Is it true that cats pick their owner?

Question

Me and my girlfriend both have cats...the cat she picked took up with me and the one I picked clings to her...

Answer 1

Maybe...  i personally believe that cats and other animals show more affection to the one that feeds and plays with them. i feed my cat and pet him a lot so he comes to find me when he wants one or the other. but when it wants to play it chooses my brother or the other kid that lives with us, not me and i can't get him to stay with my during those time and vice versa  

Answer 2

When I went to "pick" a kitten from the litter when I got my last cat, I had a "choice" between two.  First up was Zinger, who made it clear he had no interest in me, he just thought it was cool to be outside.  The owner of the litter thought he would be the better choice for me because he was social and played with everyone available.  Then she brought out Honeybun.  Bunnie spent some time looking at me and sniffing me, and when I picked him up he stretched out and licked me on the nose.  The owner of the litter of kittens exclaimed that it was the first time that he had shown interest in any human, and I knew that I had been chosen by him rather than the other way around.  Now, eight years later, even though he has lived with me as well as various roommates who were always kind to him, sometimes fed him, etc., he is still very strictly a one woman cat.  He loves me and my other cat, and although he will occasionally deign to be petted by other people if they approach slowly enough, I am the one he looks to in times of stress and I still believe that he knew at our first meeting that we were meant to be together.

Answer 3

Absolutely. When I was a very small child my parents adopted a stray cat. Despite their best efforts, they couldn't keep the cat out of my cot, and he didn't hurt me so they just gave up. I could do anything I wanted with the cat as I grew up, and he just adored me. I never once fed him. By the time I was old enough the routine was too well established. Sometimes I'd drop some dry food in his bowl - but it was very occassional, maybe once a month. My father was always the one who fed him. He and the rest of my family had a very clear understanding - I could touch him, they couldn't. There was absolutely no reason for him to have bonded with me like that - he just did.

Meanwhile I have a cat at the moment - I live alone, I feed her, let her sleep on my bed, pet her, she snuggles on my lap - I've spent 12 months getting her affection. If my mother who she's seen twice in the last 12 months came for a visit - the cat would ignore my existence. It's not that she doesn't like me, she just loves my mother much better. If i could trust my mother to keep her strictly indoors I'd give her the cat, unfortunately my mother believes that cats should roam free.

Answer 4

Two kittens were handed to my mother when I was 14. Both littermates, I chose one and my brother chose the other. The one I chose hated me. He wouldn't let me near him, and ran for his life whenever I came near and eventually he found a friend in my mother. However, the one my brother chose wouldn't be apart from me. He'd lay on my bed, follow me around, lay under the covers with me at night. He wouldn't bond with my brother at all, and to this day won't let anyone touch him apart from me. He claimed me as his own.

Anyway, Teapot is now my best friend, and lives with me. He's the biggest ball of fluff I've ever encountered, and he's extremely loyal.

They definitely do pick their companions. There's no doubt about it.  

Answer 5

I completely believe that cats pick their owners. It is like having a roommate and you should like your roommate or it won't workout. I think it creates this special bond when you think of it that way. Certain cats bond with certain people.

Answer 6

Yep, I believe in that, too, because I've witnessed and experienced it.  This stray tabby cat I adopted 8 weeks ago actually liked me so much at first meeting that he followed me home.  We just clicked at our first meeting.  But I've seen other stray cats who wouldn't even let me approach them, least of all touch them.  

And 1 of my friends' 2 cats simply clicked with my brother so much that she brings him "gifts" (the paperclips that she always puts in her food bowl) and does "tricks" ONLY for him every time he visits.  She hides from all visitors except him.