Feline communication – what our cats are trying to tell us

Review of the morning’s lecture with Amber Batson

by Celia Haddon (http://www.celiahaddon.co.uk/)

When are cats come up to us and rub on our legs, do we understand what they are saying? Or if, as we are petting them, they suddenly go immobile, do we notice it? And seconds later, when they swipe at us with a claw, did we see it coming?

 

We may think we know about cats, but their body language is sometimes quite difficult for humans, even us devoted cat lovers, to read correctly. That was the starting point for the latest of two feline study days, organised by Learning About Animals, and given by vet and behaviourist, Amber Batson, of Priory Vets, Reigate.

 

Some of the difficulties in our understanding of our cats lies in the fact that cats are both hunter and hunted, she pointed out. The behaviours of the predator, which is what cats are, are mixed up with behaviours of a prey animal, which is what cats also are.

Cat evolution started 65 million years ago with a small tree-living creature Cimolestes, which slowly evolved into the wild cat lineage of pantherines (or big cats) and small cats.  A few thousand years of domestication cannot wipe out all this inheritance. Indeed, Amber Batson explained, this is one reason why present day moggies run upwards into trees, when they are frightened or prefer to walk on the kitchen surfaces rather than stay on the floor. “Cats have been with humans only about 0.01% of their evolutionary life,” she pointed out.

 

THE LANGUAGE OF SCENT

Cats have scent glands around the mouth, under the chin, on the cheeks, at the top of the eyes near the eye whiskers, at the base of their ears, between their toes, at the bottom of their back and along the length of the tail. All these body areas can leave scent messages when the cat makes contact with something or someone. Scratching is a way to leave both visual as well as scent messages.

Likewise urine and faeces, left by spraying and mIddening, are scents that be both seen and smelled.  Amber Batson likens these to “Post it notes,” left around the neighbourhood for other cats to read. The messages can probably tell other cats about the leaver’s gender, whether he/she is ready for mating, age, health and stress levels. They are ideal for cat society because cats deal with social difficulties by keeping a proper distance, rather than confrontation.

However, urine and faeces messaging inside the house is a great problem for cat owners. Sometimes pee and poo in the house is just a cat unhappy with its litter tray. For instance many litter trays are place in the utility room next to the washing machine. During the spin cycle, things may fall noisily off the machine onto the litter tray so that the cat no longer feels safe using it. At other times cats are leaving messages about their situation that we humans don’t understand or misinterpret. That’s where the help of a cat behaviour expert like Amber Batson can be so useful to detect what is really going on.

 

THE LANGUAGE OF A CAT’S BODY.

We humans are probably always going to find it difficult to read feline scent messages (we have such poor noses). However, most cat lovers probably think they can tell if their cats are happy or not, but just how good are we at reading feline body language? Amber Batson’s talk was particular helpful in both describing and showing examples of cat body language.

She divided body language into three main areas – signs of apprehesion or fear, signs of confidence, and signs of predatory preparation – what one might call the hunting mode.  The four main body areas that are most involved are the cat’s ears, face or head, the tail, and the paws.

 

THE RELAXED AND CONFIDENT CAT.

EARS – pointing forward, erect not lowered

EYES are nicely open, slow blinking, with a medium to small pupil.

PAWS are visible, not tucked away or hidden.

TAIL, also visible and at full length.

 

THE FRIGHTENED CAT

EARS – these are lowered and pointing backward, almost flattened in a very frightened cat.

EYES are slightly closed in an almond shape, with medium or dilated pupils. If they are almost closed, the cat is terrified.

PAWS are hidden or held close to the body.

TAIL – wrapped round the body or hidden. Sometimes the base of the tail points upward and the rest of it is curves downwards over the backside

 

THE FRIGHTENED CAT THAT MAY BECOME AGGRESSIVE.

A cat that is frightened has four alternative reactions – flight, freeze, fight, or fiddle about. If a cat cannot run away, it may freeze and then have to fight so that fear leads to aggression. “Look for the freeze moments when a cat goes very still,” advised Amber Batson. “Mini-freezes communicate that an attack is on its way.” Just occasionally a completely frightened cat will go completely floppy in a big freeze.

The fiddle about reaction to something worrying usually consists of normal behaviour in an abnormal context. Thus a cat may suddenly yawn, or start grooming itself, stretching or scratching itself.

Think your cat might swipe you? Look out for mini-freezes, silent hisses leading to spitting, a body which shrinks backward with the weight on the backside, paw ready to strike….

 

THE HUNTING POSTURE

HEAD AND EARS. Lowered head, sometimes the whole body is lowered, with the ears toward.

PAWS - placed carefully and specifically, sometimes one is lifted a bit like a pointer dog.

TAIL - usually below horizontal except during a pounce for balance.

 

CONFLICT BEHAVIOUR

This occurs when a cat feels a mixture of emotions – such as fear mixed with hunting feelings. “This particular mixture leads to high arousal,” explained Amber Batson, “so any bite is a big one!” This may mean the cat shifts from one kind of body language to another in a matter of seconds – from ears back and tail tucked away to the lowered body of the predating posture.

 

Reading these descriptions does not give the full flavour of Amber Batson’s talk, which was illustrated throughout with cat photos and (better still) cat videos. Seeing as well as hearing is the best way to learn. Of course, if Amber and her audience had been cats, she would just have left a scent Post It note!