Does This Cat Really Love The Family Dog??

Written by: Adri Sandoval
Adri Sandoval is the Special Projects Manager for iHeartDogs and iHeartCats. Her work has deepened her love for animals, fostering a strong passion for rescue and animal advocacy.Read more
| Published on September 22, 2015

Do you know what Stockholm Syndrome is? Well according to Wikipedia, “Stockholm syndrome, or capture-bonding, is a psychological phenomenon in which hostages express empathy and sympathy and have positive feelings toward their captors, sometimes to the point of defending and identifying with the captors.” This term was coined after the Stockholm bank robbery in 1973, when gunmen entered a bank and held hostage 4 people for 131 hours. Upon their rescue, people were shocked to hear them defend and side with their captors and actually feared the rescue team.

Stockholm Syndrome is a term used to express that a person is in an abusive and controlled relationship. Even before the Stockholm hostage situation, capture-bonding has been recognized and found in Psychology years before and recognized in people who have been abused; imprisoned; kidnapped and/or have been members of cults. This emotional bonding by victims to their captors/abusers is really a coping mechanism in order for them to survive the intimidation and abuse.

So, having said all that, can you hazard a guess and let me know in the comments section below whether the cat is a victim of Stockholm Syndrome? Do you think the dog is abusive? Come and share your thoughts! Personally speaking, I think this cat is just uber sweet to her best buddy! 😀