Cats communicate in varies ways: by smell, vocalizing, body language and marking.
Vocalization
Cats have a wide range of vocalizations that include murmurs, meows, spitting, hisses and growls. These can be divided into 3 broad categories: closed mouth, vowel patterns and intense vocalization petterns.
Purring, mating vocalizations and the close-mouth 'mrrr?' uttered when a cat seems to be asking a question are closed mouth vocalizations. Vowel patterns include the more typical 'meow' could be for various reasons but most often because they want something like food, to be pet, attention, or to go outside. Intense vocalizations are made when the cat holds the mouth open throughout the sound when aroused, demanding, or upset. These include growling, hissing and screaming.
Some cats are 'talkative', meowing repeatedly or or an extended period, especially in response to the human voice. Oriental breeds such as the Siamese are renowned for being chatty. Well, my Kurimu is very verbal too. When I play hide and seek with him, the moment I show myself, he will meow non stop. When he needs food or going out, he meow too. When he knows we are at home but couldn't see us around, he will meow until he finds us. He will meow loudly when he is unable to locate Kusky. He is such a verbal cat!
Purring
Part of the admiration humans feel for the feline is its unique ability to purr. Small cats, including the domestic cat, purr on both the inhaled and exhaled breath. The big such like tiger purr only when they breath out. Cats can purr with their mouths tightly closed. Kittens are born blind and deaf yet purr with their mother's nipple in their mouth. Because a kitten cannot nurse and meow at the same time, it purrs while nursing to let his mother know it is happy. Their mother purrs back for the kittens to find them. Also, purring is an act of showing comfort. Kittens do not purr to human touch until around 6 weeks old.This phenomenon of sucking and purring at the same time can occur because purring is not a vocal sound. The purr does not come from the true vocal cords. No one could prove where the purring sounds came from. Basically it's a physical vibration that produces inside cats body. Purring doesn't purely means happiness. Cats will purr when they are in pain too.
Body Language
Cats easily convey their feelings through body language. Everyone recognizes the raised back and flattened ears of a frighten feline.
A cat's ears are used for more than just hearing. The angle of a cat's ears is an important clue to its mood. If the ears prick forward, the cat is showing interest. Ears pointed to the side mean the cat is thinking and considering its next move. If the ears are plastered flat against the head, it shows the cat is vey unhappy. Ears back and down indicate either fear or uncomfort.
The tail, beside contributing to a cat's overall beauty and balance, the tail indicates the cat's emotional state. The way your cat holds its tail and each movement of the tail communicates what it is thinking and feeling. You just need to learn how to speak 'tail talk'. Below are some information I sourced from internet websites, not sure how accurate it is:
Scent
Cats recognize one another by their scent. Scent glands called temporal glands are situated above the eyes on the sides of the forehead. Cats mark objects, including people they consider 'theirs', by rubbing the side of their heads along their object of affections. Cats mark their territory with urine. Other cats smell the urine and recognize the message.
Despite hundreds of years of domestication, most cats display am instinct to hunt if given the opportunity. This predatory behavior has been passed down to the domestic cat through the mists of time. While cats are born with a hunting instinct, killing and eating prey are generally learned behaviors. While a cat may catch and kill a mouse, it might not eat it, even if it is hungry, unless it has been taught to.
Kittens begin to show hunting behavior from as young as six weeks of age. Programmed from birth to chase, kittens practice hunting skills by crouching, pouncing, play fighting and fake attacking with their littermates. A mother cat might use her tail to help teach her babies hunting skills, using it as a tease to teach them to stalk. If the mother is an outdoor cat, she will bring small, dead prey to her kittens. She will eat in front of them, encouraging them to join her. Next she will bring injured prey and encourage her kittens to play with it. She will kill it in front of them. Slowly the kittens learn that prey can be caught and eaten. Eventually the kittens accompany the mother as she hunts and learn to catch and kill on their own.
Cats will exhibit teaching behavior not only toward their own kittens but also other cat's litters. Some cats even include their human owners in the lesson, bringing home dead prey and dropping it on the doorsteps. The hunting feline patrols a specific territory. The size of the territory varies depending on the availability of prey. Most adults are solitary hunters, although at times cats kills with a lethal bite through the spine at the base of the neck. If a cat isn't hungry, it will delay or even defer killing the prey, instead opting for the excitement of repeated stalking, capturing, and playing with the victim. My mum used to received all kinds of 'gifts' in front of her doorstep: birds, duckling, rats, small snakes, huge grasshoppers, even babies of rabbits (I guess it must be from next door as they have lots of rabbits running freely in their garden). I told my mum not to scold the cats. They are proud of their hunting result, and they are waiting to be praised. So what we normally do is just to throw the corpse away.
Why do cats often appear to torture or play with their catch before killing it? There are several theories. One theory is that these cats lack confidence. They may still be wary of their prey, which if not killed quickly can fight and bite back. Another theory is that domestic cats that live in a relatively rodent-free environment lack the opportunity to catch real live prey. When they finally do catch a mouse, they want to prolong the process of playing as much as possible.
Cats owners may also notice cats will chatter their teeth when seeing prey. It is a kind of special noise cats will make especially when they see birds, dropping/moving feather and squirrel. Indoor cats may just be showing their excitement or frustration at seeing potential prey that they cannot reach. Kusky and Kurimu chattered alot every morning in front of my bedroom's window when seeing birds standing near to the balcony. I shall upload video of them chattering next time.
If there were an animal Olympic for self-grooming, the cat would win the gold medal. Cats are enthusiastic self-groomers, spending a large amount of their waking hours grooming. So addictive is the grooming behavior that after throughout cleaning itself, a cat will often attempt to groom a companion, whether another cat, a human, or the family dog. Mother cats are dedicated to cleaning their kittens. It is not unusual to hear a young kitten squeal in protest as 'mom' holds it down and licks, licks, licks. A cat may groom meticulously after being petted, possibly in an attempt to remove the scent of the person who touched it.
The above video shows how Kurimu turns to be so obsess licking hubby's hair!
Best view picture resolution: 720p HD
Anyone having experienced the rough kiss of the family cat realizes that the feline tongue is not smooth. It is actually covered with hard, strong,backward-facing hooks called papillae that are very useful for cleaning the cat's coat. Acting like a comb, the tongue removes dirt, oils and loose hair as it licks the coat. The cat will use its tongue to lick all the parts it can reach. A grooming session typically begins with a thorough licking from shoulder to flank followed by the underside, tail and hind legs. Special attention is paid to cleaning around the anus and genital regions. Paws are inspected, biting any debris that may be stuck in the hair between the pads.
Once the cat has groomed all the areas it can reach with its tongue directly, it moves on to grooming the difficult to reach areas like the face and behind the ears. Assuming a sitting position, the cat will continuously lick the inside of a front paw and leg until it is wet. It then rubs the wet paw along the side of its face and cheeks, around the eye, the forehead and behind the ear. Once it completely cleans the side of its head,it changes paws and repeats the procedure on the other side of its face.
So efficient is the abrasive tongue at removing dead hair from the coat that the cat often ingests so much loose hair that it forms a ball in the cat's stomach. Unable to pass through the digestive tract, the cat usually vomits up the ball of hair. If the hair does enter the intestine, there is a danger it may become impacted in the gastrointestinal tract. This is one reason why it is important to comb your cat frequently, especially during shedding season.Long-haired cats need daily grooming. Short-haired cat should be groomed at least once a week.
Although Kusky is a super-short-haired tom cat, I still have to do combing for him in every next three days, this is to prevent serious hair fall inside the house. While for Kurimu, once in a week is more than sufficient. Most of the time i find bunch of flying hair balls at home, especially just after they play fight!
I tried a few kind of combs, unfortunately they don't work well until I bought a 'Furminator'. No doubt that this comb really helps to remove excessive hair fall that is trapped under the coat. Imagine I just did roughly 10 times of combing for Kusky and this was what I got! Most of the time I could get roughly 5-6 bundles of hair balls (as big as what is shown in the photo).
If I collect this, I am sure I could make myself a high neck sweater!!
Perhaps one of the
most unique feline characteristic is a cat's innate ability to balance
itself and land on its feet when falling from a height. While not
infallible, a falling cat is usually able to twist itself around to land
on its paws. This is called the self-righting reflex. A kitten begins
to demonstrate this reflex at 3-4 weeks of age and it is usually
perfected by the time the kitten is seven weeks old.
The
vestibular apparatus of the inner ear of the cat contains 3 semicular
canals. Like a carpenter's level, these structures work with the brain
to sense and maintain balance. When a cat falls with its legs higher
than its body, impulses from the vestibular apparatus are analyzed at
lightening speed and combine with visual information to transmit a
message to the cat's neck muscle to orient correctly.
Because
the cat has a highly flexible spine and floating collarbone, the head
is able to twist into an up-right, horizontal position, independent of
the rest of the body. Next the front feet rotate until they are facing
the ground. Finally the hind legs swivel around until the cat has
completely balanced itself in mid-air.
The
hind legs touch down first, relaxing to act as shock absorbers. The
spine arches to further minimize impact and the front legs relax to
lessen the possibility of injury. Like a sky driver, a falling cat will
reach a point in its fall where it is no longer accelerating. This is
terminal or maximum velocity. The average cat reaches a speed of 60mph
(100 km/h) after falling from 5 storeys high building. Small size, light
bone structure, thick fur and spreading the legs to slow down the
descent.
Once a cat has balanced itself, reached maximum velocity and is no longer receiving the stimuli to balance, it goes into 'free fall' and relaxes. The relaxed cat is less likely to sustain injury as it lands.
Following is one of the most popular youtube video about a jumping cat and how he balanced his body while falling. It was viewed by more than 2,000,000 viewer with more than 22 thousand likes!
Watch this!
Generally, the size and shape of the average domestic cat has remained relatively constant throughout its association with man. Whether sprinting after prey or stalking in slow motion, the cat is built for speed and coordination. A cat in good shape can run 30 mph (48 km/h). The cat is a sprinter, however not a long distance runner, like cheetah.
Cats are digitigrade: they walk directly on their toes, moving around like a ballet dancer. Cats are capable of walking precisely because they place each hind paw almost directly in the print of the corresponding fore paw, minimizing nose and visible tracks and providing sure footing. The cat, the giraffe, and the camel are the only mammals that walk by moving the front and hind legs first on side and the the other.
A cat is able to jump more than 5 times of its own height in a single leap. When preparing for a jump, the cat closely observes the place in intends to jump to, calculating the distance and exact angle before making the leap. Like Ninjinsky, the cat jump with style and elegance no matter the distance, the tail acting to balance the cat in the air. Rarely does a cat injure itself, even when the jumps are very large or a landing is miscalculated.
Jumping down is a little more difficult. Most cats try to shorten the distance they have to jump by putting their front paws as close as possible to their targeted ground. They push off with their hind legs.
The cat is famed for its inexhaustible curiosity. Its inquisitiveness is the result of the mixture of its lively intelligence, highly tuned senses, and its evolutionary instincts as a predator.
I observed my two cats at home and I realized each of them has different level of curiosity. The things that catch their attention are different too. I noticed Kusky is not as curious as Kurimu. Kurimu is urging to know about everything: searching the fridge, running into my wardrobe and cupboard, sneaking inside the storeroom without us noticing (sometimes he was trapped in the store room for half a day).... If we are eating at the living hall, he will jump up to the coffee table and wanting to know what we are having!
He is so busy body! :)
He is sniffing and trying to find out what we are having!
In the wild cats are territorial. The male stakes out a territory as his food source. He will also protect the area for his female and his kittens. A male may even attack and kill young kittens sired by another male to eliminate competition.
Cats mark their territory by spraying concentrated urine. While usually associated with tomcats, whole females and some neutered males will exhibit spraying behavior. A cat will remark its territory if the previous scent markers have been washed away by weather or cleaning. The usual reason for a previously clean cat to begin urine marking indoors is a reaction to stress. Commonly the introduction of a new cat to the household will upset a cat. Feeling threatened or stressed by the presence of the strange cat, the resident feline will mark the home as 'his'.
The cat has glands that secrete scents in several areas of its body but especially concentrated around the sides and back of the head. When a cat rubs its head along your legs, it is marking you - sending a message that you belong to it. Similarly the cat will rub on furniture in the home. The outdoor cat will rub against walls, fences, bushes and trees.
Marking trees with its claws is another message a cat leaves to be interpreted by other felines.The higher the marks, the larger and more dominant the cat that made the marks, so a cat scratches as far up as it can when scratching on a tree. When the cat digs its it claws into the tree, it also leaves a scent message from glands between the paw pads.
The size of the average cat brain is 2 inches (5cm) in length and 1oz (30g) in weight. Since the average cat weights around 7lbs (3.3kg), the brain is less than 0.9% of its total body weight, compared with the average human's brain, which accounts for 2% of its body weight.
Cats learn by trial and error, observation and imitation. The cat's learning abilities are aided by an excellent memory. Cats can remember and recall information much longer than dogs - up to 16 hours, as opposed to a dog's five minutes. In one study it was discovered that cats possess visual memory ability comparable to that of monkey. The feline short-term working memory is less impressive, however. This was proven in one of the STM test.
Cat is born with strong instinct. Its aptitude for gathering and analyzing information, plus learning through experience serves it well. A kitten first learns by imitating its mother. As it grows more independently, it does something and the observes the result. If an action is pleasant, it is likely to repeat it. If not it will be less likely to do it again.
By 2 months of age, kitten will have learned how to hunt by play. By 6 months it will be a confident hunter capable of satisfying its needs, also by imitating its mother.
The kitten is also taught hygiene and cleanliness by its mother. The mother keeps the birth nest clean by licking and eating the urine and feces of her nursing kittens. As kittens start walking and start eating solid food, the mother cat will no longer clean her kittens' rump. A kitten will not soil its own bed and will be able to use a litter tray by the time it is 5-6 weeks old.
Like human baby, kittens or cats explore their environment by putting things in its mouth. This is how they learn what is food and what is not.
The Foot Attack
Even
the most domesticated cat may fell the urge to practice its predatory
skills. Some cats make up elaborate prey games, hiding underneath
furniture or behind a door waiting for their owner to stroll by and the
leaping out and attacking their feet. The cat is not trying to hurt you
but is simply reacting to an instinctive urge to hunt. The cat can be
discouraged by providing it with more playtime or providing it with a
feline playmate.
Retrieving
In the wild, when a cat takes down prey it will often carry it to a safe place to consume it. The indoor cat's equivalent of this behavior is to retrieve objects in the same way a dog plays fetch.
Both Kusky and Kurimu play fetch! :)
Sucking, Nursing or Chewing On Materials
Thought to be a behavior more common if a kitten has been weaned too early, some cats will suck or nurse on materials or objects. While some kittens outgrow this behavior, putting something on the item that is distasteful to the cat, such as paprika, cologne or citrus scent, can discourage the behavior. Some cats seem addicted to chewing on photographs or paper. Some people believe that some cats detect a slight odor or that the coolness and texture of the plastic feels and tastes good on the cat's toungue.
A related activity is called 'Pica', an abnormal compulsion to eat things that are not usually food. While rare, some cats especially the Oriental breeds, are noted for snacking on everything from sweaters to phone cords.
Kneading
Young kittens instinctively knead their mother's nipples with their tiny forepaws while nursing. The kneading stimulates the flow of milk. When a kitten kneads the lap of his owner, it is mirroring the same happiness that it felt nursing at his mother's belly.
While most people recognize and appreciate the privilege a cat bestows when kneading on their person, if the kneading is uncomfortable, too enthusiastic, or continues too long, the cat can be gently discouraged by simply distracting it. Keeping the cat's nail clipped short helps too.
Burying Food
If a cat does not like the taste of wet food on a plate, it may try to 'bury' it by scratching repeatedly on the floor or covering it up with whatever might be in the area - a mat, bed, or toy. Even if the cat likes the food, if there is more than it can eat at once, it will scrape its paw along the floor as if covering the food. This is an instinctive behavior left over from when a wild cat would bury the remains of a kill to eat later.
Running Water
The sound and motion of water pouring from a tap is mesmerizing to many cats. It is probably a feast for the senses as it stimulates hearing, sight, smell and touch. Many cats prefer to drink from a running tap, as the water is fresh. Water that has been standing even a few hours loses some of its oxygen content, which changes its taste.
Inappropriate Biting
Just like human babies, kittens have the urge to chew and bite when they are teething. Or a cat may scratch or bite without warning when you are petting or playing with it, as a result of over stimulation.
I like to play with AHU bare handed, end up having lots of scratch marks on my hands and arms. To correct either situation, you may distract the cat with a toy that is a more acceptable object for aggression. Normally I will use soft toy to replace my hands.
It is important to teach cats 'Social Play' at their early age so that they will learn to behave appropriately and respond to environment/social stimuli properly.
Bad Litter Tray Habits
If a previously clean cat begins scratching outside the litter box, this is a signal that the cat is not happy about something. It may be that the tray needs to be cleaned or it is not comfortable with the feel of the litter, the smell of the litter, they type of tray, or even the location of the tray.
Clawing Furniture
Contrary to popular belief. when a cat claws the furniture it is not sharpening its claws. Scratching helps the cat to remove the old claw sheath to expose the new, sharp ones. Cats also scratch on objects to mark their territory by stimulating the release of a scent from glands located between the paw pads.
To reduce the damage, it's best to have at least a scratching board or a scratch-able cat tree at home.
Catnip is a plant native to North America. Fresh leaves of the catnip plant have a mintlike scent, while dried leaves smell like alfafa. Watching a cat respond to catnip amuses most people. Pawing, clasping, rolling onto the side, and rhythmic kicking with the back feet is behavior similar to that displayed when they detect and capture prey. Some cats enjoy catnip and revel in its effects, while other cats appear to avoid it., despite prior displays of catnip sensitivity.
Generally male and female cats of ca reproductive age are more sensitive to catnip than very young or old cats. Catnip is not toxic to pets. It contains chemical which is similar to human hallucinogens.
The average cat sleeps for 13-18 hours daily. New born kittens sleep even more, almost 24 hours per day! This is an instinctive behavior that protects them in the wild, as while they are asleep, that keeps them to stay in the nest more often and keeps them from involving in danger. It's also the best way to keep kittens from predator.
As kittens grow, the proportion of sleeping to time awake gradually changes until they attain typical adult cat sleep patterns. Like human being, cats will sleep more when they are getting older.
1/3 of cat's sleep fall in REM Stage (Rapid Eye Movement). This this stage, cats will twitch their eyes, twitching the muscles, growls and purrs.
A cat can sleep every where but prefers a sleeping place that makes it feel safe. Most like to sleep up high on a cupboard or shelf; some like enclosed spaces such like under the cough or in the wardrobe. Some even like to sleep in bathroom sink especially on hot day. Most cats cuddle up to a warm spot near a heater in winter.
Temperature also affects the cat's sleeping position. When cold, cats tend to curl up in a ball and put their face between their paws to reduce body heat loss. When hot, they will sleep stretch out with the belly turned upward to release the body heat.
Kusky stretch out his body and show his belly upwards when he is feeling hot after sleeping on leather sofa for some time...
