Cats communicate in a variety of ways. They talk, use body language, act, and smell.
1. The vocal cat
Cats make three types of sounds.
A thousand hums
— which includes purrs, trills, and barbels
b meow
– which includes the basic “meows”, meows and calls
C – aggressive voices
– which includes growls, snarls, whistles, squeaks, screams, and spits.
hum
Purring is a gentle, continuous vibrating sound that indicates a positive condition in the cat. However, cats have also been known to purr in stressful situations, such as when they have suffered a serious injury or are in pain, illness or stress. Cats are thought to purr when they are content, need a friend, or are thankful for care, such as when a vet treats an injured or sick cat and purrs because of it.
Kittens learn from their mothers because they will use them to tell their babies to follow. Adult cats purr in greeting, usually to another cat. The trill sounds like a short purr and meow together.
Chirrups are meows that roll off the tongue. Mother cats use chirrups to call their young from the nest. It is also used by friendly cats when approaching a human or other cat. Cats make excited, chatty chirps when watching or chasing prey.
meow
The most popular cat sound is the “meow”. Kitties meow mostly to humans and can be sad, assertive, welcoming, bold, friendly, attention-seeking, complaining, or demanding. Sometimes the meowing is silent with the cats opening their mouths but nothing coming out.
Mews are soft sounds that kittens make that are used to get the mother’s attention.
The calls are made by females in heat and are known as “caterwauling”. Males also make calls when fighting, especially at females during mating.
Aggressive voices
Growling, hissing, snarling, and spitting are sounds that cats make when they are in a defensive or offensive mode. These sounds of danger are often combined with body postures to effect a threat, for example when a cat fluffs its fur and hisses at a dog that gets too close. When growling, the puss gives a warning to “back off before you get claws.”
Cats purr when angry, startled, scared, or hurt. A cat that invades someone else’s territory will growl and growl, and if it doesn’t leave, it may be attacked.
2. Body language
Cats use body language to express a wide range of emotions. To express fear or aggression, a cat will arch its back, fluff its fur, and use a sideways stance. To signal relaxation, the cat’s eyes will blink slowly or his eyes will be half open.
This body language is communicated through the cats facial expressions, tail, body, and coat.
Situation
When cats become aggressive, their hind ends are raised with stiff hind legs, tail fur swollen, nose pointed forward, and ears flat. Such a situation indicates danger, and the cat will attack. This type of cat communication is meant to scare off the aggressor and prevent an attack. It’s a warning.
Frightened and defensive cats will make themselves smaller, lowering their body to the ground while arching their back and leaning away from a threat.
Cats can show comfort or confidence when lying on their back, with their belly exposed. However, this may also indicate that the cat is about to defend itself with sharp claws and teeth.
Fun is indicated by an open mouth with no exposed teeth.
ears
Cat ears can reveal different states of mind. With ears erect, the feline is focused and alert. Loose ears show that the cat is calm. Flattening of the ears occurs when a cat is being extremely aggressive or defensive.
eyes
Staring indicates a threat or challenge and is indicative of hierarchy with lower-ranking cats withdrawing from being stared down by higher-ranking cats. This stare is often used for terrestrial or predational reasons.
Tail
A cat’s tail is a great way of communicating. For example, swinging the tail from side to side in a slow, lazy manner shows that the cat is relaxed. Tail twitching occurs when hunting or when a cat is angry or upset and can occur before an attack, playfulness, or otherwise.
When playing, kittens and younger cats will lift the base of their tail up and stiffen the tail except in an inverted U shape, indicating excitement and even hyperactivity. This tail positioning can also be seen when chasing other cats or running alone.
Startled or frightened, the cat may ruffle the fur on its tail and back.
3. Physical
grooming and other forms of affection
Cats show affection with other cats and some humans through grooming, kneading, and kneading. When cats purr and knead at the same time, they are expressing affection and contentment.
The friendly greeting between cats occurs when they touch their noses and sniff each other. Head bumping and cheek rubbing between kitties shows dominance towards a subordinate cat.
A friendly greeting with a human being is shown by rubbing the face. Cats push their face towards the person associated with affection. Head bumps are another way cats show positive feelings to humans. Leg rubbing is another form of affection.
As cats rub and push against another cat or human, they spread their scent, which is a form of territory marking.
to bite
Strong biting accompanied by a snarling, hissing or posture shows aggression. Light bites display playfulness and affection, especially when combined with purring and kneading.
Another method that cats use to communicate with biting is through mating. The male will bite off the back of the neck of the female, and she will go into lordosis, revealing her readiness to mate.
4. Aromatherapy
Cats use their own scent to communicate with other cats. By rubbing and bumping, kitties use the scent glands on their face, tail, paws, and lower back to spread their scent. Also, they use feces, urine, and spray to leave a message for other cats.
The spray marks the cat’s territory, both indoors and outdoors. Leaving urine and feces is also used to mark a cat’s domain. Additionally, rubbing its scent on objects, such as a fence post, marks the territory.
Male sprayers do the most common marking of an area. Spray Tomcats not only to mark their domain but also to let other Tomcats know that nearby females are up for mating.
Tomcat spray is a strong-smelling tick. Sometimes females spray as well.
And this is how cats communicate.