As It Happens7:50How cats use grooming to get what they want
Sometimes when a cat grooms another cat, it’s nice. A cat helping another cat out, cleaning those hard-to-get spots on the back of the neck with a friendly lick.
Other times? It’s more like, “Hey, I want that nice nap spot, and I’m going to annoy you until you give it to me.”
That’s according to new research into how cats use allogrooming — or mutual grooming — out of Ghent University in Belgium, published in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science.
“Sometimes allogrooming is used as this, we say, passive-aggressive sign,” lead author Morgane Van Belle told As It Happens host Nil Köksal.
“So cats using this grooming to subtly convey a message, like, ‘I don’t like you here,’ or ‘I want your blanket.'”
Good licks vs. bad licks
Van Belle, a cat behavioral scientist at Belgium’s Ghent University, says the research was actually inspired by her own two cats, Fabio and Giovanni. She witnessed them licking each other, but noticed it didn’t always appear affectionate.
“One of them would lay on a soft blanket by a window and the other would come and he would lick a bit in the neck. But then this licking would proceed into biting and, in the end, the cat lying on the blanket would move away. And the blanket would go to the other cat,” Van Belle said.
“It kind of looked to me a bit like competition.”
Van Belle and her colleagues put out a call, and received videos from 53 households in Europe that had two or more cats. They looked closely at the videos, and scored each behaviour they saw.
They found that, in fact, sometimes allogrooming was positive interaction — a form of social bonding. Other times, it was more like what Van Belle witnessed in her own two cats.
So what’s a nice lick, and what’s a passive-aggressive lick?
Van Belle says they observed the more confrontational grooming happening at the neck, where cats will often bite in a not-so-passive fight.
Also, a passive-aggressive cat will assume an asymmetric body posture, looming over the other cat, whereas when it’s friendly, they often have a similar posture to each other.
Additionally, the cat being groomed won’t look like a cat having a nice time. It will get annoyed and do things like yawn or shake its head.
Suzanne MacDonald, a psychology professor at Toronto’s York University who studies animal behaviour, wasn’t surprised by the study.
“I have two cats who are not siblings … so I’ve seen this type of aggressive allogrooming many times,” MacDonald, who was not a part of the study, said in an email.
She was pleased to see that the study looked at videos of cats in people’s homes, which she says helped give it a large sample size.
“This type of careful behavioural analysis is important because the researchers showed something new — and unexpected — simply by letting the data tell the story,” MacDonald said.
From a practical standpoint, she says this information can be helpful for cat owners.
“The finding that allogrooming in cats can either be affiliative or aggressive, depending on the context, can be really helpful for cat owners to be able to distinguish between an, ‘Aw, isn’t that cute,’ moment and an, ‘Oh good heavens, they’re probably going to fight,’ moment,” she said.
Kristyn Vitale, an animal behaviourist at Maueyes Cat Science & Education, agrees.
“This work shows that allogrooming serves multiple purposes, and recognizing the body language and behaviors associated with each function can help caregivers better interpret cat relationships, reduce inter-cat conflict, and improve cat wellbeing,” Vitale, who wasn’t involved in the research, said.
Allogrooming across species
You could be forgiven for thinking allogrooming was an all-positive activity. Van Belle, who is also a veterinarian, says it had long been common knowledge that this mutual grooming was friendly, enhancing the bond between cats.
What’s more, allogrooming is not unique to cats.
MacDonald, who has studied primates for decades, says they use allogrooming as a type of payback for services rendered, or to make peace after a fight. And they keep a record.
“Primates keep track of who grooms who, for how long, and in what context,” said MacDonald.
Research has shown that horses also groom each other, and for birds, preening can play a role in maintaining a partner relationship.
‘Elegant way for cats to resolve conflicts’
For cats, it may seem there isn’t much benefit for aggressive allogrooming, but Van Belle says there is an upside. In some ways, it prevents a more claws-out fight.
“Licking is like a subtle way to deliver your message,” she said.
“Cats will avoid really fighting to the maximum because when, you fight, you’re using your claws and your teeth, but you’re also at risk of being injured yourself. So it’s actually, I think, a very elegant way for cats to resolve conflicts.”
Van Belle says there’s no need to stress about Fabio and Giovanni —or your own cats, if they have the occasional beef.
Despite a passive-aggressive lick over the top nap spot here and there, Fabio and Giovanni are good friends.
“Their vibe generally is very good because they will … cuddle up together, [they] like being close and groom each other nicely around the head and the ears, or even start a play session by grooming each other,” Van Belle said.
“So yeah, Fabio and Gio generally have a good relationship.”
