Men Who Own Cats Are Much Less Attractive To Women Than Dog Owners, Per Recent Research
The type of animal that a man owns has an impact on his level of attractiveness, according to some recent studies.
If you use dating apps and you're scrolling through the prospective suitors, there are certain things women tend to look for: what kind of job they have, how they dress, what their hobbies are, etc. Some women may be particularly interested in the color of the man's hair or how tall he is. But there's one characteristic that may be more important to women than you may think, even if it's on a subconscious level. Some women feel a certain way when they see a guy holding a pet he loves dearly. But does it matter if he's holding a cat or a dog? Apparently, one animal is deemed more acceptable in a man's arms compared to the other. Recent studies have shown that women find it much less attractive for a man to have a cat than a dog.
Men Who Own Cats Are Much Less Attractive to Women Than Dog Owners, per Recent Research
The dog has long been known as man's best friend, but cats have been in the spotlight much more often lately. Some of the best memes online feature cats, and many women have reclaimed and reinvented the stereotype of being a lonely cat lady. However, it's a little different when a man owns a cat than when a woman does. A 2014 study of more than 1,200 Match.com participants, 60% of whom were women, found that women had stronger opinions on what kind of pets men owned than the other way around. They found that dogs were a "better measure of a potential mate's caregiving capacity," but that wasn't the case for cats.
Very few women could see themselves with a "cat person," but an overwhelming percentage of them could easily see themselves end up long-term with a "dog person." Additionally, it was found that men are much more likely to use their pet to attract a date than women are. A 2020 study from Colorado State University confirmed that women respond to what kind of pet men have, which is likely why they are conscious about using their pet as a way to attract a partner. Through an online survey, researchers asked women what they thought about men who were pictured with dogs and men who were pictured with cats.
"Men holding cats were viewed as less masculine; more neurotic, agreeable, and open; and less dateable," the study read. "These results varied slightly depending whether the women self-identified as a 'dog person' or a 'cat person.'"
The paper found that women saw men holding cats to be less suitable in both short-term and long-term scenarios. Why is it that a man holding a dog is considered to be more masculine? You could argue that a man who has a dog is more likely to be physically active, spend a significant amount of time outside, and be interested in things like hiking and biking. Even if women can't articulate it to themselves, they are more attracted to men who work out and are physically fit. Oftentimes, having a dog is indicative of these qualities. Nevertheless, some women online are demanding that girls give Cat Daddies a chance because they can be just as caring and sweet as the guys who love dogs.
It's also interesting that these surveys didn't show that men were particularly concerned about whether a woman had a cat or a dog, despite the cries online that women who own cats are crazy cat ladies who struggle socially and drink too much wine. Perhaps men don't see any specific qualities that would indicate a lifelong mate when it comes to women and the kind of pets they own.