What makes cats meow

When your cat takes on this serpent-like guise, back off, and do what you can to remove the perceived threat. Some friendly, outgoing felines might hardly ever hiss, while a more shy, reserved cat will resort to it whenever unsure of a situation. Unlike the reasonably happy, searching sound of a meow, the yowl is a longer, more drawn-out moan that denotes, worry, discomfort, territorial concern or mating issues.

Cats who get relocated to new territories or adopted out to a new home can often yowl out their regret at the lost digs. And some cats will yowl simply out of boredom. If your cat begins to incessantly yowl, check for signs of illness; a trip to your veterinarian might be in order.

If he or she has not yet been altered, see to it as soon as possible, especially if you let your cat outdoors. Be sure your cat has ample toys and that she gets enough attention from you.

Sometimes all it takes to end a case of the yowls is just an extra play session each day. During the caterwaul, the un-spayed female will do all she can to get outside to meet up with males cats, who will most likely be milling about, yowling and fighting for the honour.

If the un-spayed female is outdoors, her caterwauling will draw in a male, whereupon mating will surely occur. She will assume a head-down, rear-up position called lordosis , while the male bites her neck and begins the mating process. The moral here: have your cats sterilized! Cats in the midst of a fight may also scream. These primeval shrieks often come after a long, ominous yowl, and usually punctuate a climactic paw swat or vicious bite. Whole cats are more likely to fight, though even fixed pets will actively defend their territories.

To avoid fighting injuries to your cat, consider keeping her indoors. Often accompanying the hiss are random snarls and growls, usually indicative of fear, anger or territorial threat. A snarling or growling cat will have the classic defensive body posture—puffed up fur, arched back, ears back, tail twitching.

Some cats are by nature more talkative than others. As a general rule, shorthaired cats tend to be more talkative and outgoing than longhaired felines.

And if you are looking for an instinctively chatty kitty, consider certain breeds of Asian origin. These include:. These breeds tend to be on the quieter side. But breed-specific guidelines are not failsafe; you could end up with a noisy Persian or a silent Siamese! Skip to content. But they continue to meow to people throughout their lives, probably because meowing gets people to do what they want.

Cats also yowl—a sound similar to the meow but more drawn out and melodic. Unlike meowing, adult cats do yowl at one another, specifically during breeding season.

So what makes our feline friends so chatty with us? Related: Why dog breeds look so very different, but cats don't. Instead, these wild cats communicated through their sense of smell, or by rubbing against or urinating on objects like trees. That way, cats didn't have to come face-to-face with other feisty felines in order to send a message. That's still largely the way cats communicate with one another, said John Wright, a psychologist studying animal behavior at Mercer University in Georgia.

But humans don't have nearly as fine-turned a sense of smell as felines. And we're unlikely to appreciate a cat spraying urine all over a new sofa. So, cats communicate with their humans in the way that is most likely to get them what they want: by meowing. Many cats even develop a repertoire of meows to express different needs and feelings or elicit different responses.