Cats found to have regional accents in their meows, study says

god dammit lb b/w this & that rickroll bs you polled you are my LEAST FAVORITE POSTER lately

lets talk about meows though ilx, i heard 2nd hand cats only do it because they found its a way of attracting attention from humans, is that true?

I've got three cats: One's from Arkansas, one's from St. Paul, and the other is from Australia. They all sound different so there. Not sike.

god dammit lb b/w this & that rickroll bs you polled you are my LEAST FAVORITE POSTER lately

you gotta admit though, that last one was a good one

don't ruin it for anyone else

cats do definitely have distinctive voices.

i bought lock stock & barrel into BOTH of them, which is precisely what makes me hate you so much

yeah cats do have distinctive meows BUT if cat meows around a non-human does it make a sound, is the question

aw i'm gonna pretend this is true.

ours sounds like charlie sheen

It might actually be Charlie Sheen. Have you checked?

yeah cats do have distinctive meows BUT if cat meows around a non-human does it make a sound, is the question

The Answer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JynBEX_kg8

(no rickrolling, pwomise)

oh damn

dude there is no way i am clicking that

I've read the same thing, incidentally, that cats who live with people talk more, and cats who live with other cats or are wild actually meow/"talk" very little.

what is a 2nd hand cat??

my cat doesn't meow she "mow-wows"

The cat I'm currently looking after actually SQUEAKS. There is no question of it being a meow or a mrrrow or anything else. It's a squeak, like a dog toy.

i have a 2nd hand cat.

My (now deceased) cat Skittles learned to talk. We got him to say "chock full o' nuts" once. He also learned "ma-ma" and would mew it in this scratchy, adorable voice. I miss him.

i know a squeak-cat

does anyone know any chirp-cats? they make question-mark-like bird/reptillian sounds

yes! my cat Sindy does this. i love the chirp.

our cat chirps

i love the stuttery noise they make when watching birds

One of ours basically chirps/barks. The others are all meowers.

my cat lucy chirps. the only time she actually meows is when we put her in the carrier to take her to the vet.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3275/2556154401_8c2d9a4750.jpg?v=0

bell labs cats must suck at being killing machines

Not only does Lou Lou squeak, she quacks, like a duck. It is the cutest thing ever, that quack from a little gray dust-mop of a cat.

i think she is trying to imitate the birds? it's like a throaty stutter

cats and ducks are the greatest animals, but i'm not sure that the combination would be greater

our other cat does that talking to birds stutter thing ... it's pretty great

it's like a throaty stutter

yup. it's like a trilling chirp. it's really cute.

heh i never realized they did that around actual birds

it would seem to me like a cat alerting a bird to their presence in any way when theyre within like 5 feet of them is pretty stupid, but maybe thats the basis of it?

i don't think our cat knows what a bird even is. she's kinda dim. she chirps mostly in the morning when i'm about to feed her. sometimes i delay feeding her so i can hear her trilling.

i think my cat would rule at catching birds, she's a really good jumper. poor little indoor cat can only watch them from the window.

i caught our cat doing that to the birds tormenting her recently and it was funny, but borderline frightening. i felt like i was witnessing something i wasn't supposed to see or hear. like the time she got worked up over another cat being around and went over to the nearest wall and marked it. i wish i hadn't seen that.

lolllllllll at this thread

A kitten's vocabulary is a combination of both verbal and nonverbal language. Understanding what Kitty's trying to say will help you avoid misunderstandings and improve your relationship with your cat. Researchers have identified more than 16 different feline voice patterns, which are commonly divided into the following four categories:

* Purrs and Trills: These are the happy sounds your kitten makes when he's feeling friendly and relaxed. Purrs range from quiet, almost silent vibrations, to reverberating rumbles that nearly rattle the windowpanes. Trills express joy when Kitty's bowl is filled or when you bring out a favorite toy.
* Meows: Vowel patterns, like meows, are feline demands for something. Meows vary from short, muted mews to raucous, multisyllabic cat calls. Kittens meow to Momcat, but otherwise meows are aimed primarily at humans. Higher pitches generally have a more pleasant connotation, while the lower tones tend to indicate more agitation.
* Chirps: Articulated sounds like chirping and chattering usually indicate frustration. If you hear your kitten chittering, chances are he's seen something he can't reach — like a squirrel out the window.
* Spits and Screams: Strained intensity sounds are used in mating, offense, and defense. A frightened kitten may hiss and spit; an angry kitten may growl; and a defensive kitten howls, yowls, and finally, screams.

i want my job to be a scientist that studies feline voice patterns

has anyone else heard the 'yowls'? literally sounds like a pre-verbal toddler trying to alert his parents he's about to be raped

so disturbing that you would know what that sounds like

GARGH

i almost pre-zinged that one

haha. in fourth grade i woke up in the middle of the night, called my mom in and asked "why are all the babies crying outside?"

yeah its srsly fucked up shit until you realize what it is

then it becomes kind of funny

My husband and I have started doing the I-see-a-bird-throaty-stutter thing around our cats to alert them to any prey we might see first. They come running from all over the house when they hear us.

Our boy cat growls like a dog if someone comes to the door.

Girl cat does the chirping when we feed her :)

"I am the small kitten"

My (appleheaded) siamese cat sounds like a duck when she meows.

I was totally going to show this to my cat-obsessed linguistics major gf before I clicked.