--- description: A new study by scientists from Oregon State University has determined that cats prefer human social interaction to food. title: Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d2975b011796c4b/69877d90e20a8728eda84ec4/cats.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Science](/section/science/) ## Science Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [animals](/tag/animals/) ## animals Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds by [Kate Samuelson](/author/kate-samuelson/) ## Kate Samuelson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 28, 2017 12:53 PM CUT  British Shorthair tortie and white female cat with tortie and white kitten, and chocolate and cream bicolour kittens British Shorthair tortie and white female cat with tortie and white kitten, and chocolate and cream bicolour kittensGetty Images by [Kate Samuelson](/author/kate-samuelson/) ## Kate Samuelson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Mar 28, 2017 12:53 PM CUT [Cats](http://time.com/4678615/cats-mental-health-problems-study/ "undefined") may have a reputation of being standoffish creatures who show their owners affection merely to fill their tummies. However, a new study carried out by scientists from Oregon State University has determined that felines actually prefer human social interaction to food, making them no less loving than their canine counterparts. For the study, which was published in the journal [_Behavioural Processes_](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0376635716303424 "undefined"), scientists examined what happened when domestic pets and shelter cats were given a choice of stimuli. The creatures were offered a choice between food, toys, scent, and social interaction with humans, to see which their preferences were. Although there was clear individual variability in cat preference, social interaction with humans was the preferred activity for the majority of both pet and shelter cats, followed by food. “Increasingly cat cognition research is providing evidence of their complex socio-cognitive and problem solving abilities,” the study read. “Nonetheless, it is still common belief that cats are not especially sociable or trainable.” Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4714823/cats-very-social-study/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4714823/cats-very-social-study/"},"headline":"Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds","datePublished":"2017-03-28T12:53:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-31T10:50:22.591Z","description":"Cats love a cuddle — despite their standoffish reputation","url":"https://time.com/4714823/cats-very-social-study/","keywords":["animals","cats","nature","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d2975b011796c4b/69877d90e20a8728eda84ec4/cats.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kate Samuelson","jobTitle":"","url":"https://time.com/author/kate-samuelson/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7d2975b011796c4b/69877d90e20a8728eda84ec4/cats.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Cats","caption":"Cats","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/animals/","name":"animals"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4714823/cats-very-social-study/","name":"Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Cats Are Just as Smart as Dogs, Study Suggests","description":"Cats may be just as smart as dogs (and humans), a new study suggests","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/qkv5k1zG/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-01-26T21:06:04.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/qkv5k1zG.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4714823/cats-very-social-study/","duration":"PT54S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4714823/cats-very-social-study/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```