New research says cats may be psychopaths | thv11.com
By: thv. com
Anyone who has ever served as a cat's servant knew this. It's nice to have it confirmed
To narrow down how a cat could be considered a psychopath, researchers surveyed 549 pet owners. Credit: farbkombinat - stock.adobe.com
Have you ever wondered what was on your cat's mind? Well, a new study suggests that it may be something a little darker than we'd like to think.
Researchers at the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University surveyed several pet owners to see what level of psychopathy their cats landed on based on human standards. Their findings were published in the December issue of the Journal of Research in Personality.
What they found was that a majority of cats surveyed fell under the spectrum of psychopathy.
To narrow down how a cat could be considered a psychopath, researchers asked 549 pet owners questions like "My cat vocalises loudly (e.g. meows, yowls) for no apparent reason," "My cat runs around the house for no apparent reason," and "My cat does not appear to act guilty after misbehaving."
The "triarchic" concept of psychopathy was used to create a new feline-centric criteria for psychopathy. Under the "triarchic" concept, levels of boldness, meanness and disinhibition are used to measure psychopathy in humans.
Cats checked all three of those boxes, but two other traits emerged: human-unfriendliness and pet-unfriendliness.
In an interview with Vice's Motherboard, researchers said the reason cats may fall under this spectrum of psychopathy is due to their animalistic and wild nature.
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I like the picture of the kitty above. Looks like he's in a line up.
He needs one of those signs that tell us his crime.
It seems more like an "obey me human or else" look.
The caption for this was 'Good morning'
Oh Hey! You're up!
I might have told this story here before but it's a Xmas Cat story so I'm telling it again.
About 10-12 years ago we had the two older cats Stubby and Tasha and had acquired 2 kittens, George and Gracie. We put the tree up then all 4 of us (me, spouse, kids) each put a dollar in the "kitty" and made a bet on which "horse" would race up the tree first. My son won because he bet on Gracie. We all should have seen that one coming because while she was a sweet, calm, kitty most of the time, she adored trees and would get stuck in them
I'm not quite sure how my cats are still alive, other than maybe because LED lights don't use much current. They have chomped down on and broken several bulbs on my pre-lit tree.
No electrocuted kitty, no fire, thank goodness. My mind keeps playing the roasted cat scene in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. The little bastards could have at least managed to cut their own mouths to teach themselves a lesson, but I didn't see a drop of blood.
Nine lives...is not a myth
my last insane feline rosie would attack dogs if I let her outside.
she fucked up any chance I would've had with that hot redhead that lived upstairs with the 2 dogs.
Oh, so you like redheads, eh? I'm a strawberry blonde myself.
I can only date women now that have their first names incorporated into the tramp stamp on their lower backs, because I'm so forgetful. /s
Damn it!
You're a naughty boy and need to be punished. Where's Sister?
You didn't get the memo? You have to sub for Sister today
out getting a tattoo...
Where's my whip?
LOL!
Not my cat but since it was already in the gallery I decided to start with this one. This cat is probably not a psycho but I do believe he is wee bit spoiled.
It's Perrie's cat Wally
Spoiled? Maybe just a tad.
No, in Wally's place, there is no such word as "spoiled" - he is "ruint" and can do what he wants, when he wants, where he wants against who he wants.
That it - no choices when it comes to Wally - he can do it all
You're not going to tell me that he pulled that blanket up over himself, are you? Clearly he has a servant who caves into his every demand
She will readily admit she spoils the crap outta him
Yes, I do, but in my defense, he does not do any of those things that this article says cats do. He loves company, waits for us at the door, and purrs the moment we come in. Stays glued to my side all day and purrs when I look at him, and I don't give him treats so that is not the reason.
The spoiling he gets is that we love him to death and he returns it in spades.
I have dog friends who tell me that Wally is more dog-like than their dogs and want a Wally.
Btw, I have had nothing but wonderful cats, that were all very loving. I think that this study was done by dog people who needed a mouser.
The two psychos who run my life.
Charlene on the left...Stubby to the right
Aww. Stubby looks comfortable. The other doesn't look happy being disturbed...Haha
Yeah...those two. One minute they're wanting to kill each other the next they're accidentally snuggling. Stubby was there first and Charlene snuck up beside him. She's irritated at me because I disturbed her nap
They look really cute. Are they faking sweetness or are they sweet?
They're both really sweet cats. Stubby is grumpy but he loves me and Mr Giggles. Charlene is a stray we found in behind our shed. We started feeding her and loving on her and the next thing you know she moved in
Those are really beautiful fur babies, Giggles.
Thank-you! I love Yoda Cat!
Thanks, Giggles. She loves to be petted, everywhere but her tummy. That's a No No and warrants a swat on the hand just to make sure you get the message if you get too close to that area.
Need to see a picture of Ms. Yoda Cat Raven Wing!
Evening Tess..Raven has got a photo of Yoda on post 9.3...so if you scroll down you will see a photo of her...very nice kitty...
shona is correct, Tess. I posted three photos of my Yoda Girl Kitty up above. One as she looks now, one as a tiny kitten and one shows her napping and displays her combination of spots, stripes and rings on her tail similar to a raccoon, which is common for her breed of Egyptian Mau.
My Granddaughter named her Yoda as her ears tended to stick out to the sides like the character Yoda in Star Wars. But, being as she is a female, I added the Girl to indicate her gender. She outgrew the Yoda ears as she got older and her ear muscles became more sturdy. But, the name stuck, and is the only name she answers to now.
She's a cutie all right!
Stubby will roll over for belly rubs but only for Mr G
Yoda Girl just does not like her belly touched in any way. Since she is a loving sweetie I let her have her way about the belly rubs.
Thanks, Tess.
That may LOOK like my Fidget, but Fidget would never have pulled a dirty trick like that, cause he was just a big pussy-cat.
Bi-colored kitties have good personalities.
Cute. I had a tuxedo. A big old boy. Lived to be 18. He was a character.
That's pretty old age for a cat. Fidget lasted to 17.
My last tuxedo cat and bugs bunny cats were great.
But my grandpa had a long-haired tuxedo cat named Bootsie, and she was a psychopath. But she was clever - she would rub against your legs and purr, begging you to pet her. And she would love it for a few minutes.
And then she would flay you. No warning. Just teeth and claws, and suddenly your arm was bleeding.
He gave us one of her kittens, and he was just as mean as she was, but not as clever at drawing in potential victims. He just attacked. He was also a tuxedo cat.
Here..let me help
Getting charged for the next round -
Only 3 of our 11 -
Tried taking the test - way too many interferences from ads and "Do you accept our cookies" stuff. Interesting questions though.
I ignored it.
I never figured you for a cat person. 11, eh? Do they make you crazy?
I worked in Bio - I was way crazy before I got the cats.:-)
Bioenvironmental Engineering?
Yes'm - did that 2 years and transferred to CE Environmental.
I spent 9.5 years as a Bio troop. Loved the job. I had to take over as NCOIC when the real NCOIC went to Supply for a TDA for 4 months. I enjoyed handing out suspenses and then harassing the airmen when they didn't deliver on time. When it was my turn to go to Supply I found out there was nothing for me to do there. I went back to the shop, looked at TSgt P and said...I'm here to stay. They will call me when they need me. He just looked sheepish because he knew that I knew that he screwed around for 4 months. But at least I got experience running the shop
Got out of CG in '92 - got hired by DoD in '93 to work at Patrick AFB as the Lead based paint/Asbestos abatement program manager and Copper/lead water issues in housing. Had 9 techs and 3 civilians and I was the Supervisor. Col. Killian was the head Bio in San Antonio and he was a joy to work with.
Not only are they pshychopaths...they're fuzzy little dicks
My wife and daughters finally convinced me to let them get two indoor cats even though I'm allergic since they agreed to get the hairless Sphinx cats. No hair all over the house but the male is white with blue eyes which we didn't know until after we bought them has like a 70% chance of being deaf, which our cat is. He is without a doubt the most destructive little dick that no amount of yelling at will stop him from knocking whatever is on a shelf, table, desk or anywhere he can get to, onto the floor. We had to buy all new plastic 'faux' glass cups, glasses, bowls and plates because within a year and a half he had broken all our old porcelain and glass ones. He's absolutely adorable when he wants to snuggle, but he is without a doubt a fuzzy little dick when he decides to get up in the middle of the night and wreak havoc, which is pretty much every night.
His sister is grey and black, can hear and is the polar opposite of his destructive personality but wants to snuggle all the time no matter what you're doing. She will walk back and forth over the keyboard trying to get into my lap while I'm typing so frequently I often have to shut her in a bedroom with my daughters in order to get a single paragraph written.
Why are you yelling at him when he's almost completely deaf? LOL!
My Stubby who turned 18 this fall has started a new habit, one designed to get my attention, cave into his demands, and irritate the crap out of me. When he wants snackos he gets up on the coffee table beside me and knocks stuff off until I swat his tail or actually get up and give him snackos. He never did this until about a month or two ago.
What a face!
Time is short. Haha
Fuzzy little dicks . . . LOL!
Even after we learned he was completely deaf (I can sneak up on him with a running vacuum and he doesn't move an inch) it's hard to break the habit when we see him pawing at an unattended cup or glass.
And yes, that picture from ender looks just like him except when he's getting his chin and head scratched where he goes into a peaceful almost smiling purr
He also will stand by the open screen door at times and start talking which is absolutely hilarious. "Mwarr mwar, mwarrrrrr mwarrr mwar".. It almost sounds like a two year old child just starting to talk and trying out different sounds.
His sister will see birds out the window and start trying to chirp at them, hard to describe the little cat chirps but they're too funny. "Mrrwip mrwp, mrwwwwf mrffp...".
Mine get a look bliss when I'm petting them or they're getting chin scritchies
If there's such a thing as reincarnation, I want to come back as someone's pampered pet
OK so Russian Blues are horrible peckerheads. Every last one of them. My son-in-law has one and my sister had one, and they were miserable beasts to everyone but their dad or mom.
I had one when I was young. He was laid back but I kept wondering how he was getting fat, plus he would be gone at times.
Turns out he had another family...
Girl ran up and said, hey that's my cat...
This was my Baby Tasha who passed away in July:
She was a sweetheart...to me
that cat picture you used to use as an avatar always cracked me up.
I'm so sorry for the loss of your fur baby. She looks beautiful and she loved you and that is all that matters.
Awww c'monn Perrie - two of the best little "Blues" you'll ever want to meet. Just don't turn your back on them when food is out or at 3:00 when they're hungry.
'Lil Ghostie girl and
the Harley Man.
Anoon first...one cool cat in the car...Totally slothed out....did you get your kitty you were going to get a few months ago??
Yoda Girl says: She's ams a booful Kitah. Ans looks soo sweeets.
Raven says: So sorry for your loss of Tasha, Giggles. It's very hard to say goodbye to someone who is a large part of your family.
Yes'm - got two of the food vacuum cleaners - Wessy and Stormy - both Maine Coons
I love that guy on the right!
Thank-you. Stubby came to the graveside when we buried her. He took her loss pretty hard. He's better now
Thank-you. She was a sweetheart, very loving. To me. I was the only one she drooled on
Sieg Heil !!!
A Kitler! There is a club for them!
A Kitler...Hahaha
Now THAT one's got a real mean streak.
We have 2 indoor cats, Dazbog & Hetty. I have to spell out treats because they now know the word, will run to treat drawer if word is said. Husband says we have more cat furniture, toys, beds, trees than human furniture, only rooms that don't have cat furniture is bathrooms, and that may change.
I guess litter boxes are considered appliances or fixtures. Do your bathrooms have litter boxes?
I forgot about litter boxes. They are in half-bath off laundry room, that is cat's bathroom. An uncovered litter box for Dazbog as he is a big boy and a covered one for Hetty as she is a bit shy.
What's bullshit or you just posting a funny cat meme
The latter. I wasn't responding to anyone or anything. The subject is cats and I just happened to remember I had one in my repertoire.
Thought it was funny as cats seem to think they are the center of the universe.
Cool. I'm a little paranoid sometimes. I thought you were calling my humorous seed bullshit.
It's all good.
Do you mean cats aren't the center of the universe?
no it isn't. certain assholes that flag comments in your groups when they aren't participating suck.
Yes. That bugs the shit out of me. There is one who flagged you, Tessy, and someone else this morning on my Large Marge seed.
Well it sure as hell isn't me that does [that................]
[deleted]
was it the birther dipshit? he's the other brain dead fucktard that flags comments in here.
step a little closer to the edge...
No, it's not you
Nope. It's the one you told me to comment impasse after I tire of toying with him
Why am I not surprised? Certain folks I know flag just about every goddamned thing I post
ha ha ha, join the club. if you're in a place where you know that's going to happen, go big.
There's an expression I heard from an old boyfriend - 'If you're gonna go bear - go grizzly'
Morning..Yawn...
Izzz got my human up at 4am this morning..
It was an emergency....My food bowls were empty.....
My name is Mishka...but sometimes I get called other names...Izzz don't know why...
Beautiful kitty, Shona!
Thank you Trout....
But at 4am she is not looking to beautiful...would not be without her though....
She is just having breakfast now,,can hear eating her biscuits...She turned 11 in November...
Reminds of my favorite girl.
My Egyptian Mau, Yoda Girl. 10 y/o now....
Wow what a gorgeous kitty...one very lucky and happy kitty... Yoda has landed on her paws...
Mishka is snoring on my bed at the moment...
Thanks, shona. Her fur is a combination of stripes and spots, with a black stripe down her back and the white bib.
She was a stray and was just a wee little thing when I first found her...
These are her spots and stripes....
And she has rings on her tail similar to a raccoon.
She is my computer and printer assistant, and she is taking
a nap break on my roll-out keyboard shelf.
Awww...I just want to hold her and squeeze her and call her George!
I remember that cartoon LOL
Thanks, Giggles. But...why George?
Remember Looney Tunes? The Abominable Snowman? He used to do that to Daffy and Bugs
I'm surprised someone had to do a study to figure this out. What's next? Is water wet?
Not all water is wet. Ice isn't wet until it starts to melt
I had a cat that looked just like that little Black one.
me too. mojo. he used to steal my weed and hide it, then he'd raise hell when I got home from work until he got loaded. that crazy cat would do galloping laps thru the apt in the wee hours, over the furniture, across the bed I was sleeping in, and knocking over everything like a wrecking ball. the apt managers stole him when they quit the complex I lived in. they must have had better weed.
I'm a cat, don't piss me off.
Come on, we know that was from your younger days...
Haha
Here kit-ty. Here kit-ty!
I'm a shapeshifter so it's quite possible
Now this is a CAT!
you wouldn't want to clean that catbox, but if you had neighbors that liked to leave their ankle biting yappers out all night, that cat is the ultimate solution to the problem.
His turds aren't probably any bigger than a Rottweiler
you'd take your life in your hands with any cat toy...
"Birds and squirrels. Mommy, look at all the birds and squirrels." The smaller one is Onyx (she is 3). The big boy is Ghost who is 9. We brought Onyx home 4 months after Ghost's brother Darkness made his way to Summerland in June 2019. Ghost was fine until late September when he began yowling all night long. It took 2 weeks of that and the vet telling us he was lonely. Ghost & Darkness were always together. So we bring home Onyx (Ghost was not impressed at first). She was on display at our local pet supply store for a local shelter. She was called a ninja because she would get out of the display case and wander the store at night. One night she set off the alarm. She is definitely a psychopath. I don't think Ghost is - he is narcissistic, but I think most cats are.
all black cats feel stigmatized and sometimes lash out with misbehavior. /s
I love black cats. I had one I named Inky
Yeah, I can see their point.
We've had two cats, Princess a one-eyed calico, a rescue took her four months to warm up to us, and would hide under the bed... but the food was always gone the next morn, then one day, she came out and curled up next to the wife... Don't have a pic of her but she was the wife's buddy for 12 years...
Then we acquired Sheba, she was a barn find... Lady was advertising free cats and Duke needed a sister... so we went and had a look, she was part of a litter found in a barn after their mother was killed by a car on the road... her eyes were still closed so we couldn't take her till they opened... she barely fit in the palm of your hand...
About 11 years ago we had to put her down, she got to the point she couldn't walk... Another mama's kitty didn't take no crap from Duke either... definitely brother and sister...
11 yrs old here, 21 years old when she passed on, A grand lady to the last....
We miss her but can't bring ourselves to get another, it's like being disloyal...