Cat behaviour is how cats interact with other cats, animals, and environment.

'Language'

Cats have a unique 'language' that consists mainly of body actions and occasionally, vocal calls.

Body language

• Disgust — Lifting or constant shaking of a paw or paws. The more times the paw is shaken, the stronger a feeling is indicated; this can sometimes be a four paw affair with each paw being lifted and shaken in turn. This is possibly related to the identical action that is displayed after stepping in water.

• Agitation or Aggression — The swishing or sweeping of the tail in a wide swath, mid-air or against a person. Further irritation may result in the cat simply leaving the room.

• Contentedness — Kneading with the paws on a person or, for example, a favorite blanket or sleeping spot. Young kittens knead their mother's nipples to stimulate the feeding reflex in her so that her milk flows for the kittens to suckle on. Cats may knead for a short or extended period of time, the extended period sometimes interpreted by people as a sign of discomfort or restlessness, but it is more likely the cat is happy. Most cats will demonstrate this for about ten minutes at the longest, although a select few have been known to knead and suckle on their favorite human's shirt over the course of an entire night. Researchers at Oxford University have demonstrated that cats derive immense pleasure from kneading, similar to the sensation of masturbation in humans. While orgasmic contractions are usually not present, there have been cases of ejaculation due to excessive kneading. ^{[citation needed]}

• Relaxation — Sprawling on the side or back and, possibly, rolling about; this may be seen, for example, when a person enters the room or stirs from their seat. The cat may display this at the same time as the person's movement.

• Affection — A pressing of the face or top of the head against a person's body, leaving a scent as a marking of territory. Rubbing in quick succession.

• Submission — Upon being approached, it will fall down on its side, indicating it is not seeking attention and is unwilling to put up a fight.

• Love — Often a cat will blink to convey the message "I love you." Sometimes this gesture is simply a sign that the cat feels secure.^[1] It can of course also simply be a sign that there is something in the cats eye(s), although this is not the focus of this particular point.

Scent Rubbing A woman showing disgust. ... Agitation may have the following special meanings Agitation, an emotional state Agitation, putting into motion (by shaking or stirring) Agitation, a term from the lexicon of Communists: political activities aimed at urging people to do something This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that... In psychology and other social and behavioral sciences, aggression refers to behavior that is intended to cause harm or pain. ... The term satisfaction can refer to: (I Cant Get No) Satisfaction, a Rolling Stones song, which has also been covered by several artists, including: The Residents, released as a single (Satiafaction b/w Loser=Weed) in 1976 and 1978. ... A cat kneading a soft blanket Kneading (also known as treading the grapes.) is an activity common to all domestic cats whereby, when in a state of contentment, they push the surface on which they are standing with their front paws. ... Look up relaxation in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... For the change in vowel and consonant quality in Celtic languages, see Affection (linguistics). ... Submission can refer to: An object to hand in A proposal for a presentation at an academic conference Domination and submission, where it is opposite in meaning to dominance. ... Love is any of a number of emotions and experiences related to a sense of strong affection or profound oneness. ...

This behaviour is used primarily to claim ownership of something: although female cats don't spray, unlike male cats. Once male cats are neutered the scent rubbing or spraying will wear out or stop.

Courting

Cats, compared to many other mammals have a unique courting style. Courtship consists of firstly the female coming into season, or heat. Male cats will be able to smell a female cat in heat miles away, and will therefore be seeking her out. This can be very problematic for any owner who has a whole female. When males arrive, they will fight mercilessly for the right to be the first to mate with the female. After the dominant male has left, the less dominant males will then each mate with the female in turn. It is therefore possible that even if a male cat loses first breeding rights, he can still be the father. This is also the reason that a litter of kittens can consist of two or sometimes even three fathers.

Vocal Calls

• Purring — Many people find purring as a sign of content, which it is; however, it is slightly more than that. Some cats purr when they are in extreme pain, or in labour, simply to try and calm themselves down. Purring therefore can be a sign of pleasure or pain; usually it is the former. Scientists have not yet been able to discover how purring works, but it is suspected that it is caused by minute vibrations in the voice box.
• Greeting — A particular sort of vocalization, such as a low meow or chirp, possibly with simultaneous purring.
• Distress — Mewing is often a plea for help or attention often made by kittens. There are two basic types of this call, one more loud and frantic, the other more high-pitched. In older cats it is more of a panicky repeated meow.
• Attention — Often simple meows and mews in both older cats and young kittens. A commanding meow is a command for attention, food, or to be let out.
• Protest — Whining meows.
• Frustration — A strong sigh or exhaled snort.
• Happy — A meow that starts low then goes up and comes back down.
• Watching/Interest — Cats will often "chatter" or "chirrup" on seeing something of interest out of the window, this is sometimes attributed to mimicking birdsong to attract prey or draw others attention to it, but often birds are not present. Bengals and Tabbies seem more likely to display this behaviour.

Purring is a noise made by a domestic cat and possibly other creatures. ... Greeting is a way for humans to intentionally communicate awareness of each others presence, to show attention to, and/or to affirm or suggest a type of relationship or social status between individuals or groups of people coming in contact with each other. ... Look up Distress in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... It has been suggested that Neural mechanisms behind shifts of attention be merged into this article or section. ... Demonstrators march in the street while protesting the World Bank and International Monetary Fund on April 16, 2005. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about an emotion. ... Watching is a television comedy written by Jim Hitchmough and starred Paul Bown and Emma Wray as mismatched couple Malcolm and Brenda. ... For other senses of this word, see interest (disambiguation). ...

Righting Reflex

The righting reflex is the ability for cats to land on their feet with little or no injury. They can do this more easily than other animals due to their flexible spine and lack of a collar bone. Cats also use vision and/or their vestibular apparatus to help tell which way to turn. They then can stretch themselves out and relax their muscles. Cats do not always land unharmed. They can break bones and die from excessive falls. The cat righting reflex is cats innate ability to orient themselves as they fall so as to land on their feet, often uninjured. ...

Cats are one of only two animals that can survive a fall at terminal velocity. The squirrel is the other.

Food Patterns

Cats are unique eaters; there is no other mammal that eats quite like them. They are obligate carnivores, and can survive without vegetation. Felines in the wild will usually hunt smaller mammals regularly throughout the day to keep themselves nourished. Domestic cats, however, are used to a relaxed lifestyle and, therefore, will eat even smaller amounts, but more regularly. Because of this, the domestic cat's intestinal tract is longer due to the lack of need to digest quickly. “Carnivorism” redirects here. ...

See also

• Cat communication

A yawning cat Cat communication consists of a range of methods with which cats communicate with humans, other cats, and other animals. ...

References

External links

• Cat Communication