The study shows that cats can also do an excellent therapy: Cats.com

A recent study of Washington State University has found what cat lovers know that they are true: cats, in all their peculiarities and irritations, have great therapeutic qualities, and many of them could do a therapy animal as large as a dog, despite the fact that the vast majority of therapy animals in the United States are dogs, and many people think that cats are not suitable for this work.

He studyPublished in Animals magazine, he explored whether cats that participate in animals assisted by animals (AA), which help people with emotional, physical or mental challenges have different behavioral features than non -AAS cats. In fact, the study They discovered that AAS cats obtained a higher score in sociability with people and cats, the search for attention and predatory behavior. On the contrary, AAS cats obtained lower scores in restriction resistance, compared to other cats.

These findings suggest that considering that cats are lower than dogs as therapy animals is a wrong idea, says Patricia Pendry, a professor who is in the Postgraduate Faculty in Sciences of Prevention of Washington State University based in Pullman.

“For years, people were a kind of cats,” says Pendry in an interview. People would say: “Cats are not adequate, and cats are difficult.”

But that is not true, at least for cats with the quiet and tolerant personality necessary for therapy animals, she says.

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“They are just a different type of animal … and we must respect it,” says Pendry. “We really want to examine that myth that cats are not suitable for this type of work.”

Pendry, who is originally from the Netherlands and speaks Dutch, has been investigating human-animal interaction for several years. For this study, Pendry worked with researchers in Belgium and surveyed about 500 cat owners about the behavior traits that their cats show. The researchers used a flamenco translation of the Feline Behavioral and Research Evaluation Questionnaire. For those owners whose cats are involved with AAS, the study examined whether these cats showed different behavior features. They discovered that cats that worked in therapeutic roles were more sociable with people, more sociable with other cats and more tolerant of being collected and touched.

“They all own everyday cats, and only a small number of people met the requirements to say, yes, this is definitely a therapy cat,” says Pendry. “We ask the owners to describe their cats, and these cats (therapy) were more attention seekers.”

In Europe, where therapy cats are more common than in the US. These interactions between cats and people in universities provide people with an awareness of felines and how they differ from canines.

“If you find a campus cat, you know that … it requires a different type of behavior so that humans get involved with that cat, and that is something really positive,” says Pendry. “A cat will not tolerate certain things, while a dog will be obedient with its owner. It teaches people to be really aware about the mutuality of an interaction.”

Does the study show that cats can even be better therapy animals than dogs? No, Pendry says, but, for certain people, cats can be a much better offer. Some people feel uncomfortable with the enthusiastic energy and size of the dogs, and prefer to have a quiet and snoring animal on their laps. That type of patient is a snoring for a therapy cat, and can miss the opportunity if there are only available therapy dogs.

“You are losing a possible participant in animals assisted due to their disgust or discomfort with dogs,” she says. “A cat could be the type of animal with which they are interested in interacting.”

Kirsten McCarthy / Cats.com

Cats have a soothing quality in them, especially when they snore, and that makes them wonderful therapy animals for many people, says Pendry.

“We know that, especially when we deal with older people who can have lost mobility, having a cat in his lap that feels happily and loves to be a pet and purr can be a wonderful interaction,” says Pendry. “It makes the person feel: ‘Wow, this cat enjoys this.’ That makes us feel good.

Pendry has three of his own cats: Red, Mango and Charlie, and his fellow researchers also have personal experience with cats, so it was not too surprising that many cats have features that would make them prosper in a therapeutic role.

“We presume that there are cats that can probably prosper in these environments,” says Pendry. “Is there any observable and measurable feature that these cats have? As it results, it exists.”

We have executed some articles on notable cats that became dear therapy cats. A Hawaiian cat named Liza, who could have come from a hoarding house and was returned to the Maui human society twice, was lucky. While Liza waited in a cage in a pet store, she saw a woman whom she linked as her person and crossed her through the cage. Liza was adopted, and her mother saw something very special in her purrsonality. Liza became a cat of therapy, and visit children in a children’s hospital, many of whom are recovering from traumatic brain injuries. Patients are very excited to see sweet brown tabby!

Then, there is Raúl, a retired therapy cat that brought a lot of joy to the children he visited. He began when Raúl’s human mother, Sarah Morr, noticed that her quiet cat did not seem to care when her children’s play dates became strong and energetic, something that would lead many cats to run and hide. Morr obtained Raúl’s certification, and began visiting young children at school, where the cat kept them in company during the reading exercises. He started bringing his other cat, Carl, to join the sessions and pushed Carl through the halls in a stroller. What a sweet!

Do you have a particularly sweet, relaxed and tolerant cat that you think could be an animal of Purrfect therapy? According to pet partners websiteThe Animal Therapy Company is looking to double the number of Gat Human Couples and offers online training. If your cat has the right temperament and is willing to invest time and energy, I am sure that an organization would love to have it.