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hafilax t1_j5cuc4c wrote

I'm more talkative with my cats than with other people, so I guess it's mutual.

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FaptainAwesome t1_j5hbf0n wrote

I’d have full on conversations with my ginger cat. She was incredibly talkative.

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GozerDGozerian t1_j5ihdj2 wrote

One of my cats is a Bengal and he basically never fuckin shuts up. We have full on conversations. Especially when I walk into the kitchen.

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thefilmforgeuk t1_j5d2yc8 wrote

Many years ago I watched my then girlfriend , now wife’s cat make a weird chittering noise at the window because there were some birds outside. It sounded like something from Jurassic park. As soon as the cat realised I was there it went meow. I mean it just turned it’s head and when it saw me the sound changed mid chittter, but prior to the next chatter . I’m convinced meows are cat noises for humans. They have their own grown up cat language, and they don’t want us to know.

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Randvek t1_j5dr5ub wrote

> I’m convinced meows are cat noises for humans.

Hidden cameras of cats shows that this isn’t the case, but cats know that humans care way more about meows than other cats, so they are more likely to meow at us than another cat. They still do, though.

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Perfide01 t1_j5dm1l8 wrote

>I’m convinced meows are cat noises for humans.

Yes. Cats usually meow when they are kittens, or when they are dealing with kittens. Cats consider humans kittens/children.

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CK2Noob t1_j5em6m2 wrote

No cats don’t consider humans to be children. They literally treat adult and Child humans differently. Closest comparison is that they see us as family members

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double_positive t1_j5eqqil wrote

I've heard the exact opposite. Domesticated cats are in a state of arrested development and retain kitten-like behavior far longer than feral cats.

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deathpony43 t1_j5exti8 wrote

I think this makes the most sense. Kitten meows elicit attention from their parents, like a cry from a human baby. As cats grow up around humans, they learn that meows get attention from their owners. Thus, a kitten-like trait is retained when it wouldn't if not being raised around humans.

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Nexus_Crawler_159 t1_j5fagar wrote

Exactly they do t co wider is children they consider us like their momma who fed them when they complained

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Kadinnui t1_j5e6jdt wrote

Wtf, I am the one feeding them, how do they deduce it that way? Strange creatures but I love them

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shaneh445 t1_j5fcs5e wrote

Cats can definitely tell if a human is a child-adult or elder. Some may not care or show that they know. But they do know.

Trust me i've done studies with my heart and feelings. Pinky swear.

Kittens meow because babies make sounds/cry

Cats meow because they realized long long ago that humans don't communicate the same way with blinks and stares (while we can and do its different than how animals do) They got tired of staring and quickly learned we are a quite loud/vocal species and will definitely respond to MeOwSsSsSs :)

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CTFred t1_j5g2f2d wrote

I think you might have that backwards.

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FUTURE10S t1_j5dlwde wrote

My cat definitely talks to me in the cat language, but that's because he knows I can actually hear him and will pay attention if he says something. Usually, when he really wants something, he meows though.

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[deleted] t1_j5ee6i0 wrote

[removed]

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Nauin t1_j5fccaw wrote

Feral domestics, too. That's how you know if one has ever had human contact before, otherwise they're all hiss and claws.

I'm rehabbing one now and it took him two months to learn how to meow from my other cats.

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throwawayfghtyu t1_j5dvlig wrote

My 3 cats do this whenever they see a bird, or reflection of light, or laser pointer. The chattering and weird meows. But they don't stop when they see me

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mukkalukka22 t1_j5e2f4e wrote

I read somewhere that they do that when they see something they can’t have 🤷🏻‍♀️

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LogMeInCoach t1_j5e9nva wrote

Meowing is the language of the slaves to cats. That's how they communicate with us.

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dodgyhashbrown t1_j5eofqy wrote

I think it's more like humans aren't very good at reading the rest of the expressions cats typically use with one another. We are much more responsive to meowing than most anything else in their lexicon, so it becomes their way of communicating with us.

I do think when I'm paying attention to my cat, I can read her other signs better. She usually meows to get my attention when she wants it.

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Alarmed_Nectarine t1_j5ef2kk wrote

Mine makes a noise sort of halfway between a chitter and a meow when she really wants either attention or food.

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DuploJamaal t1_j5exemn wrote

Cats adapt their language.

When they talk with other cats it's like prrr prrr, but when they talk with birds they try to imitate them by making those chittering noises and to imitate humans they meow.

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monkeypox_69 t1_j5e220z wrote

Toxoplasmosis. They are playing the long game. 😸

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doctored_up t1_j5dayik wrote

I work from home with a giant siberian or norwegian and we have full on conversations. His cat vocab is outstanding.

My other cat is a tabby, several years older, and never meowed until we adopted his brother as a kitten. He picked up pretty quickly and now lets out the most god awful moans that are supposed to be meows. He was 11 years old when he first meowed lol

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nouille07 t1_j5es32i wrote

Our Norwegian started meowing at 14 like a kitten just after our other cat who was always meowing passed away. Made no sense to us

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2MB26 t1_j5gr870 wrote

Same with ours. My cat (absolutely adored her, we grew up together) died recently and was always shouting at me. Her sister was silent.

Suddenly her sister is meowing at me all day. First time she did it she sounded just like my Luna, that was a bit of a moment.

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FatQuack t1_j5habs5 wrote

I had something similar happen.

The oldest and most vocal cat passed away and it was like the younger one said "Well I guess it's my job now. That food bowl ain't gonna fill itself!"

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DirkNowitzkisWife t1_j5flcs4 wrote

My Norwegian will talk to me too! He will legitimately answer me and meow at me as long as I’m talking to him, and it’s always responding to me, I love it

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mongmight t1_j5fjni5 wrote

Growing up my mate had a cat that would not even acknowledge people. It would lift its tail and present its cat pussy to me though and meow. It was practically a party trick, I'd call her and sure enough, cat vag. Guess I'm a thundercat.

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Tex-Rob t1_j5ghlu6 wrote

One of my absolute favorite things about cats is how they learn from other cats, and adapt to their environments. We have one who just about never made a sound for his first 5 or 6 years, then two little ginger littermates that look just like him came along and they all talk a ton now, to us, to each other, trying to get the 3rd one to come join, etc.

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MagicMushroomFungi t1_j5cwwp9 wrote

Mine "talks" so much that I think she is telling me various stories all the time.
I refer to her as my 'cat of nine tales'.

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dinoroo t1_j5dmn2g wrote

That’s cute, I refer to my cat as “everyone’s favorite little fucker”.

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archery713 t1_j5cpqds wrote

I mean yeah. They don't need to be vocal with other cats, they have better ways to communicate ideas.

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ChemicalEscapes t1_j5ctw2f wrote

They're plotting our downfall.

Little do they know we're doing that just fine on our own.

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TheRageDragon t1_j5db7cc wrote

They plan to knock every last thing off the counter tops.

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tralltonetroll t1_j5ghjyr wrote

Hoomin is stupid and near-deaf, I need to say this four times!

Besides, what's the point in shouting "treats!" to other cats?

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Aspy343 t1_j5cyiga wrote

Wild cats basically only meow when they're kittens. They have several types for humans and evolved to hit the same frequencies that humans associate with babies in need. They are playing us.

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oozinator1 t1_j5efu7t wrote

Cat 1: The great thing about humans is that you can say whatever bullshit you want to them, and they'll think you are the greatest thing as long as you do the meow-meow schtick.

Cat 2: No way!

Cat 1: Check this out. (meows) Hey! Ass face! Your mom's a whore!

Human: Oh, aren't you just precious?! (strokes Cat 1)

Cat 1: See?

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The-Brit t1_j5cuwro wrote

They use eyes, ears, tail, body positioning and posture and more. They don't need to be vocal below a certain level.

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[deleted] t1_j5eoydf wrote

[deleted]

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FirePaw493 t1_j5eszwg wrote

That's a bad comparison. Humans evolved to communicate via speech. Cats didn't. I have rarly ever seen cats "talk" to eachother, but they are usually very vocal if they want something from humans.

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The-Brit t1_j5fm1fu wrote

You are not taking into account the difference in communication complexity between the two species. Cats are WAY simpler, do they need to discuss quantum physics?

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leavetaterualone t1_j5ctqib wrote

Because we can't get a hint. Cats interact with each other through minute facial expressions, body language and even blinking!

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awedPlover91057 t1_j5eqw8z wrote

true, when my cat wants to play, she'll usually blink at me twice and if I miss that signal, she'll start meowing at me

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SCMtnGuy t1_j5cs3nm wrote

That's because, being a cat, they know cats won't do anything for anyone else, no matter how much they beg. Humans, however, are easily goaded into action with only a little meowing.

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stayuplateandtalk t1_j5csbcy wrote

Our cat meows at all hours of the day and night. She sits at the second floor landing where the acoustics are amazing. Me-me-me-me-me-me-me-ow! Sometimes her sound is a very low pitched moan. It can aggregate a human.

Edit: agitate. If it aggregated us, I think we would be in trouble.

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Responsible-Ad-6131 t1_j5di07u wrote

Ours does this too :(. Rain sound machine and earplugs solved it for me. Cats certainly don’t listen when you holler at them to shut tf up every few minutes all night long unfortunately.

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btribble t1_j5deat6 wrote

That's not exactly what it says unless by "vocal" you're just talking about meowing.

> They also use many other methods, including trills, hisses, yowls, growls, snarls.

Cats also have a lot of other sounds that humans can't easily hear. They just don't meow to each other a lot.

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zillskillnillfrill t1_j5csevm wrote

Mine isn't because I ignored her when she whinged as a kitten. Now, If she wants to go outside she'll wait patiently by the backdoor, and if she's hungry she'll sit in front of me staring at me until I get up and feed her

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cosmoboy t1_j5cz1po wrote

I've got 2 that stare at me until I do what they want. They're both girls. I have one that isn't afraid to be vocal. He's my dude. They all came from the same litter. I don't know why they have different communication styles.

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AngryRinger t1_j5e82sy wrote

Cats are more vocal with us because a lot of a cats vocal range is out of the hearing range of humans. We can’t hear them. They try different noises to see if we can hear them or not, though in a cat’s eyes we’re basically deaf. Add that to the fact that they will bring us ‘gifts’ because they don’t think we can take care of ourselves and hunt for food many cats actually think of humans in a way similar to deaf and incapable kittens.

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Ladysaltbitch t1_j5e9z7k wrote

Cats meow at each other, but their communication is mostly based on body language, they meow at YOU as its a semi learned behaviour to communicate with you specifically. They see you speaking and attempt to do the same as a simplified explanation. "Noise means do thing"

My cat has a specific meow for food, for wanting to go outside and other things too

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GeoSol t1_j5ehlpp wrote

From a cats point of view, humans are slow, loud, and dumb(cant hear). So they tend to be overt with their communication, if they want to do so.

I always feel respected by a cat, when it knows me well enough, that it will communicate in small ways, as i've shown it i understand the communication and will respond.

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toooooold4this t1_j5ecd1f wrote

I have a cat who will literally follow me around meowing in different tones and lengths until I sit down so he can nap in my lap.

He does this at night too, except he just stands on the stairs until I go to bed.

He's obviously in charge.

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eh-guy t1_j5dggeq wrote

Cats learn we (mostly) only communicate verbally and so keep doing it as long as we respond. It can also be a sign of kittens being taken away too soon and never losing their kitten mindset and so think they need to vocalize more.

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auntynell t1_j5dxmd7 wrote

Adult cats reserved kitten miaows for humans because we are suckers and no other cat cares enough for them to work.

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abzinth91 t1_j5ej7ki wrote

Isn't that that cats sound resemble baby childs sounds to get humans attention?

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Aldous_Hoaxley t1_j5ehuon wrote

That's because they feel the need to catsplain everything to dumb hoomans.

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OldGaffer t1_j5ffbhw wrote

I don't believe this at all. Go watch those videos with a cat and a camera on its collar. They talk to each other all the time, a lot more than to humans. Being around lots of cats my first though in these videos was wow they talk to each other a lot.

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otasyn t1_j5d68tn wrote

Just be like when people talk louder to other people that don't speak the same language.

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Original_Sail t1_j5dyc9g wrote

They talk to us the way they do to their kittens. It's honestly fascinating

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EffectiveSalamander t1_j5fi6n9 wrote

Our cat has a special mournful meow she only uses when she wants the humans to pick up the toy and play. I think she learned that meow got the humans to come and see what was wrong.

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renb8 t1_j5ectjg wrote

Cats probably like the quiet time with other cats as relief and an escape from incessantly noisy, chatty humans. Perhaps they’re more vocal with humans cos they’re telling us to shut up.

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MagicManTX84 t1_j5eenat wrote

At 3am, 4am, 5am. Can sleep at night please!!!!

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pikachu_ON_acid t1_j5ej4lf wrote

Tell that to the cats who get into fights below my window at 3 am.

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unknownquotients t1_j5es4l0 wrote

I have four indoor cats and they do primarily talk to us humans but they communicate with each other via chirps!

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argylekey t1_j5f1144 wrote

Isn't it that cats are just as vocal, but adult cats communicate with other cats at frequencies inaudible to humans?

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EileenSuki t1_j5fdefh wrote

My cat seems to be the exception! Dude meows at everything and loudly.

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Glacial_Self t1_j5g4zgs wrote

Meanwhile on cat-reddit, they're learning that humans are more vocal with cats than other humans.

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Chelzor t1_j5dprb0 wrote

The stray mom and baby outside my house talk to eachother a lot. Like that old YouTube video of the two cats having a long conversation

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Broccoil t1_j5dv1ye wrote

humans are more vocal with humans than cats

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BunRabbit t1_j5e6chi wrote

Of course. They have keep repeating themselves to us big dummies who don't speak cat.

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Cowboy_bro t1_j5e7g44 wrote

Yes, cats can adapt to many different social situations. They're fascinating creatures.

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LeanMeanDrMachine t1_j5e7s64 wrote

They see the relationship more as an adult cat would with a kitten. Idk which is the adult and which is the kitten in their eyes though

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AdvancedPhoenix t1_j5ekfro wrote

Everyone with two cats know that. My cats nearly never meow to each other. Maybe before a fight or something. But they do all the time with us.

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rharper38 t1_j5en04b wrote

I don't remember the cats ever responding to each other when they meowed. But all they had to do was say something and one of us was there, asking what they needed, and probably getting them a treat.

Not to mention, if you're a gentleman of the orange tabby persuasion whose furrymouse gets stuck under the stove, your dumb brother, Wuggy Norple, can't get it out, no matter how hard you yell. Your mom can and will, once she hears you yowling in the kitchen, and you'll probably get fed too

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Swizzle98 t1_j5eqq3f wrote

The only time my cats meow at each other is when my younger cat is harassing my older cat. He'll meow like "you better get her" to get our attention. My younger cat only meows when she wants something, but the older one, he has full-on conversations with me.

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The_Bitter_Bear t1_j5etf7i wrote

Mine seems to find new sounds to make every day. She started off pretty quiet, now it seems like she's working on her Ted Talk some days.

I'll give the chatty little cutie some credit though, every sound seems to genuinely communicate something.

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kvlr954 t1_j5ex45f wrote

I recently walked out of my house to walk the dog in the morning and heard two cats either fighting or banging … they were quite vocal with each other lol

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SnooOwls1850 t1_j5exuo0 wrote

Same goes for dogs. Since we don't seem to understand their natural (body) language, they try to communicate with us in our "words".

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speedyoleander t1_j5f6hdu wrote

Mine is because he knows I’m a dumb human and need to be nagged at to do what he wants me to do.

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moody2shoes t1_j5f76xl wrote

I love my American longhair, but damnitall he’s too loud and chatty first thing every morning

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casualphilosopher1 t1_j5f89ta wrote

Is it because human hearing isn't as good as that of other cats?

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MrBleak t1_j5f8vm8 wrote

Our oldest cat didn't get the memo so when the others are messing with her, she throws out a bunch of short, agitated meows instead of hissing.

It's adorable!

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fallenouroboros t1_j5fa46v wrote

They probably feel the need to talk more thinking we need the additional direction

Cat to other cat; “talk slower humans are a little slow”

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TheVicSageQuestion t1_j5fj9zo wrote

I think anyone who has ever been around 2 or more cats for a prolonged period of time already knew this.

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Intrepid_Lynx3608 t1_j5fotgd wrote

Yes, cats largely meow as a learned trait from human children because they observed human children crying or making noise got them attention.

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Hungry_Treacle3376 t1_j5fuvj5 wrote

I don't think you've ever seen a cat business meeting.

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one_salty_cookie t1_j5g9kz8 wrote

Well this is interesting.... We got a kitten off the streets in Houston about 13 years ago. He was meowing really loud, which led to my daughter capturing him...

To this day, he still yells at us every day. First thing in the morning - I'm hungry! Later in the day - I want to go outside! Later, come sit with me on the couch and watch TV!

Our cat is noisy. Other cats we have had were not so much...

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kremit73 t1_j5gcnj1 wrote

Prob rebersed too. Cat owners talk to their cat more openly, freely, and at longer length than they do people.

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justasmalltowndad t1_j5gjd03 wrote

Literally just observe two cats interacting and you'll notice this. The main sound they make is their angry yells and howls at each other. If they aren't mad, they don't need to vocalize in order to communicate.

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dinoroo t1_j5dmfcy wrote

“You two-legged bastards! Heed our demands!!”

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CarelessHisser t1_j5dq920 wrote

Makes me think of kids raised in cold homes where there isn't much talking. Of course, they won't speak when they feel like nothing they say matters. Especially when they enter into an even more frigid adulthood.

Makes me think of kids raised in cold homes where there isn't much talking. Of course, they won't speak when they feel like nothing they say matters. Especially when they enter into even more frigid adulthood.

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PacifistWarlord t1_j5f32og wrote

I always had a feeling that cats were more vocal than cats. Makes sense

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bleank_D t1_j5h7q5c wrote

Today you learned that cats are indeed assholes

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Solventless4life t1_j5jgf2j wrote

Interesting fact cats have learned over time to match the same decibel of a baby crying to get our attention. Dogs may be more domesticated by us but cats have definitely learned the art of manipulation

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johanvondoogiedorf t1_j5dfwfu wrote

These invasive environmental catastrophes kill shit for fun and give me the bodies as gifts for the dehydrated kibbles and bits I dump in a bowl once a day (usually) and now it turns out they are parasitically inducing a loving response which likely increases the amount of kibble and bits I give them which oh God do you see where this is going. Cat overlords after the cat-induced environmental collapse. I even heard they are a breeding ground for parasites which increase alpha response in non-alpha wolves. You better infect yourself now if you wanna be warlord God-king and not cat jerky.

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