Understanding Your Cat's Behaviour: What They Are Trying to Tell You

Cats communicate constantly. Most of what looks like mystery is simply a language we were never taught to read. The tail Upright and relaxed means confidence. A tail held high with a slight hook at the tip is a greeting. Puffed means fear. Tucked low means anxiety. A slowly swishing tail does not mean the same thing it does in a dog — in a cat it usually means focus tipping into irritation, and it is a warning. Vocalisation Adult cats barely meow at each other. Meowing is a language cats developed specifically for humans, which is why it varies so much between individuals: your cat has worked out which sounds get results from you. Short chirps are greetings. Long drawn-out meows are demands. A low rumbling complaint is dissatisfaction. Sudden, repeated, insistent meowing in a cat that was previously quiet is worth taking seriously, especially at night in an older cat. Kneading Pushing paws rhythmically into a soft surface is a behaviour carried over from nursing. It means the cat feels safe. Take the compliment, and keep a blanket handy for your legs. Slow blinking If your cat looks at you and slowly closes and opens their eyes, that is trust. You can return it. It is the nearest thing cats have to a greeting between equals. Bringing you dead things Not an insult, and not a threat. Cats share food with members of their social group, and you are in it. Hiding Some alone time is normal and healthy. A change in hiding habits is not. Cats in pain isolate themselves, and by the time a cat is visibly hiding from pain, it has usually been going on a while. Scratching Scratching is not misbehaviour. It maintains claw health and leaves both a visual and a scent mark. The solution is never to stop it but to redirect it: a post tall enough for a full stretch, sturdy enough not to wobble, placed where the cat actually wants to scratch rather than where it suits the furniture. Knowing your cat's baseline is what makes a change obvious. If something in your cat's behaviour has shifted and you cannot account for it, that is worth a consultation — behaviour changes are very often the first symptom of a medical problem.

calendar_month Book Now