Can cats show you their loyalty? Especially when they have a guilty conscience?

Answer 1

Cats have such special wisdom, & live their lives in complete honesty. They do nothing out of vengence, anger, hatred or mean-spiritedness. They simply aren't like humans, & we could learn a lot from them. Humans often attribute--project--human ways on cats. Like, "The cat used my bed for her litter box to GET EVEN WITH ME, because I left her alone!"That sort of thing? That isn't why the cat goes to the person's bed! Feline behaviour is awesome. They have sincere respect, & whatever they do, I don't believe they feel "guilty," because they simply don't "choose" to do things that are "wrong." Loyalty & love, oh yes. Cats can sense your stress before you do, & will try to comfort you. They also make choices about people they can trust. My cat companion is my measuring stick. When strangers step in the door, (workers, contractors, etc.), she'll go into what I call "cat warp," & I always find that that person is someone to whom I simply cannot relate. Others, she will meet with a greeting & a rub of ankles. I have one most MAJOR problem with the way some people treat cats. They just grab them as if they were some sort of toy, & then are surprised if the cat hisses or scratches. Well, so would I. They also don't pick up on cues when playing lasts too long, & the cat--just as we would--responds adversely. No to guilty conscience, yes to loyalty.

Snake Lady, you said it all in: "he decided he'd had enough."
Should he have said, "Please stop?" You call that psychotic. Hello? If you're in tune with your cat companion, you'll KNOW when it's enough.

Answer 2

I don't know if it can be called loyalty but one of my three cats certainly prefers me to any other humans, even the others he lives with. He never comes into the living room unless I'm there, runs away from other people (unless they have food), won't tolerate handling from anybody else and if I'm away for long periods of time he stops eating and gets really mopey.

He's not above turning a little psycho on me though. One day when I was petting him he decided he'd have enough of that, grabbed my arm in all four pours and scratched me so badly I still have clearly visible scars six months later. What's worse is they're on the inside of my wrist so it looks like a manic suicide attempt :( He's never honoured anybody else by scratching them though, they don't get close enough.

So... I think they show loyalty in their own special psychotic way.

And just an afterthought, but I don't think cats are acquainted with guilt. Whatever they choose to do is obviously the right choice, because they are the masters of the universe.

Answer 3

i believe so. my cat used to jump up on the desk by the phone every time i called home but not when any one else called

Answer 4

no, except for very special and rare cases, cats are very independent. I don't think they even have a conscience!
Maybe if you starve it for awhile though... ;)