Cats have long been known to get what they want from their owner, and British researchers believe they have discovered how. Animal vocalization experts have recently identified a manipulative purr that cats use to get what they want from their owners. Cats purr to each other, but the scientists found that they tend to exaggerate their solicitation purring when communicating with humans.
In a study done by Karen McComb, the acoustic structure of recorded cat purrs was examined. Her team determined that not all purrs are the same. One was found to contain an embedded, high-pitched cry. McComb explained that what cats are doing for this solicitation purr "is producing the low fundamental frequency and its harmonics by muscular activation (what has been associated with typical purring) but also voicing a cry, probably with the inner edges of the vocal folds, which is then superimposed on the sound's frequency spectrum."
The researchers recorded 10 cats purring, some of which contained the cry while others didn't. Fifty human participants then listened to the sounds. Whether they owned a cat or not, nearly all listeners identified the solicitation purrs as being more urgent than others.
Previous studies have found similarities between a domestic cat's cry and the cry of a human baby - a sound that humans are highly sensitive to. Sensitivity to this type of purring may even be innate in humans, drawing from a primal drive to respond to crying babies.
“In the case of cats and humans, cats are learning to do this [on their own] during their lifetimes rather than being selected to do it. I would guess that humans are generally not too bothered about being manipulated.”
Posted by Brittany Monteiro (2)
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ReplyDeleteThis is really interesting. I've heard my own cat make this really loud purr before and I've been able to tell there is a distinction between louder and normal purrs. What an interesting topic.
ReplyDeleteDid the researchers find any differences between male vs female cats? Is there any more research being done further on if this is something that domesticated vs wild cats do, for example would a lion or lioness make this type of purr? Do you have any further information on how cats purr to or why they purr in general?
"Posted by Nicole Breivogel"
This was a really cool article. Having 3 cats, i know they can really have a range of vocalizations. I think its neat how they compared the human baby cry to the domestic cat cry.
ReplyDeleteIts also cool that they looked at a domestic animal, i feel like i've seen more articles about wild animal sounds lately. It was really interesting to be able to read an article and relate it to an animal that I know so well and experience everyday.
-gina fortunato
I never realized that my cat's different purrs could possibly mean different things. I thought the louder purrs were just my cat being more enthusiastic and happy than her quieter purrs. I will need to pay more attention to what she sounds like from now on.
ReplyDeleteAre these manipulative purrs a recent development in domestic cats? Do cats use the manipulative purr with other cats? Is this seen in the wild?
-Tricia Carlson
This was interesting to read. I didn't realize that cats had so many different kinds of purrs. Is this solicitation purr completely learned? Do the cats learn it through trial and error (Keep repeating whatever sound their owners respond best to)?
ReplyDeletePosted by Sarah Benjamin
What a great article to post about! Being a huge cat person myself, I loved reading about it! It's really interesting how this new manipulative purr was discovered. Did they research it's value in parent-offspring interactions? Like do kittens do this type of purr when they are begging for milk from their mother? And similarly, is this behavior innate or did they have to learn how to do this in a cause-and-effect sort of manner?
ReplyDeletePosted by Christine Rega
An avid cat lover myself, I felt inclined to respond to this post even though so many others already had. I was particularly interested in the quote at the end, which says that cats learn the purr during their lifetimes rather than being selected for it. How were they able to determine that from the study? Is the purr absent in kittens that have had little exposure to humans? It would seem to me that it would be highly adaptive for a domestic animal to manipulate a human. I know my cats are especially good at it. For anyone interested in the evolutionary relationship between humans and domestic animals, Temple Grandin's new book "Animals Make Us Human" is a pretty interesting read.
ReplyDeletePosted by Deysha Rivera
That is such a cool find! Do you think that this cry for attention is innate or learned from trial and error with their owner? Do they beg with their mothers too? I would think it would be easy to test if it were innate or learned if they don't know already. Do you think they would stop this cry if it weren't attended to?
ReplyDelete-Alyson Paige
Why am I not surprised that cats have mastered the art of manipulation of their owners!? This is a great article as well as a funny one for those of us who own or have owned cats. I sure I can speak for most when I say that they seem to actually own you in most cases. I am not surprised in the least that they have learned individually to enhance the sounds they make to get what they want, especially since food is usually the major motivational factor. Did this article make any mention of cats lacking domestic environments not having this behavior? Also, was there any mention of learning between cats of these purrs, such as a new kitten in the home learning from a cat that was already present?
ReplyDeleteGreat Post!!
Posted by Jackie Connolly
Thank you for helping people get the information they need. Great stuff as usual. Keep up the great work!!! how cats communicate with humans
ReplyDelete