The cry hidden inside the purr
Cats may be tapping into our parenting instincts – that 5 a.m. breakfast purr is built to be hard to ignore.
Takeaway
When asking for food, cats embed a high, cry-like sound in their purr that makes people feel it’s more urgent.
What the study did
- University of Sussex researchers recorded purrs from 10 cats, both when soliciting food and in other contexts.
- Listeners – even people who had never owned a cat – rated food-soliciting purrs as more urgent and less pleasant at equal volume.
- These purrs contained a high-pitched voiced component reminiscent of a cry or meow.
- When that component was removed, the purrs were judged clearly less urgent.
Limitations
Few cats, it measures human perception only, and doesn’t show cats use the sound deliberately.
Citation
McComb K, Taylor AM, Wilson C, Charlton BD (2009). The cry embedded within the purr. Current Biology. DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2009.05.033
For general information only; it does not replace advice from your vet.
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