A recent scientific study suggests that petting your cat may actually be stressing it out. This research was conducted by a group of animal behavior experts at the University of Lincoln, University of Sao Paulo and the University of Veterinary Medicine. This data focuses specifically on the stress levels of cats who are petted more in comparison to those who are not.
Kittens that live in groups and can avoid being petted if they don’t want to are less stressed than those who live in solitary captivity. Professor Daniel Mills Professor concludes:
I think very intriguingly, our data suggests that cats who tolerate, rather than enjoy or dislike being petted, seem to be the most stressed.
It seems that those cats on whom the owner imposes him or herself are the ones we need to be most concerned about. The results also reinforce the importance of ensuring that you give all individuals control over their environment…
You selfish cat-petting bastards.
(Image: West Vet)
