Why Adopting a Cat Can Be Good for Your Marriage

Would you like a novel way to enrich your marriage? One that will bring out the best in you and your honey? If you have space in your days to befriend a cat, adopting one can sweeten the love you share.

Whether your bond is solid or fragile, an affectionate pet can strengthen your connection.

Here’s why having a kitty is icing on the cake of married life:

1. Feline friendship dissolves stress

You know how feeling frazzled affects your spouse. Being edgy and prickly around your partner puts them in a sullen mood. But, spend time with a feline, and worry, tension, and pressure instantly subside.

In fact, the degree of stress reduction is measurable.

While petting a cat, your blood pressure, heart rate, and stress hormones steadily drop.

Scientists report that this physiologic effect lowers your risk of stroke and heart attack by one-third!

In 2009, researchers completed a comprehensive analysis of how cat ownership benefits to heart health. Of the 4,435 study participants, age 30 to 75, roughly half were cat parents. All the subjects were free of heart disease at study onset.

After following the participants for 20 years, it was found that feline friendship markedly cut the risk of cardiovascular illness.

Scientists attribute this finding to the stress-reducing influence of cats.

So, picture this. You arrive home, ready to explode from your harried workday. But, rather than harping at your spouse for a mild infraction, provoked by stress, you pet kitty instead. Now, considerably calmer, you sigh with relief. You just skirted a petty tiff, thanks to your cuddly kitty.

2. Cat care fosters teamwork

When spouses jointly parent a cat, they function better as a team, reinforcing their bond.

Before adopting a feline, you must agree on the logistics of daily care. If you’re both involved in nurturing kitty, you’ll likely communicate more. This is because your cat’s cute and comical actions will spark lively discussions.

Through shared decisions for kitty’s welfare, you’ll hone the ability to collaborate. As cooperation builds, your partnership will strengthen. Plus, a conversation about kitty’s needs will help you address other aspects of your life together.

Weak communication is one reason why couples drift apart. If your marriage needs help in this area, here’s how to facilitate heart-to-heart discussions.

3. Kitties prompt giggles and laughter

Blue moods flee in the face of cat antics!

Observe a kitty at various times of day, and you’re bound to find yourself grinning. You’ll be treated to endearing poses, such as luxuriating in a sunny spot, curled up in a cardboard box, or peeking at you from inside a left-out shopping bag.

For a cat, window-watching is fascinating. Hours can pass, Kitty perched on a sill, mesmerized by birds and other wildlife, its tail swishing excitedly. Simple objects serve as captivating toys – a scrap of paper, wooden spool, or cardboard tube. Anything movable is fair game.

With a cat in the home, you’re always entertained.

Loving a kitty will make you more lighthearted, easygoing, and agreeable – nicer company for your spouse.

4. Cats remind you to relax

Do your daily routines feel like running on a speeding treadmill? In the course of juggling responsibilities, do you have trouble slowing down? A kitty in the family helps you pause for periodic breathers.

How so, you ask?

Cats love napping. Moreover, they make snoozing look totally blissful! Upon seeing a kitty in a laid-back pose, you’ll remember to relax. Then, in a mellow state, you’ll be more inclined to connect and cuddle with your spouse.

Unlike many of us, cats get ample sleep, averaging 15 hours of slumber daily. Feline genes keep them alert at night, prime time for hunting. House cats are descendants of large felines, such as predatory lions.

Wired to stake out food, cats prowl in the evening, then doze between meals.

So, take a tip from the itty, and pace your activities. If possible, take a 20-minute catnap daily. Along with marital camaraderie, studies show that napping boosts energy, alertness, learning, creativity, memory, productivity, and mood.

5. Cat ownership makes you sociable

A 1998 university study found that pet-owning couples are closer and friendlier than those without pets. Researchers credit this finding to the stress management pets confer.

The study involved 50 couples owning dogs or cats and 50 with no household pets.

Spouses answered questions on interpersonal support, closeness, pet relationship, and marital adjustment. Additionally, for two weeks, each couple kept a diary of their social contacts, recording frequency and diversity.

While partners discussed a controversial topic, they each wore devices measuring their blood pressure and heart activity. Compared to the pet-less couples, the blood pressures of pet parents rose less and normalized faster. Pet owners were also more active socially, reporting greater marital satisfaction.

6. Cat connections deepen romance

Bonding with a cat spurs romantic fulfilment, prompted by oxytocin.

Our brain releases this hormone when kissing or touching someone we love. Oxytocin also surges while petting a cat. This is the finding of 2012 research cited in Frontiers in Psychology.

Oxytocin, also known as the “cuddle hormone,” promotes feelings of trust, empathy, generosity, and tenderness. Simultaneously, oxytocin curbs the stress hormone cortisol, lowering heart rate, blood pressure, tension, and fear.

Shelter cat advantages

When you take home a shelter cat, you’re sparing it from living in cramped quarters, most likely a cage.

Facility staff, knowing the traits of their animals, can guide you to the perfect feline companion. Staff members may also be familiar with the kitties’ medical histories. Plus, a shelter cat is already spayed or neutered and litter box trained.

Some kitties are brought to shelters when their owners move or pass away. Others arrive there through the kindness of staff members, saving the cats from neglect or abuse. To regain trust in people, a shelter cat needs the stability of a loving home. By providing one, you’ll acquire a precious friend.

Sweetest love

Just imagine how adopting a cat will enhance your marriage!

Stress will melt in the face of kitty’s affection. Consequently, both you and your honey will have a much lower risk of stroke and heart attack. Caring for kitty will improve your ability to communicate and collaborate. You’ll become a stronger team.

Kitty’s funny poses and feats will have you in stitches, infusing your life with laughter. Your cat also will invite play time and pauses to unwind. Perhaps kitty will inspire you to take catnaps, by which you’ll become more creative, productive, and chipper.

Being more sociable through cat ownership, you’ll draw closer to your honey. High oxytocin will forge greater trust and kindness between you.

In short, a cat in the family can make you a healthier and happier marriage partner. Adopt a cat, and you stand to grow deeper in love.

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