Table of Contents
- Why Cats Make The Best Pets
- 1. Cats Are Less Dependent
- 2. Cost-Friendly Living – Rent Free Buddy
- 3. Blissful Indoors, Curious Outdoors
- 4. Cats Can Groom Themselves
- 5. Potty Training a Cat is Easy
- 6. Nonverbal Communication
- 7. Your Personal Pest Control
- 8. Cats Trust Like No Other
- 9. Cats' Indifference is a Misconception
- 10. Taking Care of Cats is Taking Care of Your Health
- 11. The Zoomies
- Commonly Asked Questions About Cats
- Cats Make The Best Pets Summary
Cats may be the epitome of perfection. These feline friends are most capable of captivating our hearts with their little fluffy existence and ominous schemes. Here is why cats make the best pets.
Despite their sometimes lousy reputation due to their seeming indifference or scratching and biting, cats can be one of the best companions in life.
Cat videos can be addictive to watch. Watching their curiosity, how they handle unfamiliar situations, beg for food, and vie for your attention. They are hilarious, adorable balls of sinister.
Let's look at some of the excellent reason that makes cats the best pets.
Why Cats Make The Best Pets
If you're a dog person, it's okay! But If you say you hate cats? Keep reading, and you may change your mind.
There's a short quote or saying that I've read on the internet that says, “Don't trust people who hate cats.” The possible problem with people that say they hate cats is that they haven't had experience with a cat.
Admittedly, unlike most dogs, it can take a lot of work and patience for cats to be able to trust you. Here are our top 10 reasons that cats make the best pets.
1. Cats Are Less Dependent
So why do cats make the best pets, you ask? Though not as friendly as dogs are, there are perks in living with a cat that doesn’t socialize as much.
A cat’s attention span is surprisingly long towards its humans. They sleep almost 16 hours a day. Half of that is spent on self-grooming, then probably meals, zoomies, and potty.
Then comes their time with you, which can be playtime, pets, or even just chilling with you.
You don’t have to exert so much effort in bonding with your cat. With you within their adjacent, they’re happy to know that you are hanging out with them.
Most cats are solitary animals, but they still enjoy the company. Cats are very adaptable in terms of living conditions.
They can live alone or in groups even after establishing a social relationship with others.
It might be due to their ancestral cat instincts that hunt and live alone without having to depend on others for food and protection. African wildcats can only sustain enough for themselves since their lone hunters.
But not all cats fit the non-social trait. There are a lot of conditions where-in cats are friendly, like cats living amongst other cats, pets, or a home that is occupied by a lot of people.
So if you want to get a cat with a cat friend, you can always introduce them to each other.
2. Cost-Friendly Living – Rent Free Buddy
Cats can live in every shape and space. As they say, cats are liquid. On a more serious note, these feline friends do not need ample space in terms of living. They are perfect companies for homes or even apartments.
For a single cat, 18 square feet is enough space for them to share with you.
They still tend to take a nap on your laptop (even when you’re working) or in the middle of your bed, maybe even a flower pot or jar, cause they can.
They don’t have many necessities needed. Separate bowls for water and food, their daily munchies, some treats, litter sand and box, and some toiletries are good.
Cats are ridiculously cheap. You can buy them a cat tower or a large bed thrice their size, and they’ll sleep on the box that comes with it.
Buy them expensive toys? They rather ravish your shoestrings.
But there’s no problem in spoiling your fur baby. You can still buy them cat towers or sky-high carton boxes. I’m sure they’ll appreciate it.
Maybe miniature human beds for them look cute as well? Plus it’ll look good in your room.
But don't get me wrong, there is an overall cost of cat ownership.
3. Blissful Indoors, Curious Outdoors
Cats can live indoors and outdoors. They can even be content living in an indoor setting. Contained in a big box where they have warm shelter, lots of fresh food and water, and someone who cleans their dirty business is a great luxury for them.
Plus, watching outside is all protected and comfortable now that’s living.
Cats, they say, have bred themselves to be domestic. Studies suggest that even after thousands of years of residing with humans, Felis catus has created a beneficial relationship with humans.
Besides their coat changes and some behavior modified through the years, cats haven’t changed since their first encounter with humans.
Capturing pest farms in exchange for a warm meal or a warm shelter, cats have been doing this for thousands of years.
So whether it’s outdoors or indoors, cats will always find a way to make a living.
Cats are extraordinarily flexible, literally and not. They adapt to living situations quite nicely. Providing them with their essentials and introducing them to new things gradually, they’ll be okay with changes in no time.
4. Cats Can Groom Themselves
Yes, it looks odd, but it’s their way of life. Cats spend most of the time they’re awake grooming. Self-grooming helps them keep their skin and coats healthy.
Their tongue is designed with brush-like bristles that help untangle fur and remove buildup, loose hair, or grime in their coat or skin.
The licking tends to mimic the brushing-like motion into their skin. This helps produce natural oils and be distributed while they groom.
Self-grooming can also indicate their health. Cats that seem grimy that have not been groomed as often can be a sign of physical or emotional illness or maybe of old age.
This can help you determine if you should have your feline buddy to get checked up.
But remember, you can always help your cat with their grooming. Brushing their hair once and a while helps their skin and fur stay in their exceptional shape.
A bath once a month or two can also help their skin and coat stay healthy.
5. Potty Training a Cat is Easy
Cats have this basic instinct to use litter sand, sand, or soil as their litter. You can introduce litter sand to a kitten or a grown-up cat maybe once or thrice, and they automatically know where they should do their business.
Yes, you do not need to go for walks and pick up feces or have their fecal matter out. They urinate and defecate, and they bury them.
They even groom themselves after. One of the best things about cats is they look after themselves quite a lot.
Cleaning their litter is also convenient. You get a scoop and a plastic bag, pick up the clustered trash, and that’s it. You can refill it, too.
Seeing your cat’s litter is the easiest way to know if they’re eating and drinking healthily. You can even determine if they are sick by observing them, too.
6. Nonverbal Communication
These feline friends aren’t usually vocal, so there’s no noise rambling about in your home most of the time. There’s a lot of silent duration when you’re with a cat unless they know it’s mealtime or they can get a snack or two from you.
Kittens usually make sounds to call attention to their dam when they need assistance, especially since they are still incapable of doing most things alone.
Adult cats do not usually meow anymore unless needed, but they don’t have any other uses for it.
Cats ‘Meow’ is an altered behavior towards humans. They only make a sound toward humans to call out for attention or communicate until they get what they are trying to convey.
Other than that, cats only make the weird screeching sound when threatened or in dispute with another creature. For someone who doesn’t usually make a sound, it’s loud.
Cats don’t usually speak as dogs, birds, or reptiles do unless any of that happens. Unless deemed necessary or in danger, they don’t communicate verbally.
7. Your Personal Pest Control
Cats are in the middle of the food chain. They are both prey and predator. It’s their instinct to hunt for food or stay alert in case of predators.
A cat’s scent can even discourage pests from taking over where the cat's scent is. That saying, cats are territorial. They spread their scent everywhere inside their home.
There is even a government organization that rescues feral cats and spays them. Before they return to their respective territories, they are given the job of pest control or have trained for it.
Even the prime minister has Larry the cat as his pest control (though, according to him, he isn’t good at the job)
Since selective breeding has been used for the past few years, not all cats have lived without having to hunt for pests. Don’t worry. Stimulating your cat is just the answer.
You can use toys similar to mice/rats or other pests during playtime to revive their hunting instincts.
After catching the mice look-alike, giving treats should help them discern that doing the same with natural pests will gain rewards, such as a treat.
8. Cats Trust Like No Other
Cats are cynical creatures, and you can’t blame them for it. They are both predator and prey, and it’s something they need to be alert about.
So if you have established trust with your cat, where they find you as their security and comfort, that itself is a massive triumph in life.
Felines have difficulty when it comes to establishing trust or relationships. May it be another animal or human, even with other cats.
Patience, diligence, and care are the key to building your bond with your cat.
9. Cats' Indifference is a Misconception
Like other animals, cats can also detect other people's or animals' emotions. They can feel when their companion is distressed or is in deep turmoil.
You won’t notice it at first, but they tend to arrive at your presence when they feel like you’re not feeling your best.
They’re also known for their therapeutic purring. As they accompany you, maybe they will purr around you, which is scientifically proven to improve both the cat's and the owner’s distressing emotions.
As you get distracted by their presence, you tend to shift your attention to them more than the distressed emotion you’re feeling.
10. Taking Care of Cats is Taking Care of Your Health
Babies less than a year old are less likely to have asthma or allergies, amongst other objects, if exposed to cats for long periods.
New studies have shown that owning a cat can reduce stress and reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.
Not only cats have Purr therapy, but it has also been linked to helping minimize anxiety. Cats also stimulate our brains to release soothing chemicals that promote happiness and relaxation.
A study from Indiana University Bloomington found that just watching cats or even cat videos helps elevate positive emotions and alleviate the negative state of mind.
11. The Zoomies
The moment they wake up after sleeping throughout the day has built up this enormous and vigorous amount of energy that has to set off. That is what we know as the Zoomies.
This site is one of the most ridiculously amusing cats. It’s hilarious to see them in another light, from their usual elegant demeanor, mysterious silence, and dozy mien to a comical, seemingly unstable gesture.
This supposedly random, but not-so-random maneuver is their way of releasing their vitality, which is supposed to be used in hunting.
But since they live in a much safer environment, where they are unlikely to be the prey, they unleash this by running randomly around instead.
Instead of hunting for prey, they’ll be chasing around about anything to mimic hunting to release this energy. You’ll see the cat's ears panning and eyes dilated as their whole focus picks up anything that makes a sound or moves and chases that.
To ensure your cat doesn’t do the 3:00 am Zoomies, make sure your body clock is in sync with theirs.
Feeding them twice a day with treats in between and having to play with them during the mid-afternoon or night can fix their circadian rhythm, which can harmonize with yours.
And those are the reasons why cats make the best pets.
Commonly Asked Questions About Cats
Are cats loyal?
Loyalty in dogs is very different from loyalty in cats. For instance, if you watch a dog show or training show, you'll see that the dog obeys their human because they feel like they are the alpha dogs.
But in cats, they'll never think of you as the alpha. They'll see you as someone equal.
You can't force them to do anything. If cats are loyal, they are genuinely and truly loyal. They chose to be loyal.
Will a cat protect its owner?
Yes, cats can be just as protective as dogs.
Cats get a bad rap for being mean and not affectionate to their owners. But the truth is, they love their humans as well.
You might not realize this, but your cats pay attention to your movements. They can even alert you to medical emergencies like cancer and carbon monoxide poisoning.
Do cats understand words?
Cats do not understand or interpret human language, but they know when you are talking to them.
It is the same with their meowing. We can't understand what they're saying, but we know they're talking to us.
On the other hand, studies have shown that cats respond to human vocalizations, gestures, and expressions in some cases. Depending on their mood, of course.
Cats Make The Best Pets Summary
If you dislike cats or are scared to adopt cats, I hope the reasons above why cats make the best pets have helped you decide.
Cats have a different way of captivating our hearts. They are loving but, at the same time, will try to attack you once in a while.
They love to sleep and loaf around, but at the same time, they can be a bit naughty. There are a lot of reasons why cats make good pets.
They are independent (but also love to be petted), cost-friendly, groom addicts, and can even help with your mental health.
Cats might be the best pets for some, and maybe they'll be for you too. It's time for you to find out!