much of an impact, while cuddling a cat made people feel even worse.
‘Our findings indicate that stress–buffering is not the mechanism causing momentary emotional well–being when interacting with a pet,’ said corresponding author Dr Mayke Janssens.
‘Interaction with either species did not act as a buffer for negative emotions.
‘In cats, we even observed that a higher level of interaction was associated with a stronger link between stress and negative emotions in owners.’
When you’re feeling down, you might be tempted to turn to your pet for comfort. But if you have a cat, scientists warn that this probably isn’t a good idea
Cats and dogs are hugely popular in the UK, with 30 per cent of Brits estimated to have a dog, and 24 per cent to have a cat.
While many people turn to their pets during stressful times, how helpful this is has remained a mystery until now.
To get to the bottom of it, the researchers enlisted pet owners, who were asked to complete questionnaires 10 times a day over five days.
The questionnaries asked about how they currently felt, what they were doing, and if they were interacting with their pets.
In general, the results showed that interacting with pets resulted in positive owner emotions.
However, if owners interacted with their pets when stressed, it did not protect against the negative effects of stress on mood.
‘The positive effects of pet interaction on well–being appear to be genuine, but they don’t seem to happen because pets help people handle stress better at the exact moment the stress occurs,’ Dr Janssens said.
‘Interacting more intensively with the companion animal did not provide additional emotional benefits beyond those that may arise from the animal simply being present.’
In general, the results showed that interacting with pets resulted in positive owner emotions (stock image)
According to the researchers, this suggests that a mechanism other than stress buffering is responsible for the beneficial effect of pet interaction.
Dr Janssens added: ‘It could be that interacting with a pet provides a sense of companionship and that pets help people feel more connected and less alone, which in turn could contribute to improved emotional well–being.’
While neither dogs or cats made owners feel better when they were stressed, cats actually made their negative feelings more intense.
The researchers suggest this might be because interactions with cats tend to be more passive and less demanding in nature.
Dr Sanne Peeters, one of the authors of the study, said: ‘A higher level of interaction might be more emotionally evocative.
‘This might not match the need for support in stressful moments.’
The news comes shortly after research revealed that while cats are happy to sit and watch you struggle, a dog will attempt to provide some assistance.
Researchers from Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary investigated how untrained pet dogs, pet cats and 16–24–month–old toddlers responded when a familiar person searched for a hidden object.
The majority of dogs and children displayed similar behaviour patterns, with more than three–quarters either indicating where the object was or retrieving it.
Cats, however, were much less likely to provide aid.
While they paid attention to the situation, they rarely helped – except when the hidden item was their favourite treat or toy, the researchers found.
‘This suggests that domestication, sharing our home, and forming close bonds are not sufficient to produce spontaneous, human–like helping behaviour,’ Márta Gácsi, senior author of the study, said.
The findings, published in the journal Animal Behaviour, are likely explained by the fact that cats ‘domesticated themselves’ and were never selectively bred for their cooperation, the scientists explained.
HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR CAT? THE 13 SECRET SIGNALS FELINES GIVE THEIR OWNERS
Cats are often branded aloof and solitary creatures who spend their days plotting their human owner’s demise, but such characterisations could not be further from the truth.
In fact, our feline friends constantly communicate their feelings of affection to us, whether it be through their whiskers, tail, face or body language.
In her eye-opening new book Kitty Language: An Illustrated Guide to Understanding Your Cat, author Lili Chin – with the help of animal behaviourists – explains how to interpret your pet’s movements.
Below are some of the most common behaviours and what they could signal.
Our feline friends constantly communicate their feelings of affection to us, whether it be through their whiskers, tail, face or body language
