Why does your cat ignore you?

Free Malaysia Today

16-06-2025

With cats, total indifference is the highest form of flattery. (Envato Elements pic)
PARIS : It is often believed that cats deliberately ignore us. But in reality, this apparent coldness hides a sophisticated form of olfactory recognition.
Indeed, a Japanese study published in the journal PLOS One reports that domestic cats identify their owners mainly by their scent. As such, they know they these familiar humans are part of their inner circle.
As part of this study, Yutaro Miyairi and colleagues at Tokyo University of Agriculture conducted a revealing smell test with 30 domestic cats – 11 males and 19 females, with an average age of seven – in their owners' homes.
Each animal had to identify three samples: the scent of its owner, that of a stranger, and a control tube with no scent. The samples were collected from behind the ears, under the armpits, and between the toes, after asking participants to avoid alcohol, tobacco, spices and perfumes.
The researchers found that the cats spent significantly less time sniffing their owner's scent than that of a stranger. This difference suggests immediate recognition: familiar scents require only a brief check.
According to the researchers, this shorter sniffing time suggests that cats quickly recognise their owners' scent before moving on to something else. When faced with an unfamiliar person, they investigate longer to gather information.
The study also reveals that cats prefer to use their right nostril to analyse unfamiliar smells, then switch to the left once the information has been processed. This mechanism suggests that the right hemisphere of their brain processes new information, while the left hemisphere handles routine information.
Smell as social compass
Another intriguing discovery was that many cats did not simply sniff the odours presented to them by the researchers. They frequently rubbed their faces against the sample tubes, favouring the side that had just been used for exploration. This behaviour indicates a direct link between olfactory exploration and territorial marking.
If your cat spends time sniffing a visitor, it simply means his or her scent is new to them. (Envato Elements pic)
Personality also influences these olfactory behaviours: more anxious cats first examine the odourless tubes, while the more sociable ones head for their owner's sample. In males, this correlation is particularly marked: the most anxious cats make multiple trips back and forth, while the more serene creatures explore calmly.
All these discoveries teach us a little more about our feline friends. When your cat sulks when you return from vacation, it may be because you smell unusual. Try taking a shower with your usual products and putting your old clothes back on to make it easier for your cat to warm to you again.
Similarly, if your cat spends all its time sniffing a visitor, don't be jealous. This sign of attention simply means that the scent is new to them.
Indeed, smell is king of the feline senses: only 54% of cats recognize human faces, as Julia Henning, a PhD student in feline behaviour at the University of Adelaide, points out in an article in The Conversation.
But a smell, they never forget. So 'cat parents' can rest assured: your scent has earned you entry into the very exclusive club of 'trusted smells' – those that can be safely ignored.