Cats seem to grieve the deaths of companion pets, study finds
SalonCat intelligence is an ongoing area of research, with new discoveries being made all the time. "Future work is needed to determine whether these results reflect caregivers projecting their own grief onto surviving animal companions or whether cats may also experience grief following companion loss." Study co-author Jennifer Vonk, a professor of psychology at Oakland University explained to Salon how the new study attempts to further clarify the origins of cats' seeming "grief." "What is new about the study is that both the cats' relationship with the deceased companion and with the owner seem to predict how it will respond to the death," Vonk said. "They are impacted by the loss, but the findings are also are consistent with the idea that the cat is responding to changes in the owner's emotions and behavior or that the owner is projecting their own grief onto the surviving cats."
History of this topic
Do Pets Grieve, Too? Experts Explain How To Help Them Through Loss.
Huff Post
Dogs show signs of grief when canine friends die, study shows
The Independent
When a pet dies the grief can be as painful as losing a family member
Daily Mail
Why cats won’t punish a stranger who harms you
BBCDiscover Related
)
)
