Are Cat Vocalizations True Speech?

[SoDesuKa]

I sort of understand Otis when he's "talking." Most of the time the things he says are appropriate to the situation, and some of the time he makes a trill-like comment that is also appropriate to the situation. I'm impressed at the things he's capable of saying in a short utterance.

But some other times he just seems to be making sound for its own sake. Since true speech involves an effort to communicate, Otis does that only part of the time. The rest of the time he's just, well, vocalizing.

Have scientists studied cat speech? At times I think Otis is very intelligent, but at other times I think he's just a cat.

[asthmaticeog]

1. It depends. Is Otis ordering you to kill?

[Richardo]

8. .

:spray:

[TZ]

2. I read somewhere that cats meow to communicate with their owners

mostly. My guys certainly meow and chirp in ways that I know what the purpose is. And my guys chatter excitedly when they see a bird outside the window...
Cats seem to communicate amoung themselves with body language and posture and scents I think.

[InternalDialogue]

3. In response to your question, my cat says, "Brrrrp!"

Can't argue with that.

Honestly, I recently read that animal behaviorists have detected upwards of 35 or 40 distinct cat vocalizations. Dogs had something like 15. My cat speaks only when she's got something to say. None of it seems like random noise to me.

But then again, I know people who seem to talk just to hear themselves, so I suppose there may be cats like that out there too.

[LoveMyCali]

34. That would be my Cali

He just never shuts up! :banghead:

[RebelOne]

4. Check out these video clips. Sounds like these cats are really talking.

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=talking+cats&search=Search

[Rue]

5. My older cat can certainly converse.

He seems to meow whenever we want a response in conversation. Of course, he meows constantly, but he has a gift for knowing when we ask him something, such as if he wants to eat.

[TrogL]

6. They even have dialects

I know seven words in Siamese:

"I'm Hungry"
"Fuck off"
"I'm going to jump up on a high thing now"
"Hello"
"Where the fuck have you been" (basically a nastier version of the previous)
"I got wet"
"BANZIIIIIIIIII"

and five in Tabby:

"I wanna go outside and you won't let me you're such a meannie so I'm gonna go sulk"
"I'm hungry" (it's pronounced differently, less whiny than Siamese)
"WTF do you want?"
"My favourite water dish is empty" (not "I'm thirsty" 'cause there's three other full water dishes)
"I'm going to jump up in your lap make room or else"

[KamaAina]

31. Is that Gray Tabby or Orange Tabby?

two distinct sub-dialects.

I'm guessing Gray, since most orange tabbies I've known haven't been very verbal, unless you count the purrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrs.

[lizerdbits]

7. He seems to make different sounds for different reasons

There's the looooooong extended meow to let me know he's 10 minutes from dying of starvation. There's the sort of up-ending-meow that almost sounds like it's ending in a question when he's looking up a wall as if he can climb it. There's the machine gun meow when he sees small mammals or birds outside and the super loud for when I'm on the phone. And you can't forget that special yowl right before the 'urka urka' and vomit.

[SoDesuKa]

10. Urka Urka

Yes, I know about urka urka. Wish the hell I didn't.

[LostinVA]

13. Does yours "chirp" when he sees a bird, etc. outside?

My oldest kitty does. She even does it when she sees deer.

[TZ]

14. mine make a sound when they see birds..

I wouldn't call it a chirp though. Its more like a creaky kind of chatter. Didn't even think it was a cat the first time I heard it!:D

[LostinVA]

15. It may be the same sound -- I call it a chirp, but it sounds the same

[lizerdbits]

18. Not sure I'd call it a chirp

It's sort of like a meow but broken up, like machine gun fire. It's a longer sound overall and his lower jaw shakes. I've never had a cat make that kind of noise before.

[TrogL]

30. I've heard it called "chattering"

I had a cat do that. Just not a Siamese or Tabby.

[lizerdbits]

32. That sounds about right

Max looks to be a Norwegian Forest Cat of some sort (not really sure, he's an ASPCA pick up). Is that more/less common in a tabby or siamese? Curious since you mentioned them.

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

19. DEER? Ambitious fellow, innit?

[LostinVA]

20. She's not quite seven pounds -- what the heck could she do to a deer?

But, she sits there and chirps and twitches her tail.

[TZ]

21. check out this video of what a cat can do.....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RIgQdpZDeY

[LostinVA]

22. That's so cute!

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

24. One of the funniest cat activities I've ever seen --

My parents used to live near a wooded area where there were a lot of deer. One afternoon I was sitting on their back porch, and a deer ran out of the woods, white tail up, chased by two little cats. I suppose the cats (imagining themselves as members of a pride of lions about to take down a wildebeest) were thinking something like, "If we can pull this off, we'll eat like kings!"

The deer got away. I just sat there and laughed my ass off.

[Brigid]

9. If my cats don't really "speak" . . .

they do a darn good imitation of it. So has every other cat I have even been owned by over the years. It's amazing how many different vocalizations they can make, and yes, they use different ones in different situations.

[montanto]

11. I usually know what

my cats are talking about, but they both mainly want to talk about different things. One talks about the state of food and water supply,. and the other complains that there aren't enough baths (he likes to be stroked with water) in the day. They both say "myak-ak-ak-ak-ak-ak" (birdies). In response to being left outside/having the door closed behind him or my being away too long one says "meAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH" with a really evil look in his eye. This one also tells me when its exactly 4 a.m., and 5 a.m. and 6 a.m., and requests permission to come aboard the bed at all times. They both tell me when its 7 p.m. (treat time). My favorite though has to be the "meyawn," which always cracks me up.

[cwydro]

12. Mine all have very different

sounds depending on what they want. The strong silent one only speaks for food and to say good morning however. The other two never shut up.

[LNM]

16. I'd say it's speech

Most of the time when my cats meow it's for an obvious reason. Except for the one cat dragging her toy around in the middle of the night and doing the full mouth rawwwl.
BTW, I think Otis is a way cool name for a cat.

[jpgray]

17. Nope. They're not smart enough for true speech. Basic aural communication? Yeah.

[KamaAina]

23. Meow!

Meow meow murrrrp querbl MEEEOW!

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

35. I'm alerting on that. Personal attack AND straw man. -nt

[jus_the_facts]

25. My boy says "MeooowMa" when he wants me....

:loveya:

[GoddessOfGuinness]

26. Are human vocalizations true speech?

Sometimes, but not always.

;-)

[legally blonde]

27. my kitties talk to me all the time

I always know what they're saying. Morty mostly complains about the status of his food bowl (specifically, "I want more"), although he also comments about the birds and squirrels outside with a series of chirps and trills. Manilla is much more vocal about, well, everything. He has a long, pathetic whine when he wants to go outside (he is an inside cat who desperately wants to be an outside cat). When he's happy to see me, he chirps and trills. When I've been gone too long, he gives me the "Where the fuck have YOU been?" look accompanied by a disgruntled meow. Cats are little characters, for sure.

[bridgit]

28. yes, Tim has a range of vocalizations out-right, trills in response to his name being called...

others for fish & liver time, intruder alert, etc...it's pretty cool :)

[Hersheygirl]

29. Wow. everybody thought me and my husband

Had gone completely bananas when we told people that our one cat can talk. I feel so much better now that I know I'm not going crazy.:woohoo:

[Richard Steele]

33. My cat claims they are, but I've caught her lying before. So I can't be certain.

:shrug:

[libodem]

36. I swear my mom's cat talks

He circles her chair in the family room about 9pm and says, "right now", "right now", and herds her off to bed. I think my dad may have reincarnated into furry orange kitty boy. No shit.

[Karenca]

37. Absolutey! Dogs too. eom