Cat Talk: Would Cats "Eat" Us If They Could?

Created: 06/07/2022, 16:30

By: Sandra Barbara Furtner

What do cats really think of us humans?

Are we just "can openers" for them, family members or do we even count as "prey"?

Edinburgh (Scotland) – Most house tigers possess an incredible talent: they wrap themselves around our legs so adeptly that they almost intentionally trip us.

Or they suddenly lie directly behind our feet and just cause us to fall.

Particularly clever: when they ambush us from the highest position in the closet, ready to strike at the first possible opportunity, or to jump down on us.

Some grab their weapons, use their claws or bite.

Why are you doing that?

Cat Talk: Would Cats "Eat" Us If They Could?

Would cats eat us if they could?

(Iconic image) © imagebroker/theissen/Imago

If house cats were bigger and stronger, would they kill us?

How do house cats see us, are we friends, foes or just their "can openers"?

Different scientists keep getting to the bottom of this question.

Researchers from the University of Edinburgh (Scotland) say: Domestic cats are quite similar to their wild relatives in the wild.

They show the same character traits and are just as dominant, aggressive and sometimes even neurotic.

Cat Language: Cats build an intimate relationship

Another expert, animal psychologist Max Wachtel, adds: If cats were as big as a lion or leopard, it's quite possible that they would also see us as prey.

But there are also other opinions.

Of course, cats have minds of their own and can change moods in a matter of seconds.

Just cuddly, they chase our claws into our hands in a flash.

Despite this, other animal psychologists believe that a house cat would never "slay" its human.

Rather, cats develop an intimate relationship with their caregivers and see them simply as oversized "surrogate parents" on two legs who are perhaps a little too slow and clumsy.

Cat Talk: Bonds become more intimate over time

They show this clearly, for example by behaving, snuggling up to their humans, blinking and even cleaning them.

If we were enemy or "prey" they would never do that.

Researchers at Oregon State University have used different tests on attachment.

Their conclusion: "Once a bond is established between a cat and its owner, it appears to be relatively stable over time," Kristyn told Vitale, study author and researcher at Oregon State University's Human-Animal Interaction Lab the US broadcaster CNN.