Read on Twitter
Some interesting things I've seen regarding cat social behavior because I Have Five Thousand Cats: https://twitter.com/QualiaControl/status/1340067598264750080
-Cats are extremely social animals. They form complex relationships with one another. Even though they aren't cooperative (i.e. they don't help each other hunt) they still definitely feel a sort of...social responsibility for each other
-Just like people, cats definitely form "cliques." Like there are cats who "like" one another better than they "like" other cats and hang out together exclusively. Some cats CAN be social butterflies, but most stay in their "cliques"
-Even though I have a bunch of cats, they all still desire human companionship in addition to the social relationships formed between each other. Like they all (except for the newly-arrived, semi-feral ones) want to be with me just as much as they want to be w/their cat friend
-Severe aggression between cats tends to happen mostly if there is a lack of resources. Once the cats understand there is enough food for them all, they tend to get along. Even ones who don't like other cats that much are aloof & peaceful rather than aggressive
-There's not really a hierarchy tbh but there are cats who seem to possess more...idk, "power" I guess. They're the ones never challenged by the others for a spot/a toy/etc. And the more "powerful" cats rarely become so through violence or aggression. It's something else
-Littermates, even those who have different mothers but were put together at only a few weeks old, tend to form the strongest bonds and will groom each other more often than they groom those they don't see as littermates
-for whatever reason, castrated males are so much more tolerant of kittens than castrated females. I don't know why, but it's almost universal
I wanna make it clear though that these observations are based only on MY cats. I'm not a professional cat behavioralist nor have I observed many other collections of cats. So I don't want people to think I'm offering universal observations
-they mourn. When one of my cats lost her sister last month, she really transformed--she's far less playful and social than she used to be and she requires a lot more attention from me. She doesn't want to be around the other cats very much.
-having a physical disability does not lead to being ostracized. I have a few cats who only have one eye, and I have a cat who can't hear. The other cats don't treat them any differently.
