Why are cats afraid of water?
Are cats afraid of water?
Have you noticed how cats like to watch water, lie in a bath or sink, drink from the tap? Agree, this behavior does not fit the panic fear of water. So what's the deal?
In fact, cats are not afraid of water: they are afraid to get wet! This fear is genetically in them. However, there are always exceptions. We will talk about them below.
Why cats are afraid of water: myths and reality
There are many legends about cats' fear of water. One of them refers to the days of the Flood.
Once upon the Ark appeared a horde of rats. They overpowered the animals, and Noah instructed the lion to deal with them. But the lion is too big for the Pied Piper. He sneezed - and a cat appeared from his sneeze, which quickly dealt with rats. Since then, cats are great hunters, but their relationship with water is complicated, because they are not used to it at all!
Another legend is associated with the Ark. Once the Devil turned into a rat and began to gnaw the bottom in the ark, so that he sank. The cat noticed a rat and attacked her. But Noah told all the animals on the Ark to live in peace. Learning about the massacre of a rat, he threw the cat overboard.
Don't worry, the story ended well. Other animals told Noah about the Devil, and he brought the cat back. However, the poor girl's fear of water still remained.
And now let's leave the myths and return to reality. We already know that the cat is not afraid of water, but get wet. It's all a matter of coat!
Cats are very susceptible to the state of their fur coats. Wool protects them from the external environment, supports heat transfer and even helps to orient in space. Any deformation, change in the condition of the wool is extremely undesirable for them.
After bathing, the cats tremble for a while. Many owners explain this by stress, but in fact the cat is cold. Wet wool can not warm the pet, and with habit it freezes. Interestingly, in the heat of cat fur is also better not to touch. Dousing with cool water will not save the cat from stuffiness, but rather the opposite!
Another explanation is related to smell. After wetting the skin of the cat begins to intensively produce a secret, there is a delicate smell. If we practically do not feel it, then in the wild for prey and enemies of a cat it is like a signal siren. Because of the smell it is easy to detect!
The fierce struggle for survival for domestic cats is irrelevant, but at the instinctive level, to some degree or another, they remember this danger.
Why do dogs love water?
Why are cats afraid to get wet and dogs not? The reason, again, in the instincts and physiological features.
In the wild, the dog ran after its prey, and did not track it from ambush, like a cat. Consequently, there were no strict requirements for smell.
Dogs, unlike cats, are able to shake off and quickly dry themselves.
Thermal control in dogs does not occur through the coat, but through the mouth. When the dog is hot, she sticks out her tongue and often breathes. In short, dogs are a whole different story!
What cats are not afraid of water?
Some cats are afraid of water more, others less, and some even swim for a sweet soul. What does it depend on?
There is no single clear rule. All cats are individual, like people, and each has its own characteristics. However, the love of water can be predicted!
Most likely the relationship with water will develop in:
breed, the most domesticated cats, which were created by painstaking selection and distanced from their wild ancestors. Their predatory instincts are underdeveloped. Such pets are ideally suited to home life, side-by-side with a man, and do not even suspect that this was not always the case.
If there is no genetic fear of water, then you can easily make friends with water:
cats, before whose eyes there is a good example. Kittens tend to imitate their parents. If the kids see that their mother is not afraid of water, then they have nothing to fear her. Even a dog can be chosen as an object to follow. Predators seek to adopt successful behaviors of each other. This is a natural factor.
cats that have a positive experience with water. If the owner took care of the pet's soft training in water procedures, fear of water will hardly overtake him.