Do Cats Grieve?

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Bill N

Bill N

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Jan 4, 2014
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Ozark, Missouri
A question for other cat owners.  Our 17 year old Shih Tzu, Heidi, died about 16 days ago.  Of course we were totally consumed with sorrow.  Our oldest cat, Grace, is 10 years old and has been with us since she was 4 weeks old. She and Heidi were always pretty good buddies - never had any fights and did play occasionally.  But since Heidi died, Grace has really been moping around and follows my wife from room to room.  Our other cat, Squeak, is doing the same thing but he was only here for the last 3 years of Heidi's life.  We got Heidi's ashes back in a beautiful wooden box about a week ago and, on an impulse, I put the box on the floor and both cats immediately went to smelling it pretty intensely.  Grace rubbed herself on it several times.  It was like she knows what was in the box.  Yesterday, I once again put the box on the floor and Grace immediately came over and fawned over it and rubbed it and laid on her back and rolled on it.  She also frequently visits Heidi's bed which we have not removed.  I would swear Grace is grieving this loss even more than us.  Anybody with cats and dogs ever come across a situation like this?
 
Yes I believe cats and dogs do grieve, or at least have a strong sense of loss of a companion.  Animals also have a very strong sense of how their humans react to a situation and behave accordingly. 
 
Some, I suspect all, do grieve, however some more than others.  For a cat rubbing up against things however is normal, all sorts of things, they leave their sent on the item claiming it for theirs.  So this is very "normal" for cats..

That said.. Though researchers disagree with me I've found cats to be highly intelligent, I've found that they are very intelligent, they communicate, they solver problems logically, long term (1 year) memory and more... But then I have lived with cats for many years.

I do know that since the loss of Amber,, Alex is .. Shall we say highly cuddly with me.
I lost my wife, (He was her cat) and he avoided me for like six months.. Then we lost his Queen, and now he spends every night with me.
 
I have three cats. My youngest is Cleopatra. She has been with me for four years. She spends most of her day laying in her abode right next to me. If I pick her up and put her in my lap or on my chest she jumps off like she is spring loaded. She doesn't want to cuddle with me, just lay two feet away from me. However when I leave the house for a few hours and return she always insists on laying on my chest for fifteen minutes. She definitely misses me. My oldest cat Tarzan visits me whenever I go to bed or wake up. He jumps on the bed and walks the entire length of my body and comes to rest on my chest. If I have a book or the computer in my lap he lays his head on top of it until I move it out of his way then he rams his head into my nose or forehead and insists I rub his head and scratch his neck. He is very obnoxious about wanting affection. Then when I come into the living room he insists on getting into my lap for more petting and then he sleeps there. The third cat could really care less about me.
 
"Grieve" may be an arguable term for it, but they surely seem to have a strong sense of family and are sensitive to changes in their life/environment. They also seem to have empathy, reacting to the emotions of those around them.
 
John From Detroit said:
  For a cat rubbing up against things however is normal, all sorts of things, they leave their sent on the item claiming it for theirs.  So this is very "normal" for cats..
Click to expand...
Yes, I know that John and see it a lot but this was beyond the pale on how she reacts.  Right away she surprised me by detecting the smell of her buddy in those ashes.  She just did stuff completely different from her usual marking of things with her scent. She KNOWS  what is in that box and frequently visits it's location  (in a corner glass shelf unit).  Thanks for the comments.
 
Gary RVer Emeritus said:
"Grieve" may be an arguable term for it, but they surely seem to have a strong sense of family and are sensitive to changes in their life/environment. They also seem to have empathy, reacting to the emotions of those around them.
Click to expand...
Good point Gary.  During the week before we had the ashes, the cat knew that we were grieving and stayed unusually close. She is normally pretty aloof but is now staying close to us at all times, especially the wife who showed the most outward grief.

Bill
 
I had 2 sister cats.  one of them died when she was 15.  I read somewhere that I should have shown my other cat the body so she would know, but I thought at the time, to just sneak her out of the house.  (maybe it's so they know they didn't just disappear?)  but either way, yes, she knew she was gone.  I made it a point of spending her last 2 years...with me. 

here's a video from my fave cat guru.  http://jacksongalaxy.com/blog/2014/05/13/cat-mojo-do-cats-experience-grief
 
Yes, I believe most animals grieve.

http://www.catster.com/lifestyle/cat-behavior-tips-grieving-grief
 
I had two cats who were brothers. The first got cancer at age 7 and had to be put down. My other cat walked around the house meowing and looking for him for a month, to the point that his meow became horse and almost inaudible. After that he became much more interested in being around us all the time, whereas before he was a little more standoffish. He also had a more serious look to him but I think I tend to personify him too much.

In any case, I would say animals definitely mourn and they definitely require emotional support and companionship after their pet friends pass.
 
yes cats grieve. they are highly sensitive and intelligent animals. they each have
their own personality and when in a family unit they do bond even if it doesn't seem
like it. i current have 6 feline fur people in our care from ages 6 to 1 and they know
when anyone is "missing" for a day or so. they also know when we are going on a trip
and get restless the day before. each one greats us differently when we get back. all
in all i consider them "fur people".  :)
 
While it might not be grieving in the sense that we do,  I'm sure that they experience at least the empty feeling that their best bud is gone and can't figure out why or where they went.
 
I know all animals grieve. 

When Sandy, my first lab died, Alice, my second lab who never knew a life without Sandy, mourned and was beside herself to be left alone.  Louise (cat) lost her sister Thelma and went from room to room to room repeatedly searching and mewing.  Both of my horse's pasture-mates moved this past December.  Sam would come dragging in, head low to the ground, barely able to pick his feet up.  This went on for days.  When I had to put my other horse down, her buddy would run the fence, calling and calling.  It was heart-wrenching to both hear and watch. 

So yes, I think animals establish bonds just like humans and miss their co-horts.  Heaven knows I sure still miss the ones who are gone from my life.
 
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