Exploring the impact of dogs on the human-cat relationship in private homes
Sara T. Clarkson, Lori R. Kogan, Emma K. GriggAbstract
Despite the growing numbers of dogs and cats cohabiting in US households, little research has focused on the influence of dogs on the human-animal bond of their feline roommates. The present study investigated whether cohabiting with a dog has an impact on the human-cat bond and the ways in which cats interact with humans. Based on existing knowledge of the differences between human-dog and human-cat interactions, we predicted that cats who have lived with a dog for at least 1 year will exhibit differences in the bond and interaction frequency with their owners. A 46-item survey was administered to 682 US cat owners via social media (SM) and Mechanical Turk (MTurk), Amazon’s crowdsourcing service, to collect data on demographics, interaction frequency, behavioral issues, and pet-owner bond. Although owners in cat-only households tended to report slightly higher bond scores with their cats (