Beschreibung
The close coexistence of humans with cats requires a social relationship with one another. To describe this relationship between humans and cats, there are various models arising from domestication of animals, which took place thousands of years ago and which turned out to be beneficial for both, humans and animals. Through the self-domestication of Felis silvestris libyca, cats were given the opportunity to find food and security through living with humans, humans in earlier times benefited from the pest control of cats. Today, social reasons outweigh the advantages of keeping cats. People who keep cats as pets regard them as a social partner, but health benefits such as a lower risk of suffering from cardiovascular diseases also result from this relationship. The modern relationship between humans and cats underlies various influencing factors, first and foremost the personality of both social partners and, inextricably linked, their communication style und intensity.
While humans can name the interest and the relationship to their pet, conclusions from the cat’s behavior also allow the assumption the other way round. Over time, cats have adapted to living closely together with humans, which is what made a permanent bond possible. In order for this relationship to be successful for both partners, needs and emotions must be recognized and humans must be able to understand the cat’s behavior. This understanding requires that cats are kept in a species-appropriate manner, while non-fulfillment of essential basic needs can result in behavior problems and stress in cats. Stress has a physiological function as long as it fulfills its original purpose of adapting to challenging living conditions. However, if the animal can no longer adapt to changing circumstances, stress becomes pathological.
Stress can arise not only in permanent conditions, but also in acute situations, such as in connection with a visit to the veterinarian, during which cats will lose control and predictability over their environment. Stress in cats can primarily be detected by observing and assessing behavior, as it can be perceived differently and therefore may result in different behavioral reactions. How stress in cats can be reduced during a visit to the veterinarian is part of research and has previously led to the publication of guidelines and recommendations on how to make visits to the veterinarian less stressful for cats. This includes feline-friendly treatment by the veterinarians, but also advice, education and sensitization of the owners about cat behavior. A good and trusting relationship between the veterinarian and the cat owner resulting from this advice increases the chances of keeping the cats healthy by increasing the compliance of the owner.
A majority of cat owners perceive their cat to be stressed when visiting the veterinarian, but not only cats can experience stress in this situation, also their owners. Stress during a visit to the veterinarian affects about half of the cat owners and also influences the perception of stress in relation to their animals, since owners who experience stress themselves describe their cat as stressed much more often. Veterinarians should react accordingly to the feelings of the owner in order to minimize fear and nervousness in them and also in the cats in connection with the visit to the vet. Preventing stress is in the hands of the veterinarian by adapted communication, feline-friendly handling methods and giving advice about cat behavior. 29.6% of cat owners report that they observe or have already observed problem behavior in their cat. Of these owners, however, just over a third state that their veterinarian was able to help them solve the behavioral problem. Although advice about cat behavior, behavioral problems and the implementation of a low-stress veterinary visit have a positive influence on the compliance of the owners, they are rarely carried out in practice. In addition, appropriate advice from the veterinarian results in being perceived as feline-friendly by the cat owners. Feline-friendly handling methods are worthwhile as owners who expect them will also show better compliance.
Stress therefore plays a major role during a visit to the veterinarian in both, cats and humans. Cat owners should be proactively informed and advised by the veterinarian about various aspects of cat handling, as well as stress behavior, in order to expose the animal to less stress when visiting the veterinarian and to achieve better health care through increased compliance of the cat owners. Educating cat owners about better conditions in husbandry can contribute to better animal welfare by preventing associated diseases and should therefore be carried out routinely by veterinarians.
Advice about cat behavior und the implementation of feline-friendly handling methods in veterinary practice can be worthwhile in many ways. They help to minimize stress for humans and cats in connection with a visit to the veterinarian and to optimize the living conditions of cats in the home environment. In addition, they might have an economically profitable effect in practice.
