House cats know what they want and how to get it from you
source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-07/cp-hck070909.php
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- bons
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File Under: Once Again Science Proves What Any Cat Owner Already Knows.
Go Science!
Clip:
The rather crafty felines motivate people to fill their food dishes by sending something of a mixed signal: an urgent cry or meowing sound embedded within an otherwise pleasant purr. The result is a call that humans generally find annoyingly difficult to ignore.
"The embedding of a cry within a call that we normally associate with contentment is quite a subtle means of eliciting a response," said Karen McComb of the University of Sussex. "Solicitation purring is probably more acceptable to humans than overt meowing, which is likely to get cats ejected from the bedroom." She suggests that this form of cat communication sends a subliminal sort of message, tapping into an inherent sensitivity that humans and other mammals have to cues relevant in the context of nurturing their offspring.
Go Science!
Clip:
The rather crafty felines motivate people to fill their food dishes by sending something of a mixed signal: an urgent cry or meowing sound embedded within an otherwise pleasant purr. The result is a call that humans generally find annoyingly difficult to ignore.
"The embedding of a cry within a call that we normally associate with contentment is quite a subtle means of eliciting a response," said Karen McComb of the University of Sussex. "Solicitation purring is probably more acceptable to humans than overt meowing, which is likely to get cats ejected from the bedroom." She suggests that this form of cat communication sends a subliminal sort of message, tapping into an inherent sensitivity that humans and other mammals have to cues relevant in the context of nurturing their offspring.
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Psythor
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At least we can get our revenge by simply using a lazer pointer or a torch to wind the cat up...
- 2 years ago
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Psythor
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larock
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HA! I'm a total sucker for mine.
- 2 years ago
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larock
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AnnieMole
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Before I owned a cat I would have just laughed at this idea. But now I know too well what "solicitation purring" is as opposed to "overt meowing".
I like the part of the article that says cats in larger households just stick the normal meow as their purrs get overlooked by "poorly trained" people.
- 2 years ago
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AnnieMole
