Cats: relationship between animal welfare and human personality.
According to a recent study, there are relationships between the personality of the pet mate and the well-being of the cat. A bit like what happens between parents and children.
A recent study investigated the relationship between pet mate personality and cat well-being. A kind of questionnaire that asked more than 3,300 people who live with at least one cat. The Big Five model was used to obtain the results of the study. A classification of personality traits that is based on 5 large dimensions:
- extroversion
- friendliness or agreeableness
- conscientiousness
- neuroticism or neuroticism
- mental openness
Those with high neuroticism scores tend to be less emotionally stable with greater states of anxiety, fear and anger, envy and guilt. The environment in which a child with parents with high neuroticism grows up is less stable . The child is likely to have frustration, aggressive behavior and report excessive shyness. Conversely with father and mother having low neuroticism there are fewer emotional or behavioral problems in children.
The results of the study demonstrated that greater neuroticism in feline pet mates results in worse health outcomes for their cat. In these cases, the feline may have problems with overweight, health or behavior problems, including aggression, anxiety and increased stress. Conversely, with low neuroticism scores in pet mates, then the cat will also have greater well-being. This is a correlation study and not a cause-and-effect study. However, we can thus understand the way we take care of our pets, including their health and behavior.
