Kazimiera
07-06-2013, 12:48 AM
http://photo-bugs.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/104439xcitefun-cats-03.jpg
To the surprise of many, meows are not part of natural communication between cats. In other words, cats do not meow to communicate with each other, they use other sounds. So cats only meow to people, it is an "invention" of domestication which, except for rare situations, they use only to communicate with us.
Meowing is not the only way cats "talk", they can also purr, hiss, growl, but this is part of their interspecific vocabulary that under many circumstances, they use with people. But we should first clarify some concepts in order to understand what meows are and why they use them so generously with us.
OFFSPRING’S CRYING FOR HELP
http://cdn.attackofthecute.com/February-24-2012-23-46-05-tumblrlvr8tibhk61r20hi2o1500.jpg
Using words, humans can insult, flatter, threaten, seduce... Animals, on the other hand, lacking vocabulary, use tones or sound frequencies to warn of their intentions. A low, hoarse tone (a dog’s growl, for example) is threatening, while a high-pitched tone "calls for" protection. The offspring’s crying responds to the same pattern: the defenseless need of help.
It is noteworthy that meowing has a high frequency, just like human babies cry, between 700 and 800 hertz (Hz), so humans respond to it accordingly. To which other feline sounds, among the 12 or 13 that scientists were able to categorize, is this similar to?
Well, it is not precisely similar to hisses or growls (that have a low frequency, between 100 and 250 Hz), but to a call that kittens exchange with their mothers, known as "chirp", with sound levels between 250 and 800 Hz.
These sounds are of short duration, from 0.4 to 0.7 seconds (the shortest meow lasts at least 0.6 seconds, although it can be extended up to 3 – 6 seconds), made by kittens under 4 weeks of age to call their mother in any situation of possible danger: when left alone, when they are cold or when they are hungry.
When they are cold, the sound is sharper, although it tends to equalize the others when the kittens are about 4 weeks of age and they are able to thermo regulate their body temperature. By contrast, the sound they make when they are enclosed is the most high-pitched, and when left alone, is the longest. Of course, the mother distinguishes perfectly between the sounds and responds to her kittens in a similar tone.
At this point, we can see some correlation between kittens’ sounds and meowing, although they are rather different. Purring is the same at all ages in a cat's life, both as an offspring or an adult, it is not modified. But meowing is specific to kittens. The kittens’ call disappears when they are a month old because they cease to depend on the mother, but meowing appears soon after, when they are three months old. We can say, then, that it is the evolution and the use of a childlike sound.
THEIR BEHAVIOR MAY BE CHILDLIKE, BUT THEY ARE VERY SMART
http://www.photographyblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/228.jpg
So, adult cats are still kittens? Well, to some extent, yes. This is related to the neotenization phenomenon or, in other words, the persistence of childlike physical traits and behavior, something that is linked to domestication, allowing us to deal with animals (cows, horses, sheep, dogs, etc.).
Turning wild cats into peaceful pets has preserved, among other childlike behavior, a corrected and improved version of the distress call: meowing.
But what do cats want when they meow? They meow to us and not to other cats because they want to get our attention and get things. They want to get food, toys, cuddles, or open the door for them, and they are so smart that learn quickly special meows for each separate thing. On the other hand, when living with a cat, every cat owner knows exactly what each meow means.
Moreover, once they learn there's no way to shut them up: cats can meow twice a minute for two hours or more ... So, who's going to deny whatever they want?
It's amazing, but cats have achieved by chance, and without being their normal behavior, to connect to our favorite (verbal) communication mean and to literally train us to pay attention to them. Isn’t it brilliant?
http://cattitudemagazine.blogspot.com/2013/07/meowing-feline-invention.html
To the surprise of many, meows are not part of natural communication between cats. In other words, cats do not meow to communicate with each other, they use other sounds. So cats only meow to people, it is an "invention" of domestication which, except for rare situations, they use only to communicate with us.
Meowing is not the only way cats "talk", they can also purr, hiss, growl, but this is part of their interspecific vocabulary that under many circumstances, they use with people. But we should first clarify some concepts in order to understand what meows are and why they use them so generously with us.
OFFSPRING’S CRYING FOR HELP
http://cdn.attackofthecute.com/February-24-2012-23-46-05-tumblrlvr8tibhk61r20hi2o1500.jpg
Using words, humans can insult, flatter, threaten, seduce... Animals, on the other hand, lacking vocabulary, use tones or sound frequencies to warn of their intentions. A low, hoarse tone (a dog’s growl, for example) is threatening, while a high-pitched tone "calls for" protection. The offspring’s crying responds to the same pattern: the defenseless need of help.
It is noteworthy that meowing has a high frequency, just like human babies cry, between 700 and 800 hertz (Hz), so humans respond to it accordingly. To which other feline sounds, among the 12 or 13 that scientists were able to categorize, is this similar to?
Well, it is not precisely similar to hisses or growls (that have a low frequency, between 100 and 250 Hz), but to a call that kittens exchange with their mothers, known as "chirp", with sound levels between 250 and 800 Hz.
These sounds are of short duration, from 0.4 to 0.7 seconds (the shortest meow lasts at least 0.6 seconds, although it can be extended up to 3 – 6 seconds), made by kittens under 4 weeks of age to call their mother in any situation of possible danger: when left alone, when they are cold or when they are hungry.
When they are cold, the sound is sharper, although it tends to equalize the others when the kittens are about 4 weeks of age and they are able to thermo regulate their body temperature. By contrast, the sound they make when they are enclosed is the most high-pitched, and when left alone, is the longest. Of course, the mother distinguishes perfectly between the sounds and responds to her kittens in a similar tone.
At this point, we can see some correlation between kittens’ sounds and meowing, although they are rather different. Purring is the same at all ages in a cat's life, both as an offspring or an adult, it is not modified. But meowing is specific to kittens. The kittens’ call disappears when they are a month old because they cease to depend on the mother, but meowing appears soon after, when they are three months old. We can say, then, that it is the evolution and the use of a childlike sound.
THEIR BEHAVIOR MAY BE CHILDLIKE, BUT THEY ARE VERY SMART
http://www.photographyblogger.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/228.jpg
So, adult cats are still kittens? Well, to some extent, yes. This is related to the neotenization phenomenon or, in other words, the persistence of childlike physical traits and behavior, something that is linked to domestication, allowing us to deal with animals (cows, horses, sheep, dogs, etc.).
Turning wild cats into peaceful pets has preserved, among other childlike behavior, a corrected and improved version of the distress call: meowing.
But what do cats want when they meow? They meow to us and not to other cats because they want to get our attention and get things. They want to get food, toys, cuddles, or open the door for them, and they are so smart that learn quickly special meows for each separate thing. On the other hand, when living with a cat, every cat owner knows exactly what each meow means.
Moreover, once they learn there's no way to shut them up: cats can meow twice a minute for two hours or more ... So, who's going to deny whatever they want?
It's amazing, but cats have achieved by chance, and without being their normal behavior, to connect to our favorite (verbal) communication mean and to literally train us to pay attention to them. Isn’t it brilliant?
http://cattitudemagazine.blogspot.com/2013/07/meowing-feline-invention.html