Research reveals cats love to play fetch just like dogs

By Stephen Beech via SWNS

Cats as well as dogs love to play "fetch" with their owners, reveals new research.

More than four in 10 felines and almost eight out of 10 canines retrieve objects - especially young, healthy males, according to the American study.

Lead author Dr. Mikel Delgado, of Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine , Indiana, says fetching was more common in cats (40.9%) than previously thought - although it was almost twice as common in dogs (77.8%).

She says that, in both species, fetching is linked with measures of activity and energy, so it does appear to be a form of play.

Dr. Delgado said: "Fetching may have its roots in the natural hunting behaviours of cats and dogs, but how it was shaped by domestication into the playful actions we see in our pets today is unclear."

The research team analyzed data from online surveys of more than 8,000 cat owners and nearly 74,000 dog owners conducted between 2015 and 2023.

Their findings, published in the journal PLoS One , showed that cats are more likely to display fetching behavior if they are generally more active and playful, and if they live indoors.

Dr. Delgado, who owns three felines herself, said: "Although cats of all breeds sometimes engage in fetching, it is more common in Burmese, Siamese, and Tonkinese cats.

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

"Fetching was reported for most dog breeds, but some are more likely than others to fetch, including Labrador and Golden Retrievers, Border Collies and English Cocker Spaniels.

"Dog breeds that were developed to herd livestock or as hunting companions are more likely to fetch than other breeds.

"In both cats and dogs, fetching behavior is less common in females, older animals, and individuals with health conditions."

She said that the research was "inspired" by a University of Sussex study, published last year, of cats that fetched.

Dr. Delgado wanted to find out if there were any discernible differences between felines that "fetch" and those that don't.

She said: "We were surprised to find that there were very few studies of fetching behavior in dogs.

"Personally, as a lifelong 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 behavior is in cats and dogs and also to see what a big impact breed has for dogs.

"Cats and dogs have been domesticated for very different reasons. Even though they are the two most popular pets, they still play different roles in our lives.

"Dogs have really co-evolved with humans to help us, whether with hunting, herding, or for protection.

"During the domestication of dogs, we have selected them for some specific behaviors - such as retrieving - that probably explains to a large extent why this behavior is much more common in dogs.

"We have not asked cats to change their behavior 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.

"Male cats and dogs, and younger cats and dogs were more likely to fetch. Animals with health issues were less likely to fetch.

"In cats, fetching was correlated with how playful and active their owner reported they were, and for dogs with how trainable their owner reported they were.

"Also, for both cats and dogs, living with dogs decreased the likelihood of fetching behavior."

She said that although fetching shows "many similarities" to natural hunting behavior, the results suggest that it is more closely related to play than predation.

Dr. Delgado said: "We hope that the study draws more attention to fetching behavior in cats - who are often portrayed as independent or aloof.

"In fact, they can be very social and this is a nice example of one way they are interactive with humans."

She added: "It would be nice to get more information about the environment and human-pet relationship - since we relied on data that had already been collected, we were unable to ask additional questions about other factors that may have an impact on fetching behavior in both species."

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