Cats purrfect the art of getting what they want: study
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AFP
Cats coax their owners into giving them what they want with a special purr that blends their normal soft, low sound with a high-pitched element that is hard to ignore, British researchers said on Tuesday.
The high-frequency part is similar to a cry or a meow, and cats incorporate this into their normal, contended purr to exploit the nurturing instincts of humans for their own needs -- usually to get fed, according to scientists.
Lead author Dr Karen McComb of Sussex University in southern England said she initiated the study after being repeatedly woken up in the mornings by her own cat, Pepo.
"I wondered why this purring sounded so annoying and was so difficult to ignore. Talking with other cat owners, I found that some of them -- including co-author Anna Taylor -- also had cats who showed similar behaviour," she said.
McComb and her team tested human responses to different purring types, including "solicitation" purrs -- which included the high-frequency element and were made by hungry cats -- against "non-solicitation" or normal purrs.
"When humans were played purrs recorded while cats were actively seeking food at equal volume to purrs recorded in non-solicitation contexts, even those with no experience of cats judged the ?solicitation? purrs to be more urgent and less pleasant," she said.
When the team re-synthesised the purrs to remove the embedded cry, the urgency ratings decreased significantly.
McComb concluded that the cats were using the special purr to make their views known without risking irritating humans with an overt meow.
However, this solution appears only to work in cats living one-on-one with their owners -- cats in large households usually have to meow to be heard.
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My cat has this very low and loud ngeeoowwww (not purring) ,when she wants me to play with her. she will 'pose' provocatively with all her hair standing up looking very fierce at me, waiting for me to chase her. Hee its very cute!
On the other hand, when she wants food, she just sits there and attempts to hypnotise the husband by looking at him fixedly.
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Originally posted by Chew Bakar:
AFP
Cats coax their owners into giving them what they want with a special purr that blends their normal soft, low sound with a high-pitched element that is hard to ignore, British researchers said on Tuesday.
The high-frequency part is similar to a cry or a meow, and cats incorporate this into their normal, contended purr to exploit the nurturing instincts of humans for their own needs -- usually to get fed, according to scientists.
Lead author Dr Karen McComb of Sussex University in southern England said she initiated the study after being repeatedly woken up in the mornings by her own cat, Pepo.
"I wondered why this purring sounded so annoying and was so difficult to ignore. Talking with other cat owners, I found that some of them -- including co-author Anna Taylor -- also had cats who showed similar behaviour," she said.
McComb and her team tested human responses to different purring types, including "solicitation" purrs -- which included the high-frequency element and were made by hungry cats -- against "non-solicitation" or normal purrs.
"When humans were played purrs recorded while cats were actively seeking food at equal volume to purrs recorded in non-solicitation contexts, even those with no experience of cats judged the ?solicitation? purrs to be more urgent and less pleasant," she said.
When the team re-synthesised the purrs to remove the embedded cry, the urgency ratings decreased significantly.
McComb concluded that the cats were using the special purr to make their views known without risking irritating humans with an overt meow.
However, this solution appears only to work in cats living one-on-one with their owners -- cats in large households usually have to meow to be heard.
so cats annoy people till they give them what they want? cats are evil!
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Originally posted by hisoka:
so cats annoy people till they give them what they want? cats are evil!
I don't think they're evil, they are just hungry.
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Maybe we can kill the cat to eat it when we are hungry
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my cat purrrrrrrrrr quite loud lei... :lol:
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Originally posted by cliffton:
Maybe we can kill the cat to eat it when we are hungry
Your'e evil.
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Originally posted by Chew Bakar:
Your'e evil.
yah.. he's an evil clone...
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Originally posted by aHGer^83:
yah.. he's an evil clone...
My cats seldom purrs or meow but scratch my chair I'm sitting if they want something or attention.
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lol.. at least he scratches ur chair if he wants ur attention.... i tink i have a funny cat... few times i was on my NDS, my cat dun let my play.. den he tried sitting on my NDS....if i shoo him away without carrying him, he will nibble my shlouder or toe n purr loudly... if i still nv carry him n ask him wad he want, that's it man...... another scar adds on to my leg... :lol:
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Originally posted by hisoka:
so cats annoy people till they give them what they want? cats are evil!
hisoka, cats r evily cute ok... :lol:
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Originally posted by aHGer^83:
lol.. at least he scratches ur chair if he wants ur attention.... i tink i have a funny cat... few times i was on my NDS, my cat dun let my play.. den he tried sitting on my NDS....if i shoo him away without carrying him, he will nibble my shlouder or toe n purr loudly... if i still nv carry him n ask him wad he want, that's it man...... another scar adds on to my leg... :lol:
Sorry what is NDS.
Anyway I have enough stripes from their claws if I fail to entertain them.
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Originally posted by Chew Bakar:
Sorry what is NDS.
Anyway I have enough stripes from their claws if I fail to entertain them.
Nintendo DS Lite... forgot ther L... hehe~
if im on my laptop, he will also just sit on my lappie n stare at me.... haha~ -
cats even threat people with harm if they don't get their way
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Originally posted by cliffton:
Maybe we can kill the cat to eat it when we are hungry
no no... cats may give you asthma...dogs on the other hand....
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Originally posted by the Bear:
no no... cats may give you asthma...dogs on the other hand....
wah lau... bear, u ownself also got fur, u stereotype cats....
*takes out shaver n shaves bear's fur...
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i'm losing enough fur on the top of my head already...
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Originally posted by aHGer^83:
lol.. at least he scratches ur chair if he wants ur attention.... i tink i have a funny cat... few times i was on my NDS, my cat dun let my play.. den he tried sitting on my NDS....if i shoo him away without carrying him, he will nibble my shlouder or toe n purr loudly... if i still nv carry him n ask him wad he want, that's it man...... another scar adds on to my leg... :lol:
hahah its just ur cat DEMANDING for attention.... my cat also .. when I /ignore her sometimes, she will just come and sit on my laptop! While I am still typing on it!!
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Originally posted by ShrodingersCat:
hahah its just ur cat DEMANDING for attention.... my cat also .. when I /ignore her sometimes, she will just come and sit on my laptop! While I am still typing on it!!
yah lor.. my family thinks i gave him too much attention when he was a kitten.... but wad to do.. i adopted he n his ex-siblings when they were only 3-4 days old... but 2 passed away when they were just 2 weeks old.. cos they did not drink much of their mother's milk so................ but im glad i managed to save the eldest one..... n v notti... haha~ i spoil him too much liaoz...