Why Cats?

“Suddenly, Birbo came into my life. I was helping a stranger for just a few days… her story about that little cat who had arrived from Sicily by plane through a rescue network—after spending a month in a veterinarian’s cage being treated for ringworm, and who was then living with a family tired of broken ornaments and scratched curtains, forced to stay in the dark all day because it was important to keep the house tightly closed and fully alarmed—gripped my heart in a vise… In short, she was a stranger and the cats were strangers too, but I simply could not remain indifferent to her words. It was important to get him out of that situation, and then I would find a way. I was never able to part from him. Today, my Birbo is a big, handsome cat with a passion for good food and companionship, just like me, wearing an elegant black coat that once frightened our ancestors… but certainly not me! My adventure with the feline world began that way, followed by many events, some of them dramatic, including the sudden loss of my very young Sgrinfio… but I did not stop. Today I know so much more about them than I did in the past, I treasure this knowledge every day, and I can say that I have a wonderful life with my feline family, made up of my five splendid companions who form a close-knit and harmonious group. My fundamental question has often been: how did they manage to change my life so much, to enrich it so deeply that I wanted to learn more… is the cat truly such a magical being? Yes, for me it is. And I am ready to move the world to see them happy and well.”

With great pleasure, I discovered that I am in good company in this belief. After all, this animal—listed among the 100 most harmful species on the planet, which kills prey not out of hunger but driven by movement and sometimes displaying impressive “martial arts” skills to achieve its goal, which walks silently at night only to jump on us at full weight while we sleep—shaped by evolution to be a solitary predator yet capable of forming very deep relationships, is today the most widespread animal in our homes. Despite W. Churchill’s well-known phrase, “The dog looks up to us, the cat looks down on us”… those who own one often end up owning more, sometimes even too many. Fortunately, today Churchill’s statement, along with many others that describe cats as selfish, solitary, independent, and opportunistic, is being brought into question.

In my dialogues and consultations—some scientific in nature, others psychological, and others empathetic—I aim to highlight the many benefits of understanding a cat’s nature, its sociability, social behavior, and feline, social, and empathetic communication. By truly understanding our cats and building with them a proper, balanced relational bond and dialogue, we can achieve genuinely positive outcomes on a global level.

Promoting a cat’s social well-being also means promoting its physical well-being. Today, several pathologies caused by stress from the unnatural environment of our homes are well known, and their number is increasing. These lead to discomfort that manifests in behaviors such as eliminating outside the litter box, idiopathic cystitis, destructive behavior, and even depression.