One day, Kathy, a client of the
veterinary clinic where I worked as a registered veterinary technician, called
to confirm our lunch date for the next day. During the call she says, “By the
way, a long-haired tri-color cat has been meowing at my door for days. I think
her family moved and left her behind.” I immediately asked, “Do you mean a
long-haired calico?” I’d been saying for at least a year that my next cat would
be a long-haired calico. Could this be her?
When I arrived, the cat was crying at
Kathy’s door. “Isn’t Meow Meow beautiful?” Kathy said. That’s what Kathy called
the cat because she was very talkative. Poor kitty, she really wanted to get
inside. After lunch, I got a better look at her and because the veterinarian I
worked for was an angel and often helped homeless cats, I thought it would be
okay to bring Meow Meow to the clinic.
Although it was my day off, I drove Meow
Meow to the clinic. She didn’t make a peep in the car. After one of the
veterinarians examined her and drew blood to test her for feline leukemia, I
vaccinated her and gave her a flea bath. She was a great little patient. I was
starting to fall in love. “Okay, Meow Meow,” I told her as I prepared to leave
for the day, “If your feline leukemia test is negative, I’m going to take you
home and introduce you to my cat, Buddy.”
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| "Daisy" Photo Courtesy of The HSUS |
That was the beginning of my wonderful
relationship with Meow Meow. Although I renamed her Daisy, she stayed true to
her original name, and the house became very quiet when she died at 19 years of
age.
You
may not know that the meow is rarely used between cats. They rely more on body
language and scents than vocalization to communicate with each other, although
vocalizations may be used as well. Even we humans understand that a growl, hiss
or scream means a cat is stressed. He or she could be saying, “I’m upset
because I see a cat outside the window,” “I’m afraid because I don’t like
having my nails clipped” or “I’m in pain when you touch me there.”
However,
recognizing the meaning of cat body language on its own is not something that
most people have mastered. Many are bitten or scratched for failing to take
heed of the twitching skin, swishing tail, and grabbing paw that may indicate
that a cat is getting upset. That’s because people communicate primarily
through verbal language. Leave it to our clever cats to crack the code to
effectively communicate with us.
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| Joelyne King's Cat, The HSUS |
Our
cats have mastered the art of meow. I’m sure you’ve learned to recognize what
your cat’s different meows mean – wake up, feed me, open the bedroom door and
so on – depending on the volume, duration and intensity.
If
your cat adopts a new vocalizing behavior, it may mean he or she is in some
sort of pain. On the other hand, if your talkative cat stops vocalizing, it may
also mean something hurts. It’s best to contact your veterinarian because cats
often hide signs of illness until they’re seriously ill, and any change in
behavior may be an early sign of a medical problem.
If
your cat is new to your home or has just gone through a change – such as a
person or other animal moving in or out – and she has just started talking, be
patient. Yelling at your cat may scare him or her. If your cat thinks of your
yelling as positive attention, he or she may continue to be noisy. If you
ignore the chatter, it will probably stop on its own. If it doesn’t, contact
your veterinarian.
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| Joelyne King's Cat, The HSUS |
After
the death or departure of a person or animal in your cat’s life, he or she may
vocalize to express grief. This can be a normal part of the grieving process.
The best thing you can do is keep your cat’s normal schedule the same (or as
close to it as possible) and spend some extra time cuddling and playing during quiet
moments. With time, the vocalizing should subside. If your cat does not return
to his or her normal self, consult your veterinarian to make sure there is no
underlying medical problem.
As cats age, their hearing may diminish.
Daisy gradually became deaf in her older years and I didn’t understand that her
frequent yowling meant that she could no longer hear. It’s not unusual for cats
to vocalize if they suffer from arthritis and other painful ailments or
senility. It’s easy to chalk up the talk to aging, but something more serious
could be going on. Again, contacting your veterinarian is the best course of
action.
Oriental
breeds, such as Siamese cats, are known to be very talkative. If your cat has a
pointed face and a long, lean body, chances are he or she has some Oriental
heritage and “talking” is just a character trait. If your cat’s chatter bothers
you, avoid giving attention when he or she talks, because that will only
encourage the vocal behavior. Instead, give attention during quiet moments.
Cats
may talk because they want your attention. If you talk back, feeding, petting
or even picking him or her up and temporarily putting them in another room – assuming your cat likes
to be picked up – encourages the chatter. I know it can be hard to ignore a
talkative cat, but you need to ignore the behavior in order to discourage it.
Only pay attention to your cat when he or she is quiet: pour on the love, have
playtime, or once in a while, reward with a treat. This will teach your cat
which behaviors you would like to continue.
How often do you talk to your cat? To learn more
about chatty cats, read “The
Cat’s Meow: Understanding Your Feline Friend.”
