Women and Their Psychological Relationship with Their Pets


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passat1 is offline passat1 Post #1  February 9,2010, 8:14pm
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I would like to know more about the relations between single women and their pets. As majority of sinlge women on EH (my matches), say they have a pet (cat/s or dog/s), I was wondered what is the place for the pet in their lives ? Does the pet becomes a substitute for lost loved ones, substitute for nor having kids? Women do not always live close to their families. Their pet tends to be the anchor of support when family members are not available.
While a women may be in crysis situation is the pet the only their only source of comfort and affection? I lived with a woman not long ago who had a dog. She was so devoted to it, that it looked extremely abnormal. It was up to the point where it played role in what house she lives ( on what floor), what car she drove, she was even taking it with her at the job place etc. At one point I had the feeling the pet was a substitute for a man as she declared she does not want to get married again or so in the nearby future.
According to a study in Germany, the health and eating habits of women can be mirrored in their cats. Three times more women who owned overweight
cats revealed that they did not feel very happy before acquiring a cat as compared to the number of owners of normal weight cats. The women who owned the overweight cats acquired the cat to console and encourage them and as a result had a closer relationship. These women tended to treat these cats as humans and even substitute the cats for human companions. By using food as a way of communicating with their cats, the cats became overweight.*
Advertisers today show pets selecting the family car. Even insurance companies are throwing in free pet injury insurance for pets that travel in cars that are insured by them. All of these ads are aimed at the women who care deeply for their pets.

Ultimately, it is the quality of the psychological relationship that women have with their pets that improves the happiness of everyone around them in the home, neighborhood and business arena.
So I would like to know more about the single women -pet relationship?
Last edited by passat1; February 9,2010 at 8:17pm.
 
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souxieque is offline souxieque Post #2  February 9,2010, 8:32pm

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I do not think it is just women who have dogs or cats because I see a lot of guys at school with there dogs to. So maybe you are talking about girls because you are getting matched with pet girls (lol lol lol).

But anyhow-you may be right when you think having a pet is a way to feel not so alone-I think that is what you were saying????? Anyhow I have had a cat for my family for 8 years and when I moved I had to make sure Turbo was going to be welcome to move into the house also, with me.

Some times people can have a pet when they dont have any other person around them to love. I was an orphan and lived in fosters care in HS and then with a friend and his mom for a while and my cat that I got in fosters care home was like my family. So I think maybe the "comfort and affection" thing is right.

I have a good friend here onEHARM Advices who husband died a while ago and her doctor told her to get a dog to keep company even if she has grown up children and grand children near her she does not have them to live with her like her dog does. So her dog is her affection ever day and like Turbo is my affection ever day.

Also I think I would like to have a bf who likes animals to because it is sort of a way to give our self to creatures who also need people to live good lives like dogs and cats do because they arent wild animals any more.

This is a good topic!!!!
Thank You Very Much Souxieque
 
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Wonderwoman402 is offline Wonderwoman402 Post #3  February 9,2010, 9:05pm
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I have cats because my family has always had cats ever since I was a small kid. They don't fill some "unresolved psychological need." They are fun to have around... to play, to purr, to sometimes wake me up. Except for having to feed them once a day, I can ignore them if I feel like it. They let me know if they want some attention, and I'm generally glad to give it to them (unless I'm reading the newspaper!)

The most recent guy I dated had a dog... a Border Collie he had adopted about a year before we met. That dog DEFINITELY filled a need in his life. He completely doted on that dog, talked to it in baby talk all the time (even in the middle of conversations with me), let the dog in the bedroom to play fetch while we were still in bed cuddling, and planned his day around taking the dog for lengthy walks. He even told me about how he depended on that dog to get him through the hurt of his divorce.

So please... don't generalize about how WOMEN *need* their pets for all these deep-down, screwed up reasons. In my experience, MEN can be just as weird/devoted/whatever about their pet as any woman can be. It is about the person, not their gender.
 
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meri75 is offline meri75 Post #4  February 9,2010, 11:25pm
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I have two cats, one is overweight and one very slender. Myself, I'm someone who was overweight and has lost a lot of weight. I think I poke holes in the German study! lol

My cats are just that: cats. They aren't treated as I treat humans. I don't treat them to special treats, or birthday dinners etc. They are hilariously funny when I switch out the lights and get out my pencil torch, they will chase the beam for hours!

Here, people are encouraged to own pets. Our nursing homes for the elderly often have animals, dogs usually, brought in regularly to visit. Pet owners are said to have lower blood pressure and suffer less with depression. They never cite which studies these are from, so I don't know if those claims are true.

One of my male friends owns a dog - it is really funny when he talks to his dog in his 'Dad' voice! Even funnier, the dog knows he is in trouble!
 
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Iconography is offline Iconography Post #5  February 10,2010, 9:17am
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Having recently witnessed my match with his own pet, I will declare that women have no monopoly on using a nonhuman animal as a surrogate! (My match turned into a bowl of jelly, and his pet clearly adores him... it was very endearing.) And there's nothing wrong with that, as long as it's not taken to extremes. Having a pet has been shown to have many health benefits, including those related to the reduction of stress.
 
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oldsewandsew is offline oldsewandsew Post #6  February 10,2010, 9:49am
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Regarding cats and owner's weight: I have three cats. One is overweight. He likes to eat, plain and simple. He is also less active than the others. Two are normal weight, though there were a few years that one was at the high end of normal or slightly overweight. He might still be overweight except that at age 13, he has some health problems.

I, however, was always underweight according to height/weight charts until after I retired. Since then I've been toward the middle and low end of "average" weight.
 
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Incrediblekate is offline Incrediblekate Post #7  February 10,2010, 2:27pm
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passat1 wrote :
Ultimately, it is the quality of the psychological relationship that women have with their pets that improves the happiness of everyone around them in the home, neighborhood and business arena. So I would like to know more about the single women-pet relationship?
I think you've answered your own question. It is the quality of the psychology of each relationship that causes it to fill a need for that person. If we are speaking in gross generalizations, well then, women are more likely to have a large interpersonal drive. We relate to the world and others through interaction and exchange of interpersonal emotions or expression. Being single often separates us from intimate interactions with family and sometimes even friends if we have one of those killer work weeks. Pets can offer a low maintenance alternative to the needy best friend or gay roommate.

More specifically it gives us household and routine. I find in my own life I'm much more stable as I have responsibilities to my pet, a schedule to my life that requires me to think about something more than me, and a willing ear if less than average intelligence at a whim. I tend to nurture my interpersonal relationships and am sometimes guilty of over nurturing my pet. But this doesn't include asking my dachshund what car to drive. I do consider where I live, in context to convenience, as I am a dog owner and don't care to change that aspect of my life. I feel perfectly normal. I socially interact with others regularly and don't mind leaving my dog at home sleeping through my absence if I have plans. But if you wanted to do something after work part of me getting freshened up would include going home to let the dog out, before we took off for the evening.

Honestly, I find it much easier to guestimate the way people react to other people by the way the react to their pets. I wouldn't want to date a man who's main goal in life was spending every waking moment with his hunting retriever. I want to date someone a little less codependent than that. And at the same time, being a farm girl at heart, I don't want to date someone who has no desire to have any pets either. So having troubled thoughts about the Chihuahua toting purse posse doesn't make you a bad person in the least.

-K
 
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SeeShore is offline SeeShore Post #8  June 9,2010, 11:04am
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Um... I am not sure why there would be any difference in why women as opposed to men have pets...?!? Or how they relate to them?

I don't have any. Had a cat as a child/young adult till it died.

Lots of good reasons to have pets.

Yes, some people go overboard (men, women, single, married).
 
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bigfincat is offline bigfincat Post #9  June 9,2010, 2:27pm
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Pet ownership is not limited to any group of people in my area.

So many people have pets.

Single people, married people, families.

Pets are everywhere & they are outstanding.
 
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trixie1868 is offline trixie1868 Post #10  June 10,2010, 1:54pm

what the bejeezus is going on round here?!

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My friends think I'm trying to steal my neighbour's cat. I swear to god it comes round to me of it's own free will and ok, so I give it a few cat crunchy biscuit treats and yeah, it has it's own cushion round here but it's free to leave when it asks.

I don't want the commitment but I do like the visits.

What does it mean if a woman tries to make someone else's cat fat?
 
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