Category Archives: language

Behavior, Cats, language

Why Do Cats Purr; The Secret Language of Cats

 

  Secret Language Of Cats

I recently watched a fascinating show called ‘The Lion in Your Living room’.  It’s all about our domestic house cat, revealing facts I had no idea about.

     Cat Top Speed..30 miles/hour

     Cat Sense of Smell…10 times that of people

     Cat Ability to Hear…Amazing, high ‘ultrasounds’ to detect the sound of prey ( ie squeaking mice), and then ability to hear very low octaves ( a man’s deep voice!)

    Cat’s ability to see…in virtual complete darkness with their unique slit pupil, and reflective back of their eye ( retina)

Secret Language of Cats-Why Do Cats Purr?

John Bradshaw was interviewed..of the University of Bristol, co-founder of the International Society for Anthrozoology and author of the new book Cat Sense.

Bradshaw also offered insight into the sounds that cats make. Purring, which humans often interpret as feline pleasure, “does not necessarily reveal a cat’s emotional state,” he wrote. “Instead, it seems to be what behavioral ecologists refer to as a manipulative signal, conveying a general request: ‘Please settle down next to me,’” he continued.

Cats often meow to communicate with humans, but seldom when interacting with other cats. The language of meows is generally unique to a specific cat-person relationship, as cats learn which sounds elicit positive responses from people and use those sounds more often. “We could consider some of this behavior manipulative, but only to the extent that two friends negotiate the details of their relationship,” Bradshaw wrote.

There are hundreds of types of meows, all unique, and that many cat owners are able to interpret these.          Dr Andrew Jones, DVM