Researchers who study the happiness of nations often look at measures like health and wealth. But a new study published in the journal PLOS One considered another factor as well: cats.
Companion animals like cats and dogs are generally a positive for well-being. But with cats there is a downside — they carry the parasite Toxoplasma gondii, which can infect humans. It’s been linked to road rage, depression and other mood changes.
Given their conflicting effects on human health, the researchers asked: Are cats a net benefit for happiness? Or the opposite?
Examining data from 93 countries, the study found a positive association between cats and happiness.
“At the national level, a greater density of cats was associated with greater subjective well-being,” lead author Javier I. Borráz-León said in an email. Borráz-León is a self-proclaimed cat lover and a researcher at the Behavioral Biology Lab of the National Institute of Psychiatry Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz in Mexico City.
The research team also found, though, that countries with higher rates of the parasite were less happy overall.
Surprisingly, countries with more cats also tended to have lower rates of the parasite. The researchers suspect that might be because in wealthier countries people are more likely to keep cats indoors, feed them commercial food and take them to the vet, reducing the opportunity for transmission.
“I would not interpret our findings as a reason to be afraid of cats,” said Borráz-León, who added that his own cat, Homerita, was his companion and friend for 13 years. “Instead, they highlight the importance of responsible pet ownership.”
One limitation of the study is that the analysis is correlational, meaning the authors can’t say if the cats caused the happiness or if the parasite caused unhappiness.
Finland was the happiest country analyzed, with an above average number of cats per capita. The United States also had above average cat density and happiness.
The authors emphasized that this analysis cannot tell you whether getting a cat would make you happier as an individual — only you can decide that.
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