Why Cats Don’t Show Us They’re Listening
Welcome to We’re All Ears, the podcast about the science of sound, hearing, and animal behavior. I’m Janet Marlow, founder of Pet Acoustics and a Certified Sound Behaviorist.
Today I want to talk about something I’ve observed for years:
Cats can be much harder to read than dogs when we introduce sound into their environment.
And that matters, because sometimes we assume that if we don’t see a response, nothing is happening.
With a dog, relaxation can be wonderfully obvious.
A dog may stop pacing. Lie down. Rest its head. Sigh. Fall asleep.
Within 20 minutes, a pet parent may be able to say, “Something has changed.”
Cats are different.
A cat may respond to its auditory environment with a slower blink. A subtle change in ear position. Less vigilance. More grooming. A different sleeping location. Choosing to remain in a room longer. Or perhaps a reduction in nighttime vocalization that becomes apparent only after several days.
These are meaningful behavioral changes, but they’re easy to miss if you don’t know what you’re looking for.
When a cat walks away, what does it mean?
Here’s another behavior that can be misunderstood.
You turn on a new sound source, and your cat leaves the room.
The immediate reaction may be: “My cat doesn't like it.”
Not necessarily.
Today I want to talk about something I’ve observed for years:
Cats can be much harder to read than dogs when we introduce sound into their environment.
And that matters, because sometimes we assume that if we don’t see a response, nothing is happening.
With a dog, relaxation can be wonderfully obvious.
A dog may stop pacing. Lie down. Rest its head. Sigh. Fall asleep.
Within 20 minutes, a pet parent may be able to say, “Something has changed.”
Cats are different.
A cat may respond to its auditory environment with a slower blink. A subtle change in ear position. Less vigilance. More grooming. A different sleeping location. Choosing to remain in a room longer. Or perhaps a reduction in nighttime vocalization that becomes apparent only after several days.
These are meaningful behavioral changes, but they’re easy to miss if you don’t know what you’re looking for.
When a cat walks away, what does it mean?
Here’s another behavior that can be misunderstood.
You turn on a new sound source, and your cat leaves the room.
The immediate reaction may be: “My cat doesn't like it.”
Not necessarily.
