Your cat probably thinks that you are a cat yourself -- albeit a much larger one. 
 
 That's according to British biologist John Bradshaw, who says the way furry felines greet us (with their tails up) and rub on our legs is similar to how the animals communicate affection to other cats. 
 
 "In cat society, this sequence is usually performed by a smaller cat towards a larger one -- a kitten or young cat towards its mother or an older relative, a female towards a male," Bradshaw, who is foundation director of the Anthrozoology Institute at the University of Bristol, told The Huffington Post via email this week. 
 
 "[I]t seems to be a way that smaller cats have of indicating to larger ones that they want to remain friends. When cats started becoming friendly towards us, maybe 5,000 to 10,000 years ago, they just adapted this piece of behavior to show that they like us, too," he continued. 
 
 Author of the 2013 book Cat Sense: How the New Feline Science Can Make You a Better Friend to Your Pet (which has been attracting a resurgence of interest on social media this week), Bradshaw has been studying the history and behavior of cats for decades. He argues that to live happily with our cats, we must first come to understand their behavior and their eccentricities. 
 
 For instance, knowing that cats carry out this tail-up/rub ritual as a form of friendly greeting should influence the way cat owners interact with their pets, Bradshaw says. 
 
 "Research has shown that when people interact with their cats, the interactions tend to go on for longer if they're started by the cat -- many cats seem to need to go through the tail-up/rub ritual in order to feel comfortable, and may not have time to do it if it's the person who makes the first move. So the advice would be, take your time when approaching your cat, and wait for it to at least put its tail up before making actual contact," he told HuffPost. 
 
 Bradshaw has also advised cat lovers to keep their ears peeled for purring. Purring, he says, isn't just a way that cats express contentment, but -- as he explained to NPR's Terry Gross last year -- it can also be a sort of signal for help. 
 
 "What we think cats are doing here is just trying to reassure their person — or [another] cat — who is hearing the purr that they are no threat, and ideally they'd like them to stand still and help them do something," Bradshaw told Gross. "So it starts off with kittens purring to get their mother to lie still while they're suckling, and it goes on into adulthood... It's a signal to the animals, [and] the people around them to pay attention and try to help them." 
 
 As for whether or not your cat likes you, Bradshaw says there are a handful of tell-tale signs of a cat's affection. 
 
 "Cats show they're fond of other cats in three ways," he told HuffPost. "The tail-up/rub ritual; by resting in contact; and by grooming one another. So if your cat is doing any one of these, then it likes you! It doesn't have to be all three -- for example, some cats (in my experience, especially the long-haired) don't much like sitting on people's laps, but if they're reliably doing the tail-up/rub, then everything's okay." 
 
 To find out more about John Bradshaw's book, visit the publication's website. ||||| Facebook researchers examined the behavior of over 160,000 users to help put an end to the cat vs dog debate once and for all. Its findings were actually in line with long-held stereotypes that dog people tend to be friendly, outgoing and generally likable while cat people are more likely to be single and sad. 
 
 Hey, don’t shoot the messenger. 
 
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 The data came from sentiment expressed in status updates, of which cat people were much more likely to say they were tired, annoyed, sad or emotional. Dog owners, on the other hand, were a bit more even-keel. The two emotions most often expressed were excitement and pride, and there wasn’t nearly as much variation on the spectrum as their feline-loving counterparts. 
 
 If you’re feeling a bit slighted as a cat owner, there is a bright spot. It appears that cat owners get invited to events more often, although researchers were unsure how many of these invitations were accepted. The data points to cat owners having more discerning friends, a quality over quantity approach as opposed to dog lovers. 
 
 Also, cat owners seem to have better taste in TV and film than their canine-loving nemeses — at least according to what they’ve “liked” on Facebook. While dog owners prefer films like ‘Fifty Shades of Grey,’ ‘The Hangover and Marley & Me’ (of course), cat people enjoy films like ‘The Hobbit,’ ‘Brave New World’ and ‘A Clockwork Orange.’ 
 
 The most popular TV series amongst dog people: ‘Duck Dynasty.’ ‘Nuff said. 
 
 Books are a bit of a toss-up, as that really boils down to preference. 
 
 Cat people were disproportionately skewed toward classics and science fiction, while dog people tend to read more best sellers and current favorites. Both are arguably equal, as there’s no such thing as a bad book… okay, that’s definitely not true (looking at you Stephenie Meyer). 
 
 Other findings were that cat and dog people lived all over the US without much disparity in who lives where — aside from a n0-brainer that city-dwellers tend to prefer cats. Dogs obviously require more space, especially when they aren’t the type you can shove in a purse and walk around town with, so that part seems to make some sense. 
 
 Dogs did skew slightly rural, but again, both were found in every pocket of the United States without a ton of disparity. 
 
 So, there you have it. Now you have some data to back up your argument — whichever side you’re on — when it inevitably comes up again. 
 
 Cat People, Dog People on Facebook 
 
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– Cats aren't dogs, and they'd like us to remember that, an animal behavior expert tells the Telegraph. We stress them out by expecting them to be as sociable as our canine friends, happy to be petted and hang out in the same space as other cats. But that just doesn't fit with how cats think, says Dr. John Bradshaw. "Dogs were sociable before they were domesticated," he says. "Unlike dogs, the cat is still halfway between a domestic and a wild animal, and it’s not enjoying 21st-century living." And when a cat is stressed, it can develop dermatitis and cystitis, he notes. In the past, "with cats, all we wanted was for them to keep our houses and farms and food stores free of rats and mice, and they got on with that," Bradshaw says. “It’s only in the last few decades that we have wanted them to be something else." That's not to say your cat doesn't love you, he adds. It's just that they "have their own lives" and interests. (And, as he told the Huffington Post earlier this year, your cat probably also thinks you are a very large cat; that's why, he theorizes, they communicate affection with humans the same way they do with other cats.) Some tips: Cats are likely to spend more time with you if they approach you, rather than if you approach them first, according to research, he notes. And if you're planning to get a second cat, you might want to bring its smell home first on a handkerchief: "It’s the cat equivalent of exchanging photos before a blind date." (Read about a cat who lived secret lives with two families.)