The Feral Cat
by Peter Johns

For years, 'experts' have told cat owners that domestic cats are solitary creatures who dislike the company of other cats. No doubt cat owners have viewed the  heap on the armchair with puzzlement, wondering whether it is the cats or the experts who have their facts wrong.

While the ancestors of our domestic cats may have been solitary hunters in the forests of Europe and Africa, domestic cats frequently live in harmonious groups; playing, sleeping and evening hunting together. Many form close attachments to other cats and even to other domestic animals.

It was suggested that keeping several cats in one household, forced them to become more sociable due to unnatural conditions. However, more recent studies on feral colonies have shown that domestic cats, like lions, are rather sociable creatures and even battle-scarred tomcats will return from walking alone to relax with the family, cats in captive colonies, often form close friendships.

Cats rub against their companions to mingle their scents and reinforce the bond. Rubbing also has a hierarchical function and a cat's social standing can be measured by the number of times other cats rub against it. When our cats wind round our ankles it is more than an affectionate greeting, they are letting us know that we rank higher than them.

Rubbing, nose-bumping greetings and sitting close to other members of the cat's 'family' are not actions caused by keeping cats in 'unnatural proximity' to other cats. All of these activities have been observed among cats living in feral colonies. Behaviorists studying both urban and rural colonies found that the cats formed 'family groups' rather than remaining solitary. co-operative hunting does sometimes occur with closely bonded cats.

Many cats, both feral and domestic, apparently enjoy each other's company for its own sake and not just because there is safety in numbers. Though un-neutered tomcats are often hostile towards each other, there are exceptions where toms which have been reared together may remain companionable when mature - supply of food and females permitting.

Cats often form close attachments to each other and a recent survey by British behaviorist Claire Bessant found that cats grieved or pined when a companion cat died, sometimes to the extent that force-feeding was needed or another kitten had to be acquired to provide companionship. This is what happened to trouble.

The cats ancestors may have walked by themselves, but the cat has evolved into a far more sociable animal both in a feral and a household setting.