I can’t tell you how many times I’ve said to my cat, “I don’t know what you want, but I don’t have time for this,” only for me to then immediately spend a lot of time trying to figure out what she wants. Cats are great, but they’re also weird little balls of fur who do random things for inexplicable reasons. Is it food she’s crying about? Attention? Does she want me to come look at something or open a door? It’s exhausting, but that confusion goes with the territory. But does it have to? As this video explains, your feline friend is actually trying to communicate different ideas to different targets with all of its many noises.
The YouTube channel Cole and Marmalade posted this brief explainer on seven different ways cats “speak” – including meowing, purring, trilling (that high-pitched chirping), chattering (that weird biting noise they make when they see a bird or animal outside), yowling, growling, and hissing – as well as who they are directing that communication to. Sometimes its exclusively at humans, like when they meow, something they only use to talk to people. Other times they are yowling at other cats. And occasionally they are just making noises for reasons we’re not even sure they understand.
Being able to at least narrow down the possibilities of what your cat wants is an easy way to save a lot of time. It’s also a good way to know when you should go running in to the other room to make sure everything is alright. You don’t have to worry about your little weirdo yelling/squawking at a bird. (Which my cat does all the time.)
Of course, there’s an eighth noise every cat owner fears most of all – when they start coughing up a hairball. That’ll wake you up out of a dead sleep.
You don’t need a translator to know what that means.
Featured Image: Cole and Marmalade
