There has been an age long debate between the preference of dogs vs. cats.
Dogs are the most obvious people pleaser and are much easier to train. When it comes to kitties, they can be so independent it can feel like they own us instead of the other way around. Both have soft fur but kitties have needles on their paws and dogs drool. Dogs have been domesticated alongside us as our loyal companions for as long as history has been written. Cats choose to domesticate themselves and Ancient Egyptians found them so sacred they worshiped them as incarnations of the Goddess Bastet.
With such contrasting traits and different histories, many people ask- which one is better? Let me be the first one to say it- both creatures are perfect and deserving of absolutely all our love.
Yet, one thing often mentioned in the debate is each creatures ability to love. People undoubtedly understand the adoring love of a canine. Their need to please and their slobbery kisses are very obvious signs of their infinite affection. Yet many people wonder if cats love us in the same capacity that dogs do. They don't show us in the same ways but cats have much more subtle ways of telling us they love us.
This doesn't mean they love us any less. They just have a different language of love.
Sailor showing me his love by gracing me with his presencepersonal photo
So, what are those subtle ways they display their love?
One way is actually quite obvious, but it's their kisses. Kitties do share one thing in common with dogs and it's the tendency to kiss those they love. Dogs kiss as a sign of submission but cats kiss as a sign of grooming. My baby Sailor is a groomaholic. When he's sitting on my lap giving himself a lick attack he'll sometimes lean over and give me some kisses.
Another sign of love is when they lay on your lap or are constantly near you. Cats despite being independent love being around those they love. Every cat may express this different. My baby Sailor is often in the same room as me or my other family members. He doesn't like to be himself for very long and is visibly distressed when we leave the house for long periods of time. He shows his love by being around people, even if he's not in the particular mood to be petted or loved on.
Yet another sign of love is slow blinks. When a cat stares at you for a period of time and then proceeds to slow blink. That's true love right there. For cats staring is a sign of aggression but combined with a slow blink shows a sense of security enough to let down their guard down and be vulnerable. Cats are usually very guarded creatures so if they let do this it's a sign of trust.
Another sign of trust and love is an exposed belly. If a kitty is laying on his side or back it means he trusts you enough to let his guard down. This is a big deal in the kitty world.
The last example of a kitty's love is them bringing you dead things. This may seem counterproductive to what most of us interpret as love and we may not be pleased by this action. Yet, when kitties do this they view us as clan mates and are bringing back excess food so we have something to eat. They are trying to take care of us so we don't starve.
A lot of cats showing us their love is expressing trust and vulnerability, treating us as clan mate kitties by grooming and feeding us, and simply being around us. All these signs show us how much they're capable of loving us. They literally treat us like family in their own special way.
