Depends on the cat
My cats now would definitely get lonely without eachother
But I had an old cat who loved humans and absolutely despised other animals.
Or, like my old, late cat (RIP buddy 😞), they hate most humans and other animals. Once he warmed up to you, he would absolutely get lonely without his favorites around. Didn’t care if our dog was around or not, despite our dog being sad for awhile after he died.
Cats aren’t pack animals, but they do socialise with humans, other cats, and other animals. They don’t all have the same personality and some will tend to be more social than others.
In general, I would say that if a cat normally has human company most of the day (e.g. a human who doesn’t work or works from home), human company can be enough (circumstances vary). But in general, if the human(s) are gone a lot of the time then it can be lonely for a single cat. In that case it’s worth getting them a four-footed companion.
We had a cat who preferred having us to herself rather than sharing us with another cat. But we could see that she got lonely when we had to leave her by herself, so it seemed better that she had a companion cat even if she didn’t want a friend.
At our current house, the yard is open and various neighbourhood cats will come into the space. Our boy accepts two of them. I don’t know if they are “friends”, but they come to visit and he’s chill with them. Any other cat coming into the yard, he tries to fight off. Some fascinating cat politics going on.
We need a cat politics /c
Cat Political Parties:
Feral Union of Crazy Kittens Yelling Out-loud in Unison - The party of Outdoor Cats who owns zero humans
Party of Elegant Tiny Majestic Entities - The Elitist Indoor Cats who own at least one human
Be the change you wish to see.
Cats are not pack animals like dogs, but they are very social animals. They don’t distinguish between species, so they can be social stimulated by another cat or a human or a dog. A lot of it also depends on what the cat is use to, if you leave a cat alone that is use to you being around all the time, it will get lonely. Cats feel loss if the cat / dog / human they live with dies, sometimes enough that they will stop eating and starve themself to death.
Depends on the cat(s) really.
My old kitty (RIP) was a third one in a house with two nominally feral adoptees and they did not welcome her.
When I moved and she was the sole cat she displayed stress and shredded two sofas and more.
Now we have two unrelated cats adopted together that don’t totally adore one another but are civil and they have NEVER scratched a single non-kitty item.
While they tend to keep to themselves I DO think they stimulate each other with occasional (thankfully gentle) paw bats and chases or just do solitary cat things. Like roommates.
So…depends - if you’re not home a lot kitty will need stimulation. Good luck!
Yup was gonna say the same thing.
I took Sydney a couple years after I moved out of my parents place because I wanted a cat. He and his brother fought all the time so my mom thought it’d be better if they were apart.
Sydney and his brother even though they grew up together were better off separate.
My cat got got lonely without his humans. He’d yell when he thought we weren’t there. We got him because he terrorised the pets in his old home, so he obviously didn’t like other cats (or dogs).
Same here. Lovely little fecker but even if you just faintly smell like another cat she’ll throw a tantrum.
Our little bastard takes days to settle down after we take him and his littermate to the vet. They’ve been together their entire lives, but if either or both go to the vet, even in the same vehicle, he’s all “Who the fuck are you?!” when we get home. And his brother is all, “Aww geez, what the hell’s the matter now?” Every time.
sniffs
“How dare you! You cheated on me! 😾”
Most stray cats I see are alone. But they have the whole world to explore and need to hunt, so getting lonely might not be a problem for them.
I had a cat a while back, and when I travelled for a few weeks, my sister, who lives in the same building would make sure she’s fed and the litter cleaned etc and spend a bit of time with her. However, my sister told me that Pickett (cat) seemed depressed, and true enough when I got back she gave me attitude for a few weeks, and so I adopted Snowy for her. He basically taught her how to play again, since she’d been seemingly wanting to grow into old age and just sit on my lap and doze happily for hours.
But, I also had another cat in Dubai decades earlier, and she was quite happy being alone. In fact, she didn’t like anyone but me (she was a rescue).
I had a cat for 18 years and never got the impression that it would’ve been lonely in any sense. No doubt having a friend would probably be better but it’s not one of those animals you absolutely must have atleast two of.
Cats don’t live in packs like wolves/dogs do. They aren’t very social animals. What matters more is that you let it go outside every once in a while. Inside-cats will become depressed.
Absolutely not true. First of all some cats do live in loosely connected groups and can be quite social. Yes, they spend a lot of time on their own but they’re not all solitary. You can keep a cat alone (depending on the individual, some just do better with feline company) but you need to spend time with it every day to play. Also inside-cats can be very happy, healthy animals. It’s arguably much safer for them and the environment too. More and more people decide to keep their cats indoors and it works great. You just can’t do it to a cat that’s already used to going outside.
I recommend Jackson Galaxy on YouTube for more information. There are a lot of myths around cats.
Open the door for an inside-cat and see what happens. Also cats being less social than dogs is just a fact.
You didn’t say they were less social than dogs, you said they aren’t very social animals. That’s not true.
I do that all the time, my cat doesn’t try to get out. She’s 10 and not used to being outside. She likes exploring the attic but that’s about it. Cats used to be kept on ships and other rather confined environments. Trust me, they don’t give a shit as long as they’re entertained.
Also you’re moving the goalpost by bringing up dogs. And while it’s true that cats generally spend less time around each other that doesn’t mean they prefer to be alone all day every day. I like living with a flat mate and yet we rarely actually speak. Company comes in many varieties.
Cats keep trying to “jail break” all the time 😓
Cats are quite social, and your cat might be curious to know what’s outside, but that doesn’t mean it’s good for them. Sure, they probably will have fun out there, but you put them at risk of disease, parasites, territorial strays, and traffic.
This is terrible advice.
Cats get very lonely and I feel so sorry for the ones that just get left alone with an automatic feeder for days when the human bean buggers off somewhere.
That is bad. Animals don’t always understand why they are alone.
I didn’t dispute that.
