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Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Cat Vocal Communication

Cats communicate with their owners in many different ways, the most unique being vocal communication. Every cat has his own library of meows, chirps, hisses, and growls, and it's up to their owner to understand what they're trying to say.

"Angry or antagonistic meows tend to be longer in duration and friendly calls tend to be a little shorter, and that correlates with the idea of pleasantness," states Dr. Nicholas Nicastro, who wrote his PhD thesis in psychology at Cornell University on humans' ability to understand the sounds of their cat.

The standard meow itself has many different tones and meanings, and this varies based on each cat.  Different cats have different meows for "I want to play," "I'm glad you're home," "I'm hungry, feed me," I'm curious, let me see that," etc.  A curious or happy meow tends to be higher and shorter than a hungry meow, which will be longer and more drawn out (most times to make the cat appear more pathetic in his already pampered life so you'll feel bad and feed him more).  A playful meow tends to be the shortest, resembling more of a chirp.

Chirps are also used when observing unreachable prey, such as a bird outside of a window, accompanied by chatters and tooth clicking. Owners of indoor cats know these noises well.

Purring is the ultimate sign of contentment, produced by rapid contractions of the muscles of the larynx.  There is a full body movement with the purr and is soothing for both cat and owner.

All sounds make by cats are not happy ones; hisses and growls are common when cats are scared or angry.  A cat hisses when it opens its entire mouth and pulls its lips back, showing its teeth to intimidate whatever is scaring it. This may also be accompanied by back arching and hair on end, a way to make itself look bigger than what it is scared of.  A cat's growl is often a low rumble and serves as a warning sign to get away, and is usually followed by a hiss or yowl if that warning is not headed. And finally there is the screech or scream, signaling extreme anger or pain.

Not all cats meow and some do more than others.  If your cat is one of the quieter ones, you can communicate using his body language.

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