Ask any pet owner and they’ll swear that cats have feelings, that they show affection and can even recognize and respond to their owner’s emotions. And it turns out they’re right when it comes to our feline companions.
Research supports the hypothesis that cats experience six basic emotions: surprise, fear, disgust, sadness, happiness and anger. These are all emotions you would expect to see in a 2.5 year old. There is currently no scientific evidence that cats can express more complex secondary emotions such as pity, shame, jealousy, or disappointment. Read on to learn a bit more about cat feelings and emotions.
Cat’s Basic Emotions and Body Language
Think about how cats express their emotions. Visual communication is very important for animals and helps them avoid conflicts. Visual communication can tell you what they are feeling, if their territory is occupied, if they are ready to mate, etc.
Observing and learning your pet’s body language can help you understand what they’re feeling. For example, a cat with its tail held high or in a question mark shape wants interaction. On the other hand, a cat wagging its tail back and forth is indicating that it is annoyed and distressed at the person or animal that is causing it to puff up its tail. That’s an angry cat, and it may attack if provoked.
These postures are examples of the six basic emotions that pet owners will likely see frequently. Interestingly, research has revealed evidence of heritability for some behavioral traits that express emotions. One study even identified Angora and Turkish Van cats as the most aggressive of the breeds studied.1 Similarly, scientists have found differences in sociability between dog breeds, with British shorthairs being the least likely to seek human contact and Ragdolls being significantly friendlier.
Selective breeding no doubt plays a role, as fanciers invariably choose which traits to encourage. The study also found that aggression and shyness in cats are highly heritable.
Cats also express their emotions through their facial expressions. An ambitious team of researchers studied these characteristics in 50 cats over the course of a year. Scientists identified 276 different facial expressions that cats use to communicate with each other and express their emotions. These consisted of a combination of 26 unique facial movements.2 By comparison, dogs only have around 27 different facial movements that are considered highly expressive, but humans are generally better equipped to interpret them.
Inherited behaviors and learned responses
Unlike dogs, cats have a strong wild side: in the 12,000-plus years that humans have coexisted with them, only 13 genes have been altered by domestication. Amazingly, our feline friends share 95.6% of their DNA with tigers.3 We can conclude that many of your cat’s behaviors and the emotions that accompany them are learned responses – after all, cats are intelligent animals and even know when they are being spoken to.
Vocalization
Another inherited and learned form of communication exists through vocalization. Science records Our cats have 21 different meows, which is proof in itself that cats have emotions. Cats communicate a lot with the sounds they make, and research has found that domestication has a huge impact on cat vocalizations in unexpected ways.
For example, cats will remember and respond to a stranger calling their name. According to the study: Our felines look to humans for clues on how to react when an unfamiliar object appears. The animals adjust their emotions accordingly. These findings suggest an ability to recognize emotions and adapt to new situations. Let’s consider how that might affect vocalization.
Rolling around
Purring is one of the typical vocalizations of felines. Interestingly, only small cats purr, most big cats roar. The exceptions are cheetahs and cougars. One species cannot do both due to different anatomy. For cats, purring serves several purposes: Kittens are born helpless or altricial, like human babies. They are totally dependent on their mother. Purring is a form of communication between mother and kitten.
Humans are similarly hardwired to respond to cries; it’s essential for human survival. Kittens are born capable of purring and have this role. Even people who don’t own cats respond to purring in the same way; it’s similar to the baby sounds we hear. Kittens purr to get their mother’s attention, so your pet may purr to get something from you – food or affection. This purpose is specific to domestication.
Cause and effect is that the cat wants something and understands what he has to do to get it. This comes from experience and conditioning reinforced by positive reinforcement: the pet purrs, the owner obeys.
Meowing
The meowing sound is a typical cat vocalization. Children learn how cats make this sound early in their education. It seems to us that this sound and cats go hand in hand. But the truth is a different story. Cats meow, but it is usually a communication between kittens and their mothers. In wild cats, it is not heard much after this stage. Just like purring, this is also a product of domestication.
Pets need to be in touch with their emotions to express themselves, a strategy that speaks volumes about their intelligence. And yet it works: we respond to meows in the same way we respond to purrs. Each time we respond, the effect increases. Connect this concept with the idea that cats can read and respond to our emotions.
Emotion Recognition
The emotional development took a long time. The study revealed Cats, like dogs and children, form strong bonds with their owners. This finding is intriguing, given the stereotype of cats being aloof and unfriendly. The evidence speaks for itself when it comes to name and emotional recognition. Separation anxiety is an extreme example of the bond between cats and their owners.
Compelling evidence Evidence that pets have emotions comes from studies of cat blinking and squinting. Scientists know that felines use their eyes to communicate with their fellow species. Emotions exist at both extremes. One study found that these behaviors are associated with positive emotions between humans and cats. Researchers equated it with a feline smile.
When you blink, your cat responds in kind. It’s a moment shared between owner and pet that symbolizes your affection for each other on a personal level. It doesn’t get any better than that.
lastly
The evidence is clear: cats have feelings. Our feline companions become emotionally bonded to us through a relationship that reinforces and nurtures these feelings. You might look at your cat differently once you know what’s between their eyes. But cat emotions will only continue to bring us closer together over time.
Featured image credit: Mariia Romanyk, Shutterstock
