While dogs are completely trusting of their masters, cats adopt a more reserved standpoint on things.

There have been many changes in the evolution of felines, but some reminiscences still exist, according to scientists. Cats and their owners generally don’t interact as much or for as long as dogs do with their owners.

A Professor of Veterinary Behavioral Medicine at the University of Lincoln’s School of Life Sciences, Daniel Mills, reported that cats tend to be the preferred pet by many people, especially Europeans, many of them thinking of the furry critters as ideal companions. Cats do not depend on other cats or their owners for protection, but that does not mean that they do not want to be around their owners. In a nutshell it all comes down to safety and security. [Here, Kitty, Kitty: 10 Facts for Cat Lovers]. Ainsworth found that some tots would play joyfully while their caregiver was around, act fearful or distressed when the caregivers left, and then act happy when the mother figure returned. While we bred dogs to fit our needs, cats essentially moved in with us because the perks were good, and scientists have concluded that even after 9,000 years of living alongside us, house cats remain only “semi-domesticated”. By contrast, some youngsters seemed indifferent to their moms’ presence and absence, while others were tentative when approaching a returning mom, and still others showed a very erratic response.

Previous tests have suggested that the relationship between dogs and masters should be regarded as a “secure attachment”.

For more information, read the published study at scientific journal, PLOS ONE. A small 2002 study suggested that cats could develop separation anxiety, but the findings weren’t carefully verified.

By developing an adapted version of the SST, Professor Mills and his colleague Alice Potter from the RSPCA were able to test this theory on cats.

In this case, cats were placed in odd environments in the form of plain rooms.

If they really didn’t like their lodgings, they’d simply up and leave.

“The idea of developing behavior tests in cats is much harder than people perhaps realize”, Mills said.

The outcomes confirmed that whereas cats may favor to work together with their proprietor, they don’t depend on them for reassurance when in an unfamiliar setting, and the researchers consider that is due to the character of the species as a largely unbiased and solitary hunter.

Aloof and detached, cats don’t suffer from separation anxiety and any noise they make when their owner leaves is probably just because they are bored or frustrated. The results suggest that, unlike dogs, cats don’t look to owners as a sort of security blanket.