Because a lot of people who own a cat are not ideally suited to the task, having a cat does not say much about your personality. You won’t see a clear personality profile amongst the world’s cat owners. These are my thoughts alone. I have not referred to books or the beliefs of ‘experts’.
However, in general, a cat owner must like cats! If they like cats it is probably a fair comment to say that a lot of cat owners like animals and have a sensitivity towards animal welfare.
However, I have lost count of the number of times I have encountered sport hunters saying that they love animals and are engaged in wildlife conservation. I don’t get it. Genuine cat lovers should not like hunting. It is inherently cruel. And genuine cat lovers should hate cruelty to animals.
A good cat owner will be sensitive and intelligent; sensitive enough to read their cat’s moods and desires and intelligent enough to convert that information into a damn good home for their cat companion.
The classic profile of a cat owner is female, independent, refined and smart. But this is slightly stereotypical. There are many other ‘types of person’ who are fond of cats and who own cats. The independence of the cat appeals to the independent-minded person particularly women. And is it true that females like cats because of their nurturing drive? There is also some anthropomorphisation of cats.
A lot of families own cats and dogs. There is a big crossover here. I think to be brutally honest there are a lot of people who have a cat who are not 100% committed to their cat’s health and welfare. They rather like cats as possessions perhaps and do not prioritise welfare (avoid the vet for instance). They will have a non-typical personality to excellent cat caregivers.
For example there are many people who purchase purebred cats. These cats are refined and sometimes glamorous in appearance. The purchaser of these cats are not infrequently more interested in the cat’s appearance than welfare. The cat becomes a household adornment. This sort of cat owner is not the best but not untypical. On this basis alone it is hard to decide, in practice, what having a cat says about your personality because there are also many who are more concerned with welfare over appearance.
Another stereotype for the cat owner is that if a man has cats or a cat he must be gay. That is completely off-target. Of course there are gay men who love cats – the classic is the lead singer of Queen, Freddie Mercury – he loved his cats. I suppose gay men have certain personality traits but there are far more straight men with a range of personalities who love cats.
Perhaps it is better to ask; “What does disliking cats say about your personality?”. You’re likely to be Muslim! That’s not being racist. I am trying to be factual and honest while avoiding an accusation of racism. Pakistanis are less likely to have cats. I’ll leave it to you to try and pigeon hole the Pakistani personality if it is possible. You’re likely to be black. Black people are less fond of cats than white people particularly young black men. I’d guess and also say young, poorly educated white men tend to dislike cats because they have misconceptions about cats. Is it fair to say that these groups of people have certain identifiable personality traits? Probably because a lack of knowledge affects a person’s personality.
If there is a golden thread running through the personality type of cat owners who genuinely care about cat caregiving it is that they have a refined, intelligent approach to living and are more often female than male. A person does not have to be well-educated to have a refined, intelligent approach to living.
There are intriguing links between cat behavior and their owners’ personality. Owners who have intense relationships with their cats tend to be caretakers of cats that like to be picked up and cuddled. This is probably because the person selects the sort of cat who likes cuddles.
