Learning to read a cat's body languages can bring many benefits:
- ???????? Gaze ? A cat's pupils vary in size and shape for many reasons, ranging from emotions to light levels. Dilated pupils may indicate that your cat's eyes are adjusting to low light levels, or it may mean that he is fearful or agitated.
- ???????? Ears ? Like miniature radar dishes, they rotate independently of each other, turning 180? and moving up and down. Ear placement is an excellent mood assessor. An alert and content kitten's ears are up and forward, or turning around to listen for sounds. Remember that the flatter the ears, the angrier the cat will be. Other times they do it out of hunger .
- ???????? Vibrissae ? These are specialized hairs that, among other functions, serve as your personal onboard GPS system. Of the three sets of whiskers on the face, the muzzle whiskers are the longest. Muscle tissue allows them to move back and forth, and those movements are another tool for reading your cat's emotions. Forward-pointing whiskers indicate that a happy cat may want to play. Outward-facing whiskers mean the cat is gathering environmental information and may be agitated.
- ???????? Fur ? When she approaches with her back raised and her fur flat, she wants your attention. If she has straight legs, an arched back, raised hairs, and evenly puffed skin on her tail and back, she's overly stressed and trying to appear bigger and more menacing.
- ???????? Tail : It is a traffic light of communication and signals many emotions. It can be straight, out, down, or curled around your body. It can also be shown standing still, moving gently, or moving from side to side. A tail held up with a gently wagging tip generally indicates arousal. A rapidly slapping tail indicates agitation, so it should be alone.
On the other hand, there are signs of love:
Cats show affection in many ways. We're all familiar with purring, but here are some of our favorite non-verbal signs of love.
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- ???????? Blinking Eyes ? In cat parlance, slow blinking means that she trusts you.
- ???????? Headbutt ? When the kitten rubs its head, chin, or body at you, it doesn't just mark you with pheromones, a display of affection.
- ???????? Lick ? In adult cats, it is that they consider you as part of their clan, they may lick us for similar reasons.
- ???????? Nose Kisses ? A gentle greeting between feline friends that is often extended to humans. Some cats add a love bite to the tip of their nose as a sign of extra affection.
