Cat Body Language

Do you instinctively know when your cat is feeling angry, fearful, upset, contented or at ease? Well, it may not be instinct as such, but a subconscious reading of your cat's body language.

When you arrive home and your cat greets you with her tail upright and quivering, you know that she is telling you that she is pleased to see you. You don't look at the tail and say to yourself " The tail in that position means a friendly welcome."

You just understand what your cat is telling you.

If on the other hand you came home to find your cat with her tail upright and bristling, perhaps also with the hair on her back standing on end, you would know something was wrong. You may not immediately get that she is being defensively aggressive, but you would not take it as her usual friendly greeting.

Body language is but one means of communication for domestic cats. They also communicate with each other by way of scent, and particularly as kittens, with the use of vocal sounds. As adult cats they do not communicate vocally with each other so much, they can rely upon non-vocal signals.

Getting a message home to a human is a different kettle of fish however. Humans are not so well attuned to understanding cat body language so cats also use a variety of miaows to speak to their humans.

A cat usually uses the whole of her body to convey a message. The tail is a strong indicator of the mood of a cat but observing the position of the tail on its own can often be misleading because the ears, face, coat, legs and even the eyes play their part in communicating the message.

Much cat body language is used when cats are at play, with humans or with other cats. Cat body signals are very much in evidence when two males meet, perhaps vying over a female or a territorial dispute; the body signals are used to avert physical conflict.

Both cats know that a fight could result in serious injury even for the victor.

When upright the tail is highly visible, and is used to communicate friendliness, contentment etc. As noted above, if the tail is also quivering it signals that the cat is very pleased to see whoever it is greeting.

As also noted, an upright tail with the hairs bristling with anger is a highly visible signal that the feline is enraged.

Reading cat body language. Ears upright and pointing forward signal that this cat is alert but relaxed. The staring eyes might be taken as an aggressive signal but in this instance it is probably curious about the camera. The cat is calm, non-defensive and happy to accept petting.

A tail held half way up shows that the cat is friendly but not completely confident about the cat or human it is approaching.

Likewise a tail held aloft with the end crooked is communicating that the cat is not threatening you but is unsure about your intent.

A feline with its tail sticking straight out for a few inches and the rest hanging down is using body language to show that it is in defensive mode but ready to protect itself, a defensive aggression. The tail between the rear legs, perhaps curled inwards, shows submission. You are likely to see this if you scold your cat. Your cat is likely to slink away, glancing back at you, literally with its tail between its legs.

The tail swishing from side to side indicates that the cat is at the least irritated and with a violently swishing tail signifies anger, be wary. If the end of the tail is just twitching however, the cat body language denotes that your cat is interested in something, perhaps a bird outside the window.

You may have seen your cat with her tail upright and kitty gives a little flick with just the end of the tail. This signal means that your cat has seen you and is acknowledging you, but also telling you that she has more important things to do than bother with you at the moment.

Good hearing is part of a cat's defense system. Ever observed your slumbering cat's ear prick up at a faint sound? Your cat is in that semi-sleep state that cats spend an awful lot of time in. Its ears detect a sound, perhaps one ear cups and turns toward the noise. Instantly computing that it is not the sound of an approaching predator, your mouser remains peacefully snoozing.

Cats can turn each ear independently of the other and move them up and down. These radar scanner like ears are not only perfect for detecting prey and predators, they are also an important part of the cat body language system.

Ears that are upright and pointing forward signal that the cat is alert but relaxed. Sideways pointing ears show that the cat is attentive to what is going on around it but may be unsure about it. Not so relaxed. The ears upright and pointing back and the cat is perturbed by something and may become aggressive.

If the cat's ears are pointing back and are flat against the side of her head she is fearful and submissive but prone to become aggressive. An enraged cat will show aggression by flattening the ears sideways (and will be giving other cat body language warning signals.) Don't go near that cat!

In the world of cats, sustained eye contact (staring) is assertive and threatening. Two cats with a territorial dispute may stare at each other until one signals by its body language that it will, on this occasion, be submissive.

Alternatively two cats meeting may have no conflict with each other; one may break up the stare by blinking, this reassures the other that there is no dispute.

The tail hanging down is showing the cat to be defensive mode. The arched back and ruffled fur may be an indication that it is observing something that it is unsure of. Cat body language shows that the cat’s ready to protect itself, a defensive aggression.

You may misinterpret your cat if you try to glean a message from her eyes alone. But read in conjunction with the rest of your cat's body language, her eyes can tell you something of her thoughts. Dilated (enlarged) pupils could be signaling fear, pain, aggression or just excitement.

Narrow, slit like pupils could mean that your cat is angry but self-assured. On the other hand if the eyelids are also half-closed or fluttering it could mean that your cat is sleepy. If your cat looks at you eyelids fluttering and drooping, it's an indication of her trust in you.

An aggressive cat will hold its head low and with its eyes firmly fixed upon its mark (the assertive stare.) The cat will move in on the mark with its head shifting from side to side. A defensive feline will often hold its head to the side and give sidelong glances rather than looking directly at the aggressor. The defensive cat will back off if it can. Often the cat will hiss and spit, but it does not want to fight, although will if cornered, it would sooner run from the aggressive cat.

When two friendly cats meet they will often engage in head rubbing and sometimes gentle head bumping. It's a cheery hello, or the cat equivalent of a handshake. If your cat uses her head to greet you in this manner she is employing cat body language to tell you that she is pleased to see you.

Cats sometimes, but not often, give a hiss or a snarl with an open mouth clearly communicating defensive aggression.

If you see your cat appearing to grimace with teeth bared, perhaps staring into the distance, she is not using threatening language but analyzing pheromone scent signals in the air.

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