Four in 10 cats choose to play fetch with their owners, research shows

Four in 10 cats choose to play fetch with their owners – suggesting this playful behaviour may be more common in felines than thought, scientists have said.

A survey of more than 8,000 cat owners found the pets are more likely to fetch objects if they are generally more active and playful, and if they live indoors.

Burmese, Siamese and Tonkinese cats are more likely to display this behaviour although all breeds sometimes engage in fetching, the researchers led by Mikel Delgado, from Purdue University, US, said.

These three types originated from cats that were taken to the Far East early during cat domestication, making them genetically distinct from other breeds, they added.

Meanwhile, another survey of 74,000 dog owners showed nearly eight in 10 canines frequently play fetch with their owners, using sticks, balls or other objects.

The bigger question is why so many cats fetch, since we have not (to our knowledge), specifically selected them to help humans with tasks

Dr Mikel Delgado

This behaviour is more common in Labrador and Golden Retrievers, Border Collies and English Cocker Spaniels, although fetching was reported for most dog breeds, scientists said.

Dr Delgado said: “We were surprised to find that there were very few studies of fetching behaviour in dogs.

“And personally, as a life-long cat person, I have to admit that I thought all dogs fetched!

“So it was interesting to get a better sense of how common this behaviour is in cats and dogs, and also to see what a big impact breed has for dogs.”

Researchers also found that breeds developed to herd livestock or as hunting companions are more likely to fetch.

Fetching behaviour was also found to be less common in females, older dogs and cats, and those with health conditions.

The researchers said that while fetching shows many similarities to hunting behaviour, the findings published in the journal Plos One suggest it is more closely related to play than hunting for prey.

Dr Delgado said even though both cats and dogs are popular pets, they were domesticated for different reasons.

She said: “Dogs have really co-evolved with humans to help us, whether with hunting, herding, or for protection.

This study may encourage more owners to try playing fetch with their cat, particularly if their cats are indoor-only or of a certain breed

Jemma Forman, University of Sussex

“We have not asked cats to change their behaviour very much during the process of domestication.

“To me, the bigger question is why so many cats fetch, since we have not (to our knowledge), specifically selected them to help humans with tasks like hunting or herding!”

Dr Delgado said that cats are often portrayed as independent or aloof, but “in fact, they can be very social and this is a nice example of one way they are interactive with humans”.

Commenting on the study, Jemma Forman, doctoral researcher at the University of Sussex, who was not involved in the current research but has previously studied fetching behaviour in cats, said: “Although cats and dogs are dissimilar to one another in more ways than one, it’s great to see an overlap in fetching behaviour between the two domesticated species.

“As the authors suggest, the results of their study provides compelling evidence for fetching behaviour being motivated by play rather than predation, with both young and healthy cats and dogs being more likely to fetch objects.

“This study may encourage more owners to try playing fetch with their cat, particularly if their cats are indoor-only or of a certain breed, for example Siamese.”