NOTE Ethology Association between Characteristics of Cats and Satisfaction of Owners who Adopted Cats from an Animal Hospital in Japan

ABSTRACT. A follow-up questionnaire survey was conducted with 29 cat owners who adopted cats from an animal hospital in Japan. Physical characteristics were found to be important factors for the owners when choosing a cat. There were significant differences between impres-sion of the cat for the owners at present and images of their ideal cats, and the levels of aggression and activeness of the cats at present were rated higher than their ideal cats. A significant negative correlation was found between the degree of satisfaction with the cat and occurrence of house soiling; thus, some behavioral problems may deteriorate the relationship between the owner and the cat. KEY WORDS: adoption of cat, follow-up survey, house soiling, owners, questionnaire. doi: 10.1292/jvms.12-0569; J. Vet. Med. Sci. 76(5): 729–733, 2014 In Japan, a significant number of cats are abandoned or re-linquished to local governmental animal shelters each year. The total number was about 164,308 in 2010, and 93.0 % of these cats were euthanized; the number has remained largely unchanged for a long time [1]. Since the Basic Guidelines for Comprehensively Promoting Measures on the Welfare and Management of Animals of the Japanese Ministry of the Environment requires promoting reduction of euthaniza