We would expect them to gather human information in some way, because both cats have grown to be domestic and spend a lot of time with people. Everyone with a cat knows, though, that they’re not always as open as you might want.
One way we also try to communicate with the animals that live with us is to point out things. It may show our limitations rather than our animal friends, as this means of communication is especially human. In 2005, however, a study by Miklósi et al. found that cats would actually imitate human movements in order to get food. The investigators also explored how cats turned to support humans when they were unable to solve a problem. They didn’t do that.
They didn’t do that. Another research looked at how cats turn to people when they are not sure of a specific situation. This ‘social comparison’ is what we do as children as well as adults, for example, a clown might first look scary, but we’ll soon understand that this is not a situation to be feared if someone else has a good time (there are exceptions, of course). To see if cats do that too, scientists have subjected streamer cats to a potentially frightening fan. The cat was brought in, and the fan was moved into a room with his master. The owner was told either to behave neutrally, to scare the fan, or to calm the fan. Researchers found that most of the cats (79%) looked between the fan and their human owner. The kittens also responded to their owner’s emotional reactions, as they were more likely to get out and communicate with the owner when their owner looked scared. It’s hard to understand, but the writers say that the cats may have sought the protection of their owner.
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Other research has shown that cats are less likely to approach people who feel depressed and approach people who have identified themselves as extroverted or irritated. Cats are less likely to have human moods. But it’s not clear why that should be the case.
Two researchers, Saito and Shinozuka, demonstrated in 2013 that cats could understand the voice of their owners. To check this, the researchers reported cats either from their owner calling them or from others naming them. Most of the cats responded to their call from the owner. This reaction was mostly seen by a cat moving his ears or head instead of going into a speech like a dog.
Kittens have approximately 9 different forms of vocalisation while adults have approximately 16 different types of vocalisation. Ironically, domestic and feral cats often vary in their vocalisations and suggest that the way they talk to people is affected by their interactions with animals. Perhaps one of the most famous voices of cats is their rubbing. When they’re stroked by humans, cats don’t just use it, but often use it in relationships with each other and their kittens. In addition, cats change their garbage to change the meaning of vocalisation. For example, cats ‘gossip shifts, becoming more’ urgent ‘and’ less fun ‘in their food request from owners (McComb et al. 2009). High-frequency miaow is also typically included in the bottom-pitch purr when you’re asking for milk. However, it is currently unclear whether this food request is unique to the human relationship of cats or whether it is used in other ways.
In 2007, Edwards et al. conducted an unusual ‘Ainsworth Strange Situation Check’ to test whether their owners had more cats than a random human being attached to them. During the study, the cat was placed mainly in a room and found himself alone with his human owner and an unknown human being. Scientists have found that cats have spent more time praising their relatives than the intruder. They followed and played with their owner as well, never the stranger. The cats were usually more exploratory than the stranger and often played around while their owner was in the house. Usually, the cat spent more time warning and sitting by the door alone and with the stranger. They talked more when they were alone (in contrast to humans). It also seems that cats have a greater connexion to their owners than to a supposedly happy person.
Cats also tend to experience anxieties about separation, which also means that their owners feel attached. Cats are less prone to urination and defecation in poor environments, unnecessary vocalisation, aggressive activities and unnecessary grooming when separated from their owners. While research on cat’s intellect has led to the understanding of some of the skills of our household, broad areas of cat’s behaviour remain unlearned and we do not understand other aspects of cat’s behaviour. There are a number of causes. Increasing awareness and impact on the actions of cats should increase the relationship between human beings, the welfare of cats and, ultimately, the number of cats given to shelters and euthanized.
