0:00:03 > 0:00:06Horizon recently revealed the secret life of cats.
0:00:08 > 0:00:1250 cats in a Surrey village were tracked for a week.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16Have you seen this one? It's quite exciting.
0:00:16 > 0:00:21The experiment cast new light on how they hunt, how they fight,
0:00:21 > 0:00:22and how they live together.
0:00:27 > 0:00:29This film will focus on the surprising stories
0:00:29 > 0:00:31of four of the cats.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36Orlando, the hunter.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40It's bunny season. He will go on a bunny-killing spree.
0:00:41 > 0:00:43Obi, the runaway.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46I think cats do choose their owners, yes.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49Hermes, the top cat.
0:00:49 > 0:00:50Ha! He's everywhere!
0:00:50 > 0:00:53And a fourth cat with no name.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58The cat that no-one seems to know.
0:00:58 > 0:01:00That's not Toby.
0:01:01 > 0:01:05One village, one week, four cats.
0:01:06 > 0:01:08Their diaries help us understand
0:01:08 > 0:01:10the relationship we have with our cats...
0:01:10 > 0:01:14and shed light on what your cat really thinks about you.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21Tobes... He's purring.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23TOBY PURRS
0:01:31 > 0:01:34For one week this spring, Horizon transformed
0:01:34 > 0:01:37the village of Shamley Green into a giant laboratory.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45A unique experiment was carried out with the Royal Veterinary College,
0:01:45 > 0:01:49in which 50 cats were fitted with GPS collars
0:01:49 > 0:01:51to track their every move.
0:01:51 > 0:01:53That's nice. Excellent.
0:01:53 > 0:01:55And some were given cameras that would record
0:01:55 > 0:01:57their cat's-eye view of the world.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13The first of our cats is Orlando.
0:02:14 > 0:02:18He may look like any old pampered pussycat,
0:02:18 > 0:02:20but over the course of the week,
0:02:20 > 0:02:23we discovered where his real talents lie.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27Orlando is a very keen hunter.
0:02:27 > 0:02:32He much prefers wild food to cat food.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41It's bunny season. He will go on a bunny-killing spree.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47Every other day he fills up on bunnies.
0:02:50 > 0:02:51That keeps him going for a while.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57And it isn't just rabbits that Orlando's partial to.
0:02:59 > 0:03:02He'll happily eat almost anything he can catch.
0:03:03 > 0:03:07We actually have trained the cats to keep away from the bird feeder.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09When we first moved to our house three years ago,
0:03:09 > 0:03:12they just literally picked them off the bird feeder
0:03:12 > 0:03:13like sweeties, day after day.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19As cousins of tigers, leopards and other large hunting cats,
0:03:19 > 0:03:22it isn't surprising that some of our pet cats
0:03:22 > 0:03:23barely need us to feed them.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30As part of the experiment, cat owners in the village
0:03:30 > 0:03:32have kept some of the prey that their pets brought home.
0:03:34 > 0:03:36CAT MEWS
0:03:37 > 0:03:40He walked in very nonchalantly, looking very satisfied.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43So I went out and had a look in his feeding place,
0:03:43 > 0:03:45and found... All that was left was one eyeball.
0:03:49 > 0:03:52With four rabbits brought in during the week,
0:03:52 > 0:03:55Orlando seems to be the village's most successful hunter.
0:03:57 > 0:04:02- This is just Orlando.- His owner, Emily, has come to the village hall.
0:04:02 > 0:04:06It's been temporarily taken over by scientists who are analysing
0:04:06 > 0:04:09the information streaming in from the GPS traces and cat-cams.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13- So, he's been down to your neighbour's.- Yes.
0:04:13 > 0:04:16And he kind of hangs around here, round the back of her house.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18I don't know what there is there, we haven't looked.
0:04:18 > 0:04:21- That's their house there.- I think there's a lot of rabbits down there,
0:04:21 > 0:04:23from when I've been to their house.
0:04:23 > 0:04:25It is a bit like having the takeaway two doors down.
0:04:25 > 0:04:29- He certainly brought a lot back. - Oh, he eats them.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32- He doesn't eat cat food, basically. - He's a big hunter.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35So he's our champion, as you might have imagined.
0:04:35 > 0:04:36He loves, he just loves rabbits.
0:04:38 > 0:04:42There was one day just before you came, he caught three in one day.
0:04:42 > 0:04:47He ate the first one, the third one, and the second one was a present.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Orlando's cat-cam footage suggests his favourite meal
0:04:51 > 0:04:53doesn't always agree with him.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55This is our YouTube moment.
0:04:58 > 0:04:59Brace yourselves for this bit.
0:05:01 > 0:05:03SHE LAUGHS
0:05:03 > 0:05:05- Urgh! He's being sick! - On our neighbours' garden!
0:05:05 > 0:05:08What happens to cats when they eat rabbit guts,
0:05:08 > 0:05:10doesn't always agree with them.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14Cats are the most common carnivores in Britain.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19They bring home tens of millions of prey animals every year.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22Though some cats survive exclusively on pet food,
0:05:22 > 0:05:26many hunt all sorts of mammals, amphibians,
0:05:26 > 0:05:28reptiles, birds and fish.
0:05:32 > 0:05:36As the experiment continues, something unexpected has turned up.
0:05:37 > 0:05:40A friend in Sweetwater Close has seen him.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44I say he, he looks like a boy cat. Looks like a very tough cat.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49About a month ago, I reckon, we had a cat visiting the house.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53You get up every morning, you can smell that a cat had sprayed.
0:05:53 > 0:05:54So we knew we'd had somebody in.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58There's a big fluffy black and white cat
0:05:58 > 0:06:00that I've seen on a few occasions,
0:06:00 > 0:06:03comes in through the cat flap, has a big fight with our cats.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06We started blocking up the cat flap.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09It just pushed everything out of the way and came in.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12We seem to have quite a lot of trouble with spraying
0:06:12 > 0:06:17and other unpleasant things. So our cat's not terribly pleased about it.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22The question is, whose cat is this?
0:06:22 > 0:06:24Or is it a stray?
0:06:26 > 0:06:29If this is one of Britain's 2 million strays,
0:06:29 > 0:06:32it could be bringing all manner of problems to Shamley Green.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42Oh, come on, you're not frightened of me.
0:06:42 > 0:06:45The team are visiting Paulina and her cat Toby
0:06:45 > 0:06:48to try and find out more about the mystery cat.
0:06:52 > 0:06:54- Hi, Paulina.- Hi, Alex, how are you?
0:06:54 > 0:06:56- I'm all right, how are you?- Fine.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59- Good. I heard you had an intruder last night?- I did.
0:06:59 > 0:07:00I'd like to find out what it was.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02Came in...
0:07:02 > 0:07:04scrabble, scrabble, scrabble.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08Cat rushed out of the sitting room, out through the cat door.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11Toby went after him but didn't go through the cat door.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14- It all happened so quickly, I didn't really get a chance...- No worries.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17We'll rig this up in the living room and see
0:07:17 > 0:07:19if we might be able to see what he was doing.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Alex is setting up a series of cameras
0:07:22 > 0:07:24to try to get a glimpse of the cat.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27The camera works with a trigger mechanism, so as soon as anything
0:07:27 > 0:07:31passes in front of it, it activates and it records for 60 seconds.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33- So we'll place it down on the floor.- OK.
0:07:33 > 0:07:37And then see what kind of behaviour we might be able to catch.
0:07:37 > 0:07:38- Yeah, that's fine.- Brilliant.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58The next day, Paulina has come to meet Dr Sarah Ellis
0:07:58 > 0:08:00to see if there is any news.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04OK, Paulina. So we think we've spotted an intruder in your house.
0:08:04 > 0:08:09- So the footage we've got is inside your house.- Oh, right. Wow!
0:08:09 > 0:08:12At 3am, the camera is activated.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18- And there's our culprit. - That's not Toby!- Nope.
0:08:18 > 0:08:23- When was this, last night?- Yes.- God!
0:08:23 > 0:08:26It looks to me, they're a black and white cat, definitely long hair.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30- White paws.- I don't recognise it.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33- It's got quite distinctive facial markings.- It has, very.
0:08:35 > 0:08:38Well, that's definitely not Obi next door.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41- And it's definitely not Esme, is it?- No.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46But the mystery cat is doing more than just turning up unannounced.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51There have been reports of fights with other cats in the village.
0:08:55 > 0:09:00To try to restore peace, the team have called in a pet detective.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05His mission is to find out who the mystery cat belongs to
0:09:05 > 0:09:07or if it's a stray.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14If the intruder cat is definitely a stray,
0:09:14 > 0:09:16there is a possibility
0:09:16 > 0:09:20it might be carrying a disease of some sort, and that concerns us.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23Because if it's fighting with other male cats in the village
0:09:23 > 0:09:24and mating with the female cats,
0:09:24 > 0:09:27those diseases could be passed on relatively quickly.
0:09:27 > 0:09:31So we need to establish a little bit more information about it,
0:09:31 > 0:09:34and the impact it's having on the other cats in the village.
0:09:37 > 0:09:41- Hello! I've come to speak to you about this cat.- Yeah.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44What I'd like to do now is to get more detail from you.
0:09:44 > 0:09:46You'll be surprised how much you know.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49- Your cat flap, is it open at all times?- It is.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52- Whereabouts in the house was this cat?- In my sitting room.
0:09:52 > 0:09:55And do you think it was your return to your house
0:09:55 > 0:09:57- which caused this cat to flee?- Yes.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00- Have you been putting more food down than normal?- No.
0:10:00 > 0:10:02- Did you see which direction it went into?- No.
0:10:04 > 0:10:07Finding out where the cat is coming from and where it's going to
0:10:07 > 0:10:11is essential to finding out whether or not it's a stray.
0:10:11 > 0:10:16Initially, I'd like to put a small field camera into your garden.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18To me, what I want to establish is,
0:10:18 > 0:10:21are you at the end of the route, halfway along its route,
0:10:21 > 0:10:25is it going through a pattern of behaviour every evening?
0:10:25 > 0:10:27Or are you getting a visit simply because
0:10:27 > 0:10:30Toby's out of the way and there's food in the house?
0:10:33 > 0:10:36As with all detective work, the key is information.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40Colin is putting up posters of the intruder cat
0:10:40 > 0:10:42to try and find out if anyone owns it.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49As evening draws in, he sets up some motion-activated cameras
0:10:49 > 0:10:54in and around the Thompsons' house where the cat has also been spotted.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58We're just going to lay these out on the floor overnight,
0:10:58 > 0:11:02with a view to seeing what footage we get of this cat.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07Where the cat comes from is still a mystery.
0:11:12 > 0:11:16The GPS and cat-cams are giving the cat owners of Shamley Green
0:11:16 > 0:11:19a fresh insight into what their pets do
0:11:19 > 0:11:22once they pass through their cat flap and leave their homes behind.
0:11:25 > 0:11:29That's certainly true in the case of Hermes.
0:11:30 > 0:11:32Hermes is a real character.
0:11:32 > 0:11:35He definitely has staff, rather than family.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39He expects us to wait on him hand and foot.
0:11:39 > 0:11:43Alison has been on Hermes' staff for the past four years.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47But until now she's never had a complete picture of her cat's life.
0:11:48 > 0:11:51He keeps the dogs in line, keeps the children in line as well.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54But other than that, we don't know an awful lot.
0:11:54 > 0:11:57It seems he's hardly ever in, and when he's in, he's very cuddly.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59Then he turns around, eats and goes back out again.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06Hermes is very protective of his garden in terms of territory.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11I've seen him getting quite angry with cats
0:12:11 > 0:12:14at the bottom of our garden, trying to keep them at bay.
0:12:17 > 0:12:20I don't know how far beyond that it goes.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22I'd be fascinated to see what he gets up to,
0:12:22 > 0:12:25whether he just pops three doors up and sits on somebody's lap
0:12:25 > 0:12:30and gets pampered, or whether he goes out and about and roams around.
0:12:31 > 0:12:34Predicting Hermes' behaviour is particularly difficult
0:12:34 > 0:12:38because he is not actually a HE at all.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40Hermes is quite an interesting cat
0:12:40 > 0:12:42because Hermes is actually a hermaphrodite.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45Neither male nor female, has organs of both.
0:12:45 > 0:12:47We can't make any predictions based on gender
0:12:47 > 0:12:49what that ranging behaviour would be.
0:12:50 > 0:12:54But what we seem to see is Hermes doing laps.
0:12:54 > 0:12:58These routine patrols. A big patrol loop.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04GPS data and Hermes' cat-cam show that his protective instincts
0:13:04 > 0:13:07extend way beyond his back garden.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12Hermie ranged further than any other cat this week.
0:13:12 > 0:13:15And I can see he's going to a lot of back gardens,
0:13:15 > 0:13:18he's crossing different roads. Generally getting around.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21About six hectares, or 15 acres, what he's ranging over.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24And he's really going a long way every night,
0:13:24 > 0:13:26covering a great deal of distance.
0:13:28 > 0:13:31When he's roaming in around these streets and in and out
0:13:31 > 0:13:34of the gardens and so on, he's presumably looking for other cats.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37Checking out the neighbourhood in general.
0:13:37 > 0:13:39CAT MEOWS
0:13:39 > 0:13:43Some areas he seems to go to, like here, he's going to quite regularly.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45Almost on a daily basis.
0:13:45 > 0:13:49But other areas, perhaps he only checks out once every few days,
0:13:49 > 0:13:53just to see whether the local cat activity has changed or not.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02It's time for Hermes' owners to find out what he's really been up to.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05- That's definitely active.- Crikey!
0:14:05 > 0:14:07He's everywhere! Oh, my word.
0:14:07 > 0:14:13- So as you can see, he's covering quite a lot of ground.- He is, yeah.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17In fact if you're adding all that together,
0:14:17 > 0:14:19- he is our roamer of the week.- Wow!
0:14:19 > 0:14:20He's gone further than any other cat,
0:14:20 > 0:14:23and that includes the cats that we've been following
0:14:23 > 0:14:27right out in the outlying areas, which you would think have
0:14:27 > 0:14:30- plenty of space to roam around in, they'd be all over the place.- Yeah.
0:14:30 > 0:14:32In fact, most of those have stuck close to home
0:14:32 > 0:14:34and Hermes has taken the prize.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36It surprises me. There's a lot of cats in our street,
0:14:36 > 0:14:39you'd have thought there'd be a reasonable amount
0:14:39 > 0:14:40of territory battle.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42Yeah, he doesn't seem to be restricted at all
0:14:42 > 0:14:44by that kind of thing.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46There are other cats moving around in these areas,
0:14:46 > 0:14:50pretty much at the same time he is. He just doesn't seem to be bothered.
0:14:50 > 0:14:52So he's a very confident cat.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54As roamer of the week,
0:14:54 > 0:14:57the result suggests it's Hermes who's in charge.
0:14:58 > 0:15:01He doesn't seem to be affected by anybody else's territory,
0:15:01 > 0:15:06so yeah, he's...pretty cool, really, apparently! Which is always nice.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09This is like going to parents' evening for your children.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11But for your cat.
0:15:11 > 0:15:13He's obviously a little dude enjoying himself,
0:15:13 > 0:15:14- which is nice.- Hermes, top cat!
0:15:23 > 0:15:26The team have found the village's top hunter and top roamer.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29But there's still one cat that's proving elusive.
0:15:31 > 0:15:35A few days ago, motion-sensitive cameras were placed in and around
0:15:35 > 0:15:38the Thompsons' house to look for signs of the intruder cat.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43They've got some results.
0:15:43 > 0:15:44They've had an intruder.
0:15:44 > 0:15:47And we're really interested to see if that intruder is the same intruder
0:15:47 > 0:15:50that's been in Paulina and Toby's house.
0:15:50 > 0:15:54So he's definitely long-haired, as was the intruder to Paulina's house.
0:15:54 > 0:15:57And it's definitely the same cat. Without a doubt.
0:15:57 > 0:16:00He's got quite a distinct marking on his back inside leg,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03he's got a white flash, you can just see it there.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08Oh, and he's going to spray.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12He's just urine sprayed at the exit to the house.
0:16:12 > 0:16:16This is suggestive that he may be trying to claim this area as his own.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19Cats tend to mark at the entry/exit points,
0:16:19 > 0:16:22at the boundary of what they consider their own territory.
0:16:22 > 0:16:23That's really interesting,
0:16:23 > 0:16:26this could be a bit of a territorial dispute.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31Most cats that spray are un-neutered tomcats.
0:16:31 > 0:16:34As over 80% of pet cats are neutered,
0:16:34 > 0:16:38the intruder here is very likely to be a stray.
0:16:38 > 0:16:40Not something that the Thompsons would welcome.
0:16:43 > 0:16:48The Thompsons have two cats, Harry and Midge. So this is Midge.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52She's definitely smelling some of that area.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55And she's off out.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59But it may be related to the fact that she's had
0:16:59 > 0:17:02an intruder in her home who's scent-marking her home,
0:17:02 > 0:17:05and that can cause tension for cats within their own home.
0:17:08 > 0:17:13A visit to the Thompson family uncovers some worrying news.
0:17:13 > 0:17:15Midge hasn't returned.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17How long has Midgy been missing?
0:17:17 > 0:17:22So, last seen Saturday evening. So it's now Monday evening.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24So 48 hours.
0:17:24 > 0:17:29Tell me about this visitor that you've been having, this other cat?
0:17:29 > 0:17:33- When do you think he first turned up?- Five, six weeks ago.
0:17:33 > 0:17:39- OK. And what does it look like? - Big, fluffy, black and white.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41Mum says that it really smells.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44Where we start now is by putting in field cameras,
0:17:44 > 0:17:49so we can literally map its route into the garden, where it goes.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53And then the final stage is, we'll introduce a cat trap,
0:17:53 > 0:17:56which is a humane cage. We put food into the cage,
0:17:56 > 0:17:58and we encourage the cat to go into the cage.
0:17:58 > 0:18:04We have a facility within our office to watch that video footage.
0:18:04 > 0:18:05We will know when the cat's gone in.
0:18:05 > 0:18:09- And we might give you a quick call and, say, just check.- Fantastic.
0:18:11 > 0:18:14Midge appears to have been rattled by the intruder.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20The question is whether or not his family will be enough
0:18:20 > 0:18:21to lure him home.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26Obi? Obi?
0:18:28 > 0:18:31From the look of Obi's relationship with Nina, you might think
0:18:31 > 0:18:34they've been together ever since he was a newborn kitten,
0:18:34 > 0:18:35over 10 years ago.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40Actually, he's a runaway.
0:18:42 > 0:18:46I first noticed Obi eating bird food in our garden.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49This was about three years ago.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51And I started feeding him, I probably shouldn't have.
0:18:51 > 0:18:55But I felt quite sorry for him, because he appeared to be hungry.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58And then he just kept coming back.
0:18:59 > 0:19:04And I thought he was a stray, but then I realised he had a collar on.
0:19:04 > 0:19:07I then discovered that he came from across the road.
0:19:08 > 0:19:11After 10 years of living across the road,
0:19:11 > 0:19:15Obi had started to become less comfortable.
0:19:15 > 0:19:17As he got older, he wasn't a big fan of the children.
0:19:17 > 0:19:21And there were four kids running around.
0:19:21 > 0:19:22And then obviously we got Amber,
0:19:22 > 0:19:25and that was the last straw, I think, for him.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28He came in the gate one day, saw the dog and the dog saw him,
0:19:28 > 0:19:30and they sort of looked at each other
0:19:30 > 0:19:32and the dog went to go for him and he just legged it,
0:19:32 > 0:19:35and that was about it. There was nothing I could really do about it.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37I had to just let him go.
0:19:39 > 0:19:43Some days, he literally is here on that bed all day long.
0:19:43 > 0:19:45Life of Riley, isn't it?
0:19:45 > 0:19:49I think cats do choose their owners, yes, I do.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51We have a very quiet household.
0:19:52 > 0:19:57Just my partner and myself, whereas Laura's was very noisy.
0:19:59 > 0:20:04So, on reflection, maybe that's why he came and stayed.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08Obi's GPS data from the previous night suggest that
0:20:08 > 0:20:11since he moved, he's never looked back.
0:20:11 > 0:20:14So, this is Obi, who has moved to this house quite recently
0:20:14 > 0:20:16from another house of his own accord.
0:20:16 > 0:20:19I think it was around this area here,
0:20:19 > 0:20:22- so he is almost avoiding that area completely.- Yeah.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24It's interesting that he's not going back to where
0:20:24 > 0:20:27he lived at all, there's no attempts to go back in that area,
0:20:27 > 0:20:29because he's not moved far, has he?
0:20:29 > 0:20:33It is rather unusual, but if cats find themselves in a household where
0:20:33 > 0:20:38there is stuff that they can't deal with, they do move spontaneously.
0:20:38 > 0:20:39It's quite common.
0:20:42 > 0:20:44I was really upset. Really, really upset.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47I was also angry at him for a little bit as well,
0:20:47 > 0:20:51because I thought, that's ten years and he was a part of the family,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54he was like one of my children.
0:20:54 > 0:20:57And seeing him now, I look out the kitchen window and I see him
0:20:57 > 0:21:01over the road, following her around, it is a bit upsetting.
0:21:01 > 0:21:05But, you know, they're happy together, so I'm glad he's happy.
0:21:09 > 0:21:13Now, Obi has a new home and a new owner...
0:21:14 > 0:21:15...but is it for life?
0:21:18 > 0:21:22I think he's attached to me and to my partner as well.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25It all may be cupboard love. I don't know!
0:21:26 > 0:21:29But, yes, we do love him.
0:21:36 > 0:21:39There's no doubt how we feel about our cats,
0:21:39 > 0:21:43but how attached are our cats to us?
0:21:43 > 0:21:45Erm...
0:21:47 > 0:21:50..probably quite attached as long as I feed him.
0:21:50 > 0:21:53It's more than that. They come because they want company,
0:21:53 > 0:21:56they want to have that interaction, they want to be stroked,
0:21:56 > 0:21:58they want to be spoken to.
0:21:58 > 0:22:00He'll come up to me and like, nuzzle against me
0:22:00 > 0:22:02like he wants to be stroked.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06- He doesn't really do that with Joel.- No, or Dad.- Or Dad.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14Every cat owner wonders just how much their cat loves them back.
0:22:15 > 0:22:19Professor Daniel Mills of the University of Lincoln
0:22:19 > 0:22:22is studying how attached cats are to their owners.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25We were interested in how do you actually characterise
0:22:25 > 0:22:28the relationship between a cat and the owner?
0:22:28 > 0:22:32Owners invest a lot emotionally in the cat relationship.
0:22:32 > 0:22:34It doesn't mean the cat's investing
0:22:34 > 0:22:36in the same sort of emotional relationship.
0:22:36 > 0:22:38So our research was really aimed at trying to look to see
0:22:38 > 0:22:41whether or not cats are making that emotional commitment.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48This is the strange situation room. There's your chair.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50Here are the toys. You can set the baby...
0:22:50 > 0:22:53Daniel's team adapted a famous psychology experiment
0:22:53 > 0:22:55from the 1970s
0:22:55 > 0:22:58that was originally devised to study the attachment
0:22:58 > 0:23:02between parent and child.
0:23:02 > 0:23:06'With mother as a secure base, a child has confidence to go
0:23:06 > 0:23:08'exploring into the furthest corner of the room.'
0:23:11 > 0:23:13- SCIENTIST:- Time for stranger.
0:23:17 > 0:23:19A stranger is introduced into the room.
0:23:19 > 0:23:23'The child doesn't know how to take the stranger.
0:23:23 > 0:23:25'He's going to mother.'
0:23:26 > 0:23:29In the next part of the experiment, the mother leaves
0:23:29 > 0:23:31when the child is not looking.
0:23:36 > 0:23:40The revelation of the experiment was the reunion.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43'The child shows nothing but a dramatic desire to get
0:23:43 > 0:23:45'to mother as quickly as possible and cling.'
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Psychologists concluded that this pattern of behaviour meant
0:23:50 > 0:23:53the child has a strong attachment to its parent.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00Daniel's team have reproduced the experiment with dogs.
0:24:00 > 0:24:04While the dog is distracted, the owner leaves.
0:24:09 > 0:24:13This labrador cannot bear to part from his owner.
0:24:18 > 0:24:19Now comes the reunion.
0:24:25 > 0:24:29It's just as enthusiastic as the one between the child and his mother.
0:24:31 > 0:24:33In the case of dogs and in the case of children,
0:24:33 > 0:24:37the attachment actually means they see the individual as a source
0:24:37 > 0:24:42of comfort, something that provides joy and also a source of safety.
0:24:46 > 0:24:50Daniel and his team then tried out the experiment with cats.
0:24:50 > 0:24:56They're about to find out how attached this cat is to her owner.
0:24:56 > 0:25:00So, the cat's been let out of the basket and the owner
0:25:00 > 0:25:03and the stranger are being asked just to ignore the cat.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07If the cat has this secure attachment in the same way as children
0:25:07 > 0:25:10and dogs do, then actually the cat would tend to use
0:25:10 > 0:25:13the owner as a point of reference to explore the environment,
0:25:13 > 0:25:16so they might go out and away from them, but keep coming back.
0:25:16 > 0:25:21In this case, the cat is interacting a lot with the stranger.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24It suggests the cat is not actually using the owner
0:25:24 > 0:25:28as the point of reference. It's making its own decisions.
0:25:34 > 0:25:36The owner leaves when the cat is distracted.
0:25:45 > 0:25:48But what will happen when the owner returns?
0:25:54 > 0:25:56The cat is unmoved.
0:25:58 > 0:25:59What our research shows
0:25:59 > 0:26:04so far is that the relationship between a cat and an owner is not
0:26:04 > 0:26:05what would be described
0:26:05 > 0:26:08as a secure attachment-style relationship.
0:26:08 > 0:26:12Certainly owners believe that their cats are very affectionate
0:26:12 > 0:26:16towards them, but we are starting to think the cat views the owner
0:26:16 > 0:26:19more as the provider of resources than of safety,
0:26:19 > 0:26:23which is the key feature of a secure attachment.
0:26:24 > 0:26:27Daniel and his team have studied 20 cats.
0:26:27 > 0:26:31Though they haven't yet completed their analysis, the evidence
0:26:31 > 0:26:36suggests that cats may not need us as much as we'd like to believe.
0:26:36 > 0:26:38Clearly, cat owners love cats.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41It's difficult to say whether or not cats love back!
0:26:45 > 0:26:49Back in Shamley Green, Colin has concluded his investigation
0:26:49 > 0:26:51- into the intruder cat. - We're done here.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54He's visiting Paulina to share his results.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57We've got lots of information
0:26:57 > 0:27:00and we are certain that he doesn't have an owner.
0:27:02 > 0:27:06And what we believe is, he is coming in here three or four times
0:27:06 > 0:27:10a day and sometimes he stays here, maybe three or four hours at a time.
0:27:10 > 0:27:14Good God! Have you seen any interaction with him and Toby,
0:27:14 > 0:27:18- my cat?- We've got footage of the two cats together
0:27:18 > 0:27:21and they seem to be acknowledging each other, so it's almost as if
0:27:21 > 0:27:24he's going off looking for trouble elsewhere and then he comes back.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28- Gosh!- What we would normally do now is trap him,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31get him to a vet's and get him checked over.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34He will be neutered, so the best thing for him would be
0:27:34 > 0:27:37to be re-released, little bit less aggressive,
0:27:37 > 0:27:41healthy and leading a normal life, but obviously nobody would own him.
0:27:42 > 0:27:47Just supposing I said that I might try to adopt him,
0:27:47 > 0:27:49how would we do that?
0:27:49 > 0:27:52Erm, really all that would happen there is,
0:27:52 > 0:27:54instead of releasing him outside,
0:27:54 > 0:27:58I would recommend that you keep him indoors for a couple of weeks, so he
0:27:58 > 0:28:01gets used to this as his home and then give him a run of the garden.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03I think you'll find that you will have...
0:28:03 > 0:28:05Suddenly, he'll be here all the time.
0:28:05 > 0:28:08Yes, I should think he is anyway, but you don't know about it!
0:28:08 > 0:28:10- Oh, gosh!- He's already adopted you.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12You're just making the decision after him!
0:28:14 > 0:28:16It isn't only Toby and Paulina
0:28:16 > 0:28:19that have made their peace with the newcomer.
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Midge has also returned.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27It's clear that people love cats.
0:28:27 > 0:28:31But what the diaries of our four cats in Shamley Green suggest
0:28:31 > 0:28:34is that though we may think they need us,
0:28:34 > 0:28:38it's the cats who are really in charge!
0:28:59 > 0:29:03Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd