They do, but not nearly as often as dogs. It’s definitely not something they would do with unfamiliar cats. It’s more a social grooming in a tight group. I see it a lot more often with overweight, old, or cats with disabilities. They prefer to clean their own butts if they can, but if you see your friend struggling it’s NBD to help them out.
I have multiple cats and can confirm they’re very social. I don’t recommend having one lone cat. My sibling confirmed it this year by noticing that their cat was behaving better when they got a second cat.
We often present cats as solitary creatures, but the reality is that they are very social, just not exactly in a way like humans or canines. That’s part of why cat colonies can thrive so well, they will help take care of each other.
You very much can have a happy lone cat, but they are normally getting that social stimulation from either the owner, or another pet, as needed.
In fact, the bathroom example this comic uses is an excellent example of a cats socialization! A lot of animals, humans included, are vulnerable when shitting. You’re in a compromised position, can’t move as quickly, it’s a dangerous situation in nature. So, they want to come watch over you.
If you have the litterbox somewhere like your bathroom, they may even use it while facing the opposite direction you are. To them, you’re watching each other’s backs, and can warn each other if danger comes.
Perks of being a crazy cat lady. It’s funny, I’m allergic to their spit, so as a kid I never liked them, but as an adult I’ve hardly lived with less than 3 cats around me for any amount of time. I love them so much even if they’re killing me slowly.
I have a friend with 3 cats and she’s terrifyingly allergic to their dandruff. She holds off on using allergy medications just in case she has a particularly bad reaction one day. It seems like a lot of effort for a few cuddles
The danger with Allergies is that even the most mild one could someday go overboard without warning, but I’ve seen my symptoms drop considerably just from exposure. Now I just get watery eyes if I don’t wash my hands after a petting session, and touch them. That happens maybe once every few months.
When I first started living with cats I basically had to mainline Benadryl just to stop sneezing. My eyes would get so swollen they’d be nearly closed. It definitely wasn’t pleasant, but at the time the girl was worth it, and now I just love cats too much to live without them.
Fun fact/potential wives tale: Apparently if you raise chickens alongside cats, the chickens will absorb the enzymes in their spit that causes the allergies in humans. Somehow they break them down and the remnants end up in the eggs. Eating those eggs has been known to reduce or even prevent all symptoms of the allergy. Edit: I looked into this further and it’s not eating the eggs yourself that does it, but feeding the eggs to the cats. Apparently the antibodies the chickens create when fed to the cats stop them from making the allergins all together.
I have to ask, how the heck did you end up with a cat in the first place? I, personally, avoid my allergies as hard as I possibly can. Seeing that my friend’s experience is not as unique as I thought it was is really throwing me for a loop
I had never lived with a cat until I was around 20. I met a girl who had 2 cats, and I liked her enough to suffer in the short term. We were together for around 6 years and in that time I fell in love with them. The pros outweigh the cons in my case. You don’t choose what you love.
They do, but not nearly as often as dogs. It’s definitely not something they would do with unfamiliar cats. It’s more a social grooming in a tight group. I see it a lot more often with overweight, old, or cats with disabilities. They prefer to clean their own butts if they can, but if you see your friend struggling it’s NBD to help them out.
I didn’t realize that cats were that social, thank you!
I have multiple cats and can confirm they’re very social. I don’t recommend having one lone cat. My sibling confirmed it this year by noticing that their cat was behaving better when they got a second cat.
We often present cats as solitary creatures, but the reality is that they are very social, just not exactly in a way like humans or canines. That’s part of why cat colonies can thrive so well, they will help take care of each other.
You very much can have a happy lone cat, but they are normally getting that social stimulation from either the owner, or another pet, as needed.
In fact, the bathroom example this comic uses is an excellent example of a cats socialization! A lot of animals, humans included, are vulnerable when shitting. You’re in a compromised position, can’t move as quickly, it’s a dangerous situation in nature. So, they want to come watch over you.
If you have the litterbox somewhere like your bathroom, they may even use it while facing the opposite direction you are. To them, you’re watching each other’s backs, and can warn each other if danger comes.
Perks of being a crazy cat lady. It’s funny, I’m allergic to their spit, so as a kid I never liked them, but as an adult I’ve hardly lived with less than 3 cats around me for any amount of time. I love them so much even if they’re killing me slowly.
I have a friend with 3 cats and she’s terrifyingly allergic to their dandruff. She holds off on using allergy medications just in case she has a particularly bad reaction one day. It seems like a lot of effort for a few cuddles
The danger with Allergies is that even the most mild one could someday go overboard without warning, but I’ve seen my symptoms drop considerably just from exposure. Now I just get watery eyes if I don’t wash my hands after a petting session, and touch them. That happens maybe once every few months.
When I first started living with cats I basically had to mainline Benadryl just to stop sneezing. My eyes would get so swollen they’d be nearly closed. It definitely wasn’t pleasant, but at the time the girl was worth it, and now I just love cats too much to live without them.
Fun fact/potential wives tale: Apparently if you raise chickens alongside cats, the chickens will absorb the enzymes in their spit that causes the allergies in humans. Somehow they break them down and the remnants end up in the eggs.
Eating those eggs has been known to reduce or even prevent all symptoms of the allergy.Edit: I looked into this further and it’s not eating the eggs yourself that does it, but feeding the eggs to the cats. Apparently the antibodies the chickens create when fed to the cats stop them from making the allergins all together.I have to ask, how the heck did you end up with a cat in the first place? I, personally, avoid my allergies as hard as I possibly can. Seeing that my friend’s experience is not as unique as I thought it was is really throwing me for a loop
I had never lived with a cat until I was around 20. I met a girl who had 2 cats, and I liked her enough to suffer in the short term. We were together for around 6 years and in that time I fell in love with them. The pros outweigh the cons in my case. You don’t choose what you love.
Thats twice as cute as what I was expecting, and I was expecting something incredibly cute. You don’t voluntarily suffer through your own body actively trying to kill you for nothing. I wish you and your cats many healthy-ish years together!