Why do cats have such a bad reputation?

newmod

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 14, 2005
Messages
337
Reaction score
34
Location
Madrid
Out of curiosity, does anyone know how cats came by their negative reputation? "They´re treacherous, unfriendly, mercenary, show no affection, have no loyalty ..." and so on. I hear this frequently and always have to take arms against a sea of ignorance.

Do you come across this much?

I suppose the origin is because dogs are perceived as better "companions" and "friends". I like dogs (well the ones that aren´t dangerous:cry: ) but often find them intrusive and almost clingy. One of the things I like about cats is that they are independent. Also they tend to have better breath than dogs, at least in my experience :tongue

Also, a second question, do you have a preferred animal/breed and why?

Cheers,
newmod
 

DeborahM

I need espresso & chocolate!
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 31, 2006
Messages
3,606
Reaction score
657
Location
On top of a laptop
I love the American Curl's. They are a cross between the siamese and tabby's. I've had two come across my path. They are loyal, loving, and both of them (males) came when I called them.

I've had other breeds, mostly mixed, which have the independent streak and lack of affection.

Lucky was neutered at a young age, which probably adds to his being so loving, but I noticed a perfune smell in his coat I just love to bury my face into.

I used to raise welsh corgi's. Great breed! Considering one of each to be raised together in the future, if I lose Lucky. Of course the cat would have to be another American Curl.
 

newmod

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 14, 2005
Messages
337
Reaction score
34
Location
Madrid
I think I may have just answered my own first question in a post I put in the catnip thread.

As cats are more effective at hunting and killing this is probably another reason people don´t like them. But my 2 now couldn´t kill a anything, I´m sure. They´re hopless predators.

In fact only one of the four cats I´ve had was in any way a predator. Mmm, are cats the Great White of the (semi) domesticated animal world???
 

gromhard

Banned
Joined
Jul 5, 2006
Messages
475
Reaction score
47
Location
Hollywood
Well the history of cat/human relationships is interesting. In Egypt I'm sure you all know, cats were considered sacred, especially to the cat headed goddess Bast.
In Europe, during the dark ages, cats were thought to be evil(I've never heard exactly HOW this superstition started though) so they killed all the cats and then had plague mice infest them.
Currently I meet people all the time who hate cats. Generally they're people who lack compassion, in my experience. They can't abide that a cat has self respect. They like the shallowness, eager to please servitude of a dog. They like the slobbering tongue and the way a dog will do whatever is commanded of him.
As they're that type of person usually the cats they've come in contact with have been mean to them. My two cats(dead now rest their souls) were very skittish, they were affraid of new people, so when I'd have someone over and they saw the cats scurry under a bed then they'd take it personally. As if the cats were putting on aires.
They just didn't understand cats.
 

Robert Toy

Everyone knows it’s a dog driven conspiracy, no truth to it at all.
 

A. Hamilton

here for a minute...catch me?
Kind Benefactor
Poetry Book Collaborator
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jul 21, 2005
Messages
4,594
Reaction score
2,257
Location
N. Cali
i always figured that because they are more independent than canines, felines fail to feed some people's need to be superior, needed, some even worshipped. this ticks some people off.
but i find them affectionate, smart, and just plain nice to pet...purrrrrr.

dogs can be so annoying. pant pant scratch sniff lick drool. ewww.
shhh. don't tell Stanley i said that (my dachshund).
 

Robert Toy

That’s okay, Dachshunds are really cats with a hormone problem.
 

oarsman

Salt water is the cure
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 21, 2006
Messages
1,712
Reaction score
1,555
Location
on the water
Here's a couple of things I think add to their bad reputation:

1. Black cat - associated with bad luck
2. Halloween / Haunted houses -- cats add to the image of mystery and fear.
3. Myths such as "cats smother babies" -- this is not true
4. Television -- cats are shown as the evil element in some cartoons: Sylvester, the Siamese cats in Lady & the Tramp, etc. Dogs are usually the heros.

We have a friend that is afraid of cats. If our cats go near her, she will leave the room. Our cats sense her fear. When she is over our house, our cats walk into the room and stare at her. She tries to shoo the cats away, but they ignore her....that makes our friend even more afraid of them (By the way, she doesn't visit often). I think her fear comes from the independent nature of the cat. Cats don't react like dogs do. They quietly enter a room (normally), observe, and don't have the predictability of dogs. It makes some people assume that they're "up to something evil".
 

Fern

practical experience, FTW
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
1,120
Reaction score
96
I guess I've never thought much about cats having a bad rep.

What many people don't seem to grasp is that animals are "animals". Depending on their circumstances, you may never see the other side of them, but I promise you, it is there.

Our cat is a loving pet. He is also a miniature killer/predator. When you think of a cat hunting mice, think of a lion and its prey. The only difference is the size. Ours can go from being a loving ball of fur cuddled up on the end of my daughter's bed, to a hunter in a New York second. Thats one reason I don't like the idea of people declawing a cat. If, for any reason, they are ever on their own for food, their death warrant has been signed if they have no claws.

Dogs are the same as far as the pet/animal thing goes. If you have one, you have a pet. If you have two, you have a pack. The larger the dogs in the pack and the larger the pack, the more trouble they can get into.

If I'm not mistaken, laws are different in many places as regards dogs and cats and liability, etc. People can usually be fined for their dogs getting out and being destructive, but its different for cats since they are considered predators and therefore it is their "nature" to be out and about hunting, making it harder to keep them "up".

I love cats, but the one thing I detest about them is the rubbing around the ankles thing. I can't stand it. Some do it a lot, others not so much. We've been lucky in that ours rarely do that.

Ever notice how many writers have cats?
 

awatkins

Not harboring illegal parrot
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
6,284
Reaction score
1,375
Location
Parrot Cage, Alabama
Website
www.geocities.com
oarsman said:
3. Myths such as "cats smother babies" -- this is not true.
I knew someone once who swore this was true. I had a beautiful Russian Blue named Smoky when my daughter was born and my friend nearly had a heart attack because I wouldn't get rid of the cat. "It'll smother that baby!" she said over and over. My daughter is now 28 years old, so somehow she managed to survive that 'murderous' cat. *sigh*

Has anybody ever heard of a case where a cat smothered a baby? I never have!

And, Fern, yes. It certainly seems that many writers have cats. :)
 

davids

Banned
Joined
Apr 3, 2006
Messages
7,956
Reaction score
2,804
They are independant little creatures who use us only for their daily whims-it pisses most of us off that they don't really give a damn

We have a Fox Terrier who chases rabbits and we believe he thinks they are sex toys
 

Robert Toy

davids said:
They are independant little creatures who use us only for their daily whims-it pisses most of us off that they don't really give a damn

We have a Fox Terrier who chases rabbits and we believe he thinks they are sex toys
Both sound a lot like humans, different sexes.

Oh boy, that’s going to get me in trouble.
 

KatyaFleur

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 20, 2006
Messages
78
Reaction score
3
awatkins said:
Has anybody ever heard of a case where a cat smothered a baby? I never have!

Goodness, no. I always suspected that this story was an old wives' tale that was invented to explain the mystery of SIDS. I agree that this belief probably is one root of cats' undeserved reputation.

Well, I've done my part. My husband admits that I (and my cat) have changed his mind about cats forever. (I expect my kitty's charm takes most of the credit.) Now, despite his allergy to cat dander, he wants to adopt more of them! No objections from me...

Katya
 

oarsman

Salt water is the cure
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 21, 2006
Messages
1,712
Reaction score
1,555
Location
on the water
KatyaFleur said:
Goodness, no. I always suspected that this story was an old wives' tale that was invented to explain the mystery of SIDS. I agree that this belief probably is one root of cats' undeserved reputation.

You got my curiosity going (and I know that "curiosity killed the cat"). I did some quick research. I found that in 1791, a coroner's court in England delivered a verdict that "a baby had been killed by a cat sucking out its breath". The real cause was more likely SIDS, which wasn't recognized at that time. Some other SIDS cases were blamed on the cat after 1791. So, I guess that might be how the myth got started.
 

sharra

Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 18, 2006
Messages
101
Reaction score
13
Location
London
P.H.Delarran said:
i find them affectionate, smart, and just plain nice to pet
dogs can be so annoying.

I've had both as pets/companions and general wardrobe/furniture destroyers. I found the cats just as affectionate (and sometimes neurotically jealous) as the dogs.

I have not yet had a cat that attempted to shag my leg in company, however..
 

Fern

practical experience, FTW
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 12, 2005
Messages
1,120
Reaction score
96
Regarding the cat smothering the baby thing, I've also heard it all my life. It was more a "stealing the breath" kind of smothering, rather than lying over the baby or anything of that sort. What my Dad used to say was - think about it. . .babie have milk breath so the cat is probably up there in their face smelling their breath and parents, seeing the cat right in the baby's face, freak out, imagining whatever.

That said, it really isn't a good idea to leave any cat or dog in the room alone with a baby, especially a newborn.
 

newmod

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 14, 2005
Messages
337
Reaction score
34
Location
Madrid
oarsman said:
1. Black cat - associated with bad luck

But in Britain and Japan a black cat is good luck. Throughout most (all?) of continental Europe bad luck.

Superstitions are funny things. In Britain/North America Friday the 13th is bad, in Spain Tuesday 13th. :Shrug:
 

newmod

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 14, 2005
Messages
337
Reaction score
34
Location
Madrid
oarsman said:
You got my curiosity going (and I know that "curiosity killed the cat").

Ah, but remember "satisfaction brought him back". Interpret that as you wish.
 

johnnysannie

Banned
Joined
Feb 22, 2005
Messages
3,857
Reaction score
435
Location
Tir Na Og
Website
leeannsontheimermurphywriterauthor.blogspot.com
Fern said:
Regarding the cat smothering the baby thing, I've also heard it all my life. It was more a "stealing the breath" kind of smothering, rather than lying over the baby or anything of that sort. What my Dad used to say was - think about it. . .babie have milk breath so the cat is probably up there in their face smelling their breath and parents, seeing the cat right in the baby's face, freak out, imagining whatever.

That said, it really isn't a good idea to leave any cat or dog in the room alone with a baby, especially a newborn.

I've always heard that "cats will suck babies' breath" and although I know very well that it is not true, we had no house cats until my kids were past the baby stage!
 

KatyaFleur

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 20, 2006
Messages
78
Reaction score
3
Good research, Oarsman! That's interesting.

I did hear one very interesting story about a cat saving a baby--can't remember where I saw this, but I remember one family being interviewed because they discovered their baby had stopped breathing in time to get help and save the baby's life. They discovered it in time because the family cat, who liked to hang out in the nursery, got freaked out and started yowling like all-get-out. (I'm with Fern, though--I wouldn't leave any pet alone with a newborn. But it sure made a good story.)

Katya
 

MidnightMuse

Midnight Reading
Kind Benefactor
Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 23, 2006
Messages
8,424
Reaction score
2,554
Location
In the toidy.
Fern's right. We heard that SO often in the Veterinary clinics - that cats smother babies.

It's not true.

But it IS true that the myth started going around because Babies have breath that smells like warm milk, so it's not unheard of to find a cat sleeping next to a baby's head, or even leaning over to have a wiff. Even licking baby food off Jr.'s face.

But they don't smother anyone. Except one I had as a kid who enjoyed sleeping across my throat when I'd nap on the couch -- but he was just trying to cut off the blood flow to my head :D

I love all animals, and would adore having dogs, but since I work and spend 8 hours a day gone from the house, I prefer to keep cats because of their independence. But they still snuggle on the couch, love to see me come home, talk a lot, play and believe life exists to have a good time and sleep.
 

oarsman

Salt water is the cure
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 21, 2006
Messages
1,712
Reaction score
1,555
Location
on the water
newmod said:
But in Britain and Japan a black cat is good luck. Throughout most (all?) of continental Europe bad luck.

Superstitions are funny things. In Britain/North America Friday the 13th is bad, in Spain Tuesday 13th.

I've had more bad Tuesdays than Fridays. Even the 13th is not bad on a Friday. :)

El gato negro-
If you name your black cat with a British or Japanese name, then you must get good luck! Right?

I've always heard the tale that cats have nine-lives...it is different in Spain, right? Don't they have less lives in Spain?
 

newmod

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Feb 14, 2005
Messages
337
Reaction score
34
Location
Madrid
You have reason (as it goes in Spanish) here cats only have seven lives :Shrug:

Well, in reality I suspect they have one, just like everywhere else. But I could be wrong ..
 
Last edited: