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  • The effect of owner presenc...
    Behnke, Alexandra C.; Vitale, Kristyn R.; Udell, Monique A.R.

    Applied animal behaviour science, October 2021, 2021-10-00, Letnik: 243
    Journal Article

    The Secure Base Effect (SBE) refers to a human or non-human animal’s ability to use the presence of a bonded caretaker, or other familiar stimulus, as a source of comfort that facilitates stress reduction and exploration in novel or stressful contexts. Recent research has shown that some pet domestic cats (Felis catus) display SBE in the presence of their human owner, a finding that could be utilized to improve cat welfare. In applied settings, cat owners are often encouraged to leave behind items holding their scent when leaving their cat in a novel location (e.g. boarding facility), so that these items can be provided to the cat if they show signs of separation distress. Although this practice has not be studied scientifically in cats, scent objects have been found to produce SBE in human research under similar conditions. Olfaction is thought to play an important role in the social behavior of domesticated cats, even in early life, as exposure to nest scent has been found to reduce stress in kittens. Thus, the possibility that owner scent might be sufficient to elicit SBE in cats is an important empirical question with applied implications. In the current study we asked whether owner scent would reduce cat anxiety when in an unfamiliar environment, and to what extent this might be related to whether the cat showed evidence of using their owner as a Secure Base. Forty-two adult cats underwent a counterbalanced Secure Base Test that examined the cat’s behavior with the owner present, without the owner present, and with a scent object present. On average, cats displayed a lower frequency of stress-related behaviors when the owner was present, providing support for the presence of SBE. However, this effect was not seen when the cat was alone with the scent object. The results of this research can be used to deepen our understanding of feline social behavior and welfare. These findings also highlight the importance of using evidence based practices to address cat anxiety in applied settings. •Roughly half of evaluated cats exhibited the Secure Base Effect with their owner.•Cats displayed less stress behavior when in the company of their owner.•An object holding the owner’s scent did not promote the Secure Base Effect in cats.•Cats exhibited stress behavior in the presence of the scent object alone.•Allorubbing is an important reunion behavior, 83% of cats rub their owner following a separation.