Sphynx
cats (illustration) -
Lora Palner / Pixabay
The cat has not always been as dependent on humans as it is today.
Over the centuries, the relationship between cats and their owner has changed from being a barely tolerated animal to a full member of the family.
Would the cat know how to survive if humanity disappeared?
Over time, the cat has taken a prominent place in our homes to the point of becoming a full member of the family.
We feed him, take care of him, take him on vacation ... Far from the time when he was associated with the devil and witches, he is now pampered, pampered.
In short, it almost takes the place of a child for its owner.
And this is not without consequences on his behavior.
From the disenchantment of the 18th century to the "cat-dog" of the 21st century, the relationship between humans and this adorable ball of fur has never stopped evolving.
More and more dependent, can we imagine that he would get by in a world without humans?
Imagine for two seconds that humanity suddenly disappears (it could happen, we do not know), would it still be able to survive in nature, far from the cat tree, its cozy sleeping bag and its dispenser? croquettes?
The question arises when we see the growing love for these mustache critters.
According to the 2019 I-CAD barometer for the identification of carnivorous domestic animals, more than 6 million cats have been adopted in France.
From evil cat to cat-dog
His dependence on humans is finally quite recent.
Before becoming the pet we know, the cat had very bad press for a long time.
In the 12th century, he was seen as an ally of the demon, then a few centuries later, he was seen as an assistant to witches.
He was so little appreciated that he could cause real phobias.
Some fainted at the sight of a cat like today in front of a spider or a snake, tells Eric Baratay, professor of History at the University of Lyon, specialist in the history of animals and author of
Cultures felines
( Threshold).
"In my opinion, the real domestication of the cat began about 200 years ago," confirms Charlotte de Mouzon, ethologist at the Ethology Cognition Development Laboratory of the University of Paris Nanterre / Martin Sellier.
Before that, we could rather speak of "commensalism", we lived side by side ".
They were mainly used to get rid of rodents in country houses.
"In the 19th century, humans have a very cold attitude, when it is not violent, with these animals," describes Eric Baratay.
Cats also have a distant attitude with humans which is not fundamental to them, the important thing is the territory ”.
We see forging closer relations with the owners in the first half of the 20th century.
"These are essentially people of the lower or middle class who want stronger relationships with their animals," he observes.
And the rapprochement has accelerated in recent years with the appearance of what the animal specialist calls the "cat-dog".
A fashion from Oceania: a cat that we walk on a leash and whose behavior is similar to that of the dog.
Because the cat is a "plastic" animal, it adapts to the expectations of its human.
Alley cats versus purebred cats
And despite the cat's addiction, it is not 100% domesticated.
"In a purely biological way, domestication implies control of reproduction, which is not really the case with our cats, apart from purebred cats," insists Charlotte de Mouzon.
Moreover, two very clear categories emerge: the alley cat and the purebred cat.
“On the one hand, we have purebred cats that have never known the outdoors and that have been selected on somewhat deleterious criteria such as the sphynx cat.
It is a naked cat that has no hair, ”continues the ethologist.
The result of a natural genetic mutation, breeders have developed this breed.
“They crossed it and the descendants, who were also naked, were recrossed until they created a race,” she continues.
Certain breeds of cats lose a lot in instinctive behavior, because they do not maintain it by not going out and because by having selected physiological criteria, we also selected behavioral criteria ”.
The sphynx cat would be very embarrassed without its owner.
Since it has no fur, it needs humans to regulate its temperature.
We cover him when it is cold, his skin must be moisturized with a cream… Likewise, Persian cats have many health problems: they breathe badly, they have itchy eyes.
They need special care.
Instinct intact
Conversely, most alley cats have retained a great deal of instinct.
They come out as they wish and reproduce as they please - when they are not sterilized.
And even the apartment cats that never go out have kept their predatory instincts.
They remain very playful, hunt.
They have the reflex to climb trees to find shelter ... We can already see many lost cats able to manage.
Find the Future (s) section here
Imagine the world saw a pandemic even more deadly than Covid-19 and cats were accused of spreading it.
“We would drop out by the thousands which would pose a huge problem for the cat itself,” anticipates Eric Baratay.
Because a "cat-dog" is very dependent on its master.
But humans themselves are dependent on supply chains, as we saw last spring.
Our cats become dependent because we introduce them to a civilization of interdependence ”.
Except that they have, for the most part, kept an instinct.
If the world collapsed, they would certainly do a lot better than the rest of us humans.
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