Cats have a pronounced body language. Whether joy or fear – the posture reveals a lot. Understanding cat language, however, requires practice.
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| How to correctly interpret cat body language 2022 guide |
If you want to interpret the behavior of cats correctly and learn cat language, you must always be aware that cats are very attentive observers. They register every movement of their counterpart – every blink – and consequently even the smallest movement in the body language of cats can be of great importance. If you want to understand your cat, you have to be very attentive and look very closely. In the following, we reveal what you should pay particular attention to.
Body language of cats
Cats have a pronounced facial expression. The interplay of eyes, ears and tail as well as the posture reveal a lot about the state of mind and mood of the cat. Set up whiskers and forward-facing ears, for example, show attention. A relaxed cat,on the other hand, lets its tail hang loosely. It is set up as a greeting, a sign that she is friendly to her counterpart.
How do cats show joy?
Through a raised tail, a cat also expresses joy. In addition, if the cat is happy, it often runs back and forth excitedly, sometimes accompanied by an attentive meow. If, for example, the reason for the joy is the return home of the dear owner, the cat often strokes his legs affectionately and rubs his head. With this so-called "give your head" she signals: "You belong to me", because the scent glands on the cheeks leave a mark with the individual "family smell", unnoticed by us humans.
But be careful: many cats also use the same signs of joy when they beg.
When cats want to play
Playful cats are not necessarily recognizable by a special posture, but by their whole behavior. Some cats run like crazy through the apartment or the garden when they are gripped by the play instinct. Cats that are playful also often roll on the floor and make the craziest distractions. If they want to ask their people to play along, they often tap with a paw after the hand or the trouser leg.
The ears as a mood barometer
The mood of a cat can best be read from the ears:
- If they are relaxed and directed forward, this signals friendliness.
- If something attracts the attention of the cat, the ears are turned in this direction.
- Dissatisfaction is manifested by gradually turning the ears to the side. The cat says in this way: "I don't like what you're doing right now."
- If the ears are turned even further back so that the back becomes visible, the cat signals fear, but also warns that it could attack immediately if it feels further threatened and cornered. Wildcats each have a bright spot on the back of their ears. If the back of the ears points forward, they act like a second pair of eyes, which is intended to intimidate their counterpart.
- If the fear turns into aggression, the ears are placed flat to the head. As a rule, the cat then proceeds to attack at the same moment.
In case of fear or aggression, the cat resists its fur and makes a typical hump to appear larger and thus intimidate the opponent. The ears of an aggressive cat are turned backwards and laid flat. If fear mixes with it, the ears are folded a little more to the side. The tail is also nudified and slightly kinked as a sign of fear. An aggressive cat places him completely horizontally. The easiest way to distinguish fear and aggression is on the pupils. If they are tight and slit-shaped, the cat is angry. In case of fear and arousal, however, the pupils are very wide.
What the cat's tail also reveals
Submission shows the cat through a retracted tail. Sometimes she also presents her belly, her vulnerable side, to the other person. However, this gesture is not as clear in cats as it is in dogs. On the one hand, they can still defend themselves excellently with their claws while lying on their backs, on the other hand, rolling on their backs is often also a challenge to play. When interpreting, the respective context is always decisive. A twitching tail means uncertainty. Perhaps the cat is currently engaged in an inner conflict. This behavior is also often observed in playful hunting. In an emergency, on the other hand, the cat behaves very rigidly and silently so as not to be discovered by its prey.
The right amount of eye contact
First of all, eye contact signals attention. The eyes of the cat are often half closed. In this way, she shows that she is friendly. You should never stare at cats, even if their beautiful eyes fascinate us. Because staring at them is considered a threatening gesture. Blink It is better to clearly close your cat from time to time. With a bit of luck, your pussy will blink back. They exchanged a smile in cat language.
Cats also turn their eyes away from time to time when they meet each other in order to demonstrate peacefulness and to reassure their counterparts. Blinking is also observed as a skipping act. If the cat is unsure, it prefers to signal that it is not looking for a fight.
How do cats behave when they are willing to mate?
Depending on the breed, kittens become sexually mature at about four to twelve months. They then become "rolly" several times a year, i.e. ready to mate. The willingness to mate is seasonal, from October to December there is usually a rest break, during which the cat is not rolly at all. In domestic cats, however, this rhythm is often lost. Rolly cats are very restless during this time, meow a lot and roll. In doing so, they roll back and forth devotedly, which explains the name. In addition, they put their tail aside, another signal to show a hangover their willingness to mate.
On average, hangovers become sexually mature at eight to ten months. With them no seasonality can be observed, they are always ready to mate. Rolly cats are perceived by cats over long distances, as they exude a special smell. Even a good apartment hangover can be tempted to an escape attempt if a rolly cat is walking around in the neighborhood. In addition, most sexually mature hangovers also mark their territory indoors. This behavior can be prevented with timely castration.
Sounds as part of cat communication
Cats communicate with each other mainly via gestures and smells. But they also have a pronounced sound repertoire that goes far beyond meowing:
- Growling and hissing are to be understood as a warning.
- In battle, this goes into a throaty howl, up to screaming and howling, which expresses aggression and sometimes fear.
- Tense cats or cats gripped by hunting fever sometimes chatter, although this often sounds more like smacking.
- Gentle gurgling is intended to calm down and demonstrates mating readiness. Purring not only signals that a cat is comfortable, but can also serve to calm itself down. Presumably, cats even stimulate the body's own self-healing powers.Researchers still disagree on the origin of purring.
The actual meow originates from the baby language and is maintained above all towards humans.Many cats develop a wide variety of variations, depending on what they want from "their" humans. Here it is also particularly striking how different the voices of the cats can be.
Cleaning behaviour of cats
A cat spends about 3.5 hours a day cleaning itself extensively. Of course, this typical cat behavior is mainly used for grooming. Cleaning each other is also very important for social bonding.
Many cats lick their paws particularly often and extensively. In many cases, this is a skip action. This occurs when there is excitement, embarrassment or uncertainty. Such skipping actions serve as a stress reliever. With a familiar plot, the cat overplays that she just does not know how to behave properly. Presumably, licking also releases happiness hormones (endorphins).
My cat is yawning – is she tired?
Cats – like us humans – occasionally yawn when they are tired and especially after waking up, combined with extensive stretching. With the wide tearing of the mouth, the facial muscles are relaxed.
Much more important, however, is that stress is reduced by yawning. For example, cats yawn when they are unsure or to appease a conspecific. By the way, amazingly, animals can also be infected by the yawning of humans.
The Sleeping Cat
Cats are said to sleep about 12 to 16 hours a day. But they spend most of their time dozing. Their eyes are closed, but they still register what is happening around them.
This is particularly easy to recognize by the fact that the cat plays with its ears and also reacts to quiet noises. If something catches the cat's attention, it opens one or both eyes and turns its head in the appropriate direction. Then she decides whether it's worth getting up or whether she continues to doze.
Cats only fall into deep sleep when they feel very safe and usually only for a few minutes. In such a phase, you should never touch a cat suddenly, but always address it beforehand. Otherwise, she may be so frightened that she immediately attacks and attacks the touching hand.
Whether animals can really dream, there is disagreement. But if you observe your sleeping cat for a long time, you will notice that it occasionally twitches and rows its paws during sleep and sometimes even begins to smack. Maybe she's really dreaming of hunting for a mouse.
Is my cat sick?
Sick cats usually show very late that they are unwell. The natural instincts ensure that the cat does not show weakness. Therefore, at the first signs that the cat is not well, you should ask a veterinarian for advice, because often the cats have been sick for some time and have only hidden it well so far.
But how do you know if a cat is sick? A sick cat will stop playing first. However, since the play instinct is individually very different and some cats, especially free walkers, show no interest in playing with humans, this is a very uncertain sign.
Only when the cat is worse off does it withdraw. Sick cats sleep more often, although they often no longer visit elevated places to avoid exertion. When the drowsiness turns into proper apathy, this is often a sign of fever. In addition, sick cats often stop eating.
Body language for pain
Also, cats often show pain almost not at all. Unlike anxiety, there is no body language or typical posture in cats that generally signals pain. Cats actually only lame when they can hardly appear with a paw.
Only in the case of a sudden pain, such as when the cat's tail is accidentally pinched, does a house tiger sometimes scream. However, this is also due to the fright. Probably the most important indicator of pain is that the cat usually stops eating. But here, too, a clear distinction must be made between very skinny cats and the eaten animals.
Ultimately, any behavioral changes or abnormalities can be a sign that the cat is sick. The owner who knows his pet best can also best judge what is normal for his cat. In case of uncertainty, it is better to visit the veterinarian once again. Because often cat owners understand the language of their own cat best and are quite right with their assumption that something is wrong.
Thanks for reading: How to correctly interpret cat body language 2022 guide, Sorry, my English is bad:)