Scientists seeking info about pet cats for ambitious study on behavior and genetics

Scientists are enlisting pet parents for a fascinating new study focused on feline genetics and behavior. The ultimate goal is to create an expansive database that can answer everyone’s burning questions about cats, quirks and all. Darwin’s Cats—led by the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, in conjunction with the UMass Chan Medical School—aims to recruit 100,000 participating kitties by June 2026, with nearly 5,000 already registered since 2024.

The project is an extension of nonprofit organization Darwin’s Ark. The company’s co-founder and chief scientist, Dr. Elinor Karlsson—who is also director of the vertebrate genomics group at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard and associate professor at the UMass Chan—detailed their goals to The Guardian, saying, "Unlike most existing databases, which tend to focus on specific breeds or veterinary applications, Darwin’s Cats is building a diverse, large-scale dataset that includes pet cats, strays and mixed breeds from all walks of life."

On the company’s website, they explain that "research on cats’ behavior, health, and ancestry has been surprisingly scarce until now." By engaging cat owners in their research, they hope to capture "'at home' insights in ways that scientists cannot replicate in traditional research settings."

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Those who participate in the Dawin’s survey will answer questions about cats, offer information about their own, and help sequence their pet’s DNA, ultimately leading to their goal of the "largest feline behavioral and genetics database" in existence. The site offers some examples of the subject matter the scientists will explore, including "drivers of physical traits and behaviors (such as coat color and pattern, catnip response, [and] human sociability." They also aim to "better understand genetic risk factors for diseases," "provide insights to improve preventive veterinary care, and identify opportunities to apply learnings to human health."

Karlsson told The Guardian that, by understanding how genetics shapes personality traits, they hope to gain insight on "human neurodevelopmental conditions." Cat owners can sign up now, and the company requests a $150 donation per cat to help fund their research and the cost of sequencing.

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Darwin’s previously conducted a study focused on canines, surveying over 18,000 dog-owners (49% purebred) and sequenced the DNA of over 2,000 pups. The results, published in the journal Science, found that "most behavioral traits are heritable … but behavior only subtly differentiates breeds."

Their conclusion continued, "Breed offers little predictive value for individuals, explaining just 9% of variation in behavior. For more heritable, more breed-differentiated traits, like biddability (responsiveness to direction and commands), knowing breed ancestry can make behavioral predictions somewhat more accurate. … For less heritable, less breed-differentiated traits, like agonistic threshold (how easily a dog is provoked by frightening or uncomfortable stimuli), breed is almost uninformative."

One thing we don’t need a study to tell us: Our pets are capable of incredible things. Take, for example, the adorable 14-year-old dog who finished a "race" against other Corgis during the halftime show of a college basketball game—and accomplished that task, despite having to use a wheelchair for support his back legs. "He may not have won this year's Corgi race," tweeted Arkansas sports anchor Jack Allen, "but [Yumi] certainly won his way into our hearts."

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