Feline vocal communication

Abstract

Cat vocalizes to communicate with another and express their internal states. The vocal repertoire of the cat is wide and up to 21 different vocalizations have been described in the literatures. But it is more than probable that the repertoire contains more types of vocalizations. An ethogram was created in this paper describing the actual known vocalisations of the domestic cat based on an auditory classification. However, the audiogram allows also a visual classification which can increase the accuracy of vocalization differentiation. The classification can be risky as it is sometimes unclear if different types of vocalizations are produced in different environments or if a unique type of vocalization is used with variation in the acoustic parameters. As an example, isolation calls produced by kittens differ depending on the context. The environment has an important impact on the vocal behaviour and thus feral cats and pet cats vocalize differently. Pet cats are thus able to create an efficient communication with humans thanks to the flexibility of vocalisation behaviours. This review allowed us to create a simple model of the cat vocal repertory.

What’s in a Meow? A Study on Human Classification and Interpretation of Domestic Cat Vocalizations

“…Meowing is a common and mainly human-directed vocalization [ 34 , 35 , 42 ]; thus, in principle, it should represent a useful mean for cats to communicate their emotional states to humans. Furthermore, previous studies showed that meows emitted in these three different contexts can be successfully discriminated on the basis of a series of acoustic parameters [ 83 ].…”

“…Although research on domestic cat behavior and cognition is growing [ 37 ], cat cognitive and communicative skills have been far less investigated than those of dogs, and the literature on the cat–human relationship and communication is more sparse and limited [ 10 , 38 ]. Only a handful of studies have investigated cat vocalizations and the characteristics of cat–human communication [ 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 ] and little is known about the human ability to recognize and classify the context and the possible emotional content of cat-to-human vocalizations [ 44 , 45 , 46 ]. However, understanding the extent of the effectiveness of the reciprocal communication between cats and humans is not only theoretically interesting but also relevant for cat welfare, since cats, like dogs, live in close contact with their human social partners and depend on them for health, care, and affection.…”

“…Domestic cats have a wide and complex vocal repertoire; it includes several different vocalizations that are emitted in different contexts and carry information about internal states and emotions, allowing pet cats to communicate with humans [ 2 , 42 ]. Among cat vocalizations, meows appear to be highly modulated by the context of emission, with meows produced in positive contexts differing in their pitch, duration, and melody from meows produced in negative contexts [ 41 , 42 , 47 ].…”

“…Domestic cats have a wide and complex vocal repertoire; it includes several different vocalizations that are emitted in different contexts and carry information about internal states and emotions, allowing pet cats to communicate with humans [ 2 , 42 ]. Among cat vocalizations, meows appear to be highly modulated by the context of emission, with meows produced in positive contexts differing in their pitch, duration, and melody from meows produced in negative contexts [ 41 , 42 , 47 ]. Meow vocalizations are particularly interesting for a number of reasons: they appear to be rare in cat-to-cat interaction and in cat colonies [ 40 ], but they are typical of cat–human interactions [ 34 , 35 , 42 ]; undomesticated felids rarely meow to humans in adulthood [ 48 ]; meows emitted by feral cats and by cats raised in the human household show differences in their acoustic parameters [ 40 ], suggesting they are shaped by the close relationship with humans; it has been suggested that the meow could be a product of domestication and socialization with humans, with a less relevant role in intraspecific communication [ 49 , 50 ].…”

“…they appear to be rare in cat-to-cat interaction and in cat colonies [ 40 ], but they are typical of cat–human interactions [ 34 , 35 , 42 ];…”