However, to many people and their professional organizations, I should not attribute human emotions to my pet cats.
If someone goes into a burning building to save their children, we consider that an extremely unselfish act. It indicates a high order of moral reasoning. It means this parent possesses that greatest form of love, sacrifice.
It is human altruism.
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If we were to call such a response “instinct,” we would be criticized. Except… when a cat does the same thing, it is “only” instinct.
I didn’t know until I went googling, but on October 15, 2008, Scarlett the cat passed away from multiple illnesses. She had lived with her forever family in Brooklyn, New York for over 12 years. I vividly remember the story: an abandoned garage caught fire on the 29th of March, 1996.
Fire engines were soon on the scene and the blaze was almost extinguished when Fireman David Gianelli heard faint mewing coming from near the ruined building. He found there, huddled together, two 4-week-old kittens; and three others were found just across the street. Their mother, who had been badly burned, lay nearby.
She had rescued her brood from the burning building and, as she could carry only one kitten out at a time, must have made five separate journeys into the thick, choking smoke and blistering heat in order to do so. Her devotion, courage and persistence are almost unbelievable.
Gathering all the animals carefully into a box, Gianelli noticed that even though her eyes were swollen shut, the mother cat counted her babies by touching each with her nose, making sure all were there, before herself lapsing into unconsciousness.
The North Shore Animal League took in Scarlett and her kittens, nursing all but one badly injured kitten back to health, and found homes for everyone. They have since created an award in her honor, presented to animals that take part in actions that benefit humans or other animals. It is called the Scarlett Award for Animal Heroism.
I lived on Long Island at the time, so it felt very close, and made local headlines. I’m so happy Scarlett and her kittens got good homes. I adopted two dogs from the North Shore Animal League, and can testify to their dedication.
It’s true that kittens grow up, and mother cats often don’t get along with them. The cat template for adults is different from the human one. But when it counted; this mother was there for her babies.
Call it instinct, or call it sacrifice. Isn’t it the same thing?
Is it any different from what any of us would do for those we love?
If we have a few extra bucks, consider sending it to the North Shore Animal League.
For more about cat capabilities, see my article about their higher brain functions.
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As a scientist I try to be careful because on one hand it is true that it seems that my cat doesn’t understand concepts like math or ‘later’ but it is true that he has emotions.
Frankly anthropomorphism has elements of elitism in it that are a back to a time not so recent when humans were ‘gods chosen’ and could never be related to animals (see what happened originally to Darwin).
Slowly that attitude is changing but to many it requires crossing a gap bigger then the grand canyon
When our cat Boris was slowly dying, we were amazed at how Keaton stepped up and took care of him for those last few months. You almost wouldn’t have known that Boris was sick because he was so perfectly groomed, and it was all because Keaton did it for him. His underside wasn’t quite as pretty since he wouldn’t let Keaton roll him over and groom his belly, but Keaton kept him clean and comfortable until a couple of days before the end when Boris started to hide from all of us.
I’m sure someone somewhere will try to convince me that there was some deep evolutionary rationale that means Keaton had no actual emotions towards Boris and was only grooming him for mechanistic reasons, but it would all just be tapdancing to avoid the most logical conclusion.
keaton was was a good buddy,,,,,, we all deed a good buddy,,,, even if we dont want our belly washed…
I recall the story of Scarlett but hadn’t heard that she’d passed on. It’s nice to know that she had 12 years of life off the street.
That really is silly to call you a scientist just because you watch the cats and draw conclusions from them. I do that all the time. It is very interesting all the interactions of the kitties. I have three very feral cats that are about a year old, and one of them will come in the house all by himself when I leave the door open but the other two will hardly come in the yard. They are all boys and will let me pat them, but they are still very scared except for the one that comes in the house.
Loved the story about the Momma kitty that rescued all her kittens. That was terrific.
Take care Pammy. Sorry I haven’t been around.
Pam, I’m not surprised that you’d be accused of assuming human motives to cats. You’re an excellent observer, but you aren’t using some Ouija board to “read the cats minds”!
There is this tendency to see ourselves as separate us from other animals, and part of that is to define some of the things we do as evidence for the uniqueness of humans, insisting that no other living thing does what we do. It’s a pretty silly argument.
Some of the folks who say you are putting human characteristics into cats by assuming cats have feelings, are like the persons who used to think little children had no spontaneous helpfulness or empathy for others because they couldn’t explain being helpful. Of course, when they finally bothered to look, they saw little children being helpful without instruction or reward or example all the time, e.g. comforting someone in pain, sharing goodies, etc. Why does it matter that the children couldn’t talk or explain what they were doing??
Of course cats have emotions. Cats clearly have at least fear, anger, sadness, happiness, and surprise – those same basic ones that we humans have, and they have them with subtlety and strength.
And they have more, too: cats also have very important emotion skills. One of these is often better developed in cats than it is in some people. It’s called social referencing when we do it: checking out the emotions of other living things, and acting according to what they see and hear. Cats also form deep emotional attachments or bonds of love & affiliation to other cats – but not all cats. Also attach to some, but certainly not to all humans.
When there is attachment, there is protection and safety, and in older kids and adults that translates into looking out for the younger ones we are attached to. It is exactly the same for many animals – in fact I think that’s why so many people have cats and dogs: they are living beings that love and attach to us, and we to them.
I’ve enjoyed your description of Olwyn’s development and relationship to your other kitties so much; she is a great example of using emotions and developing her emotional skill.
OK, I’ll step off my soapbox (It’s an occupational hazard in my work).
I’m not amazed at Scarlett’s behavior, but I still think it’s wonderful what she did.