For anyone not so familiar with cat behavior, this cat is out of its mind excited to do this. It’s much more rare for cars to wag their tails but it means the same as it does when a dog does it. This cat is curious and proud and playing. It keeps looking at its owner too, like “LOOK AT ME, DAD” and it’s so rare to get videos of cats this happy. This is fucking rad
Nope.. wagging tails means anger or irritation in cat body language.
hey y’all, hope you don’t mind me stepping in!
you’re both right 🙂 a wagging tail means the cat is highly stimulated (think coiled spring, ready to go off). depending on the situation, this can be interpreted differently – just like people can smile nervously at job interviews vs. happily grin at friends.
in most cases, it’s safe to interpret overstimulation as ‘you’re doing something to amp up the cat & it wants you to stop’ (ex. unwanted petting). it should be seen as a warning; all that pent-up energy COULD be released as a swat or bite.
BUT in this case, that tail-wagging ‘frustration’ is the stimulation that comes from problem-solving (where can I jump? is it safe to go here?) and the excitement of play. it’s good to be wary of ‘cute’ animals vids, but this seems like an unproblematic video!
I’d like to add to this–just look at world-famous box-loving cat, Maru, who wags his tail every time he stuffs his body into a box or other small object. He’s clearly not about to attack the person behind the camera! It’s definitely based on stimulation, but more to the point of “ahhh FINALLY I’ve gotten into the small space, now how do I get the rest of me inside”:
Also, like. There is nothing forcing this cat to be climbing that wall? It’s clearly doing it because it wants to.
also into you by ariana grande is playing and i just wanted to bring everyone’s attention to that
I really like this question because you’re not just asking me to tell you why he’s purring – you’re using what you already know to learn more and then increase your own ability to figure out your cat.
Context will be a large part: did something happen, is he hurt, etc. Often a dilated pupil even in bright light can indicate pain if he’s purring. You can also check for responsive behavior – happy cats engage with people and touch, stressed or hurting cats may sit stiffly when touched or ignore their name and treats.
Do you ever wonder if the reason that different cultures have such wildly different onomatopoeias for the noise a cat makes is that cats have regional accents?
Actually, they do.
There’s a lot of evidence that animals have regional accents. Both birds and sperm whales in fact to vocalise differently depending on where they grew up.
As for felines themselves, there’s an ongoing study underway on at Lund University precisely about this.
As a phonologist who has watched entirely too many cat videos on the internet, I can confirm that cats of differing countries do have differentiated accents in their cries. Felines in England tend to have shorter, lower “mow” whereas Japanese cats do tend to make glides into high vowels, and are sustained longer, such as the ubiqutous use of “nyaaaan” in Japanese onomatopoeia.
Post-T, my voice dropped approximately a fuck-ton (metric) and I can no longer do that. Lil’y has responded by making her own meows as gravely as possible, so I can meow at her again.
So if there are any other guys or non-binaries out there who are worried that their pets won’t recognize them after they start hormone-therapy or something similar, don’t worry. Your pets will love you. They already know who you are.
Plume de Lynx 