12 Scientific Explanations For The Weird Things Cats Do

The whole idea that "cat's go meow" is a very human-biased view. The fact is that adult cats don't actually meow at one another, they can make over 100 different sounds (dogs can only make 10), but they will only meow when communicating with humans.

Cats will hiss, growl and purr, no matter what your species is, and kittens mew at their mothers to let them know when they need something, but they grow out of it in the wild.

The more you talk to your cat, the more likely they are to vocalise back at you. When they do it will depend on which behaviours you reinforce with attention and rewards. Vocal cats will often meow to greet you when you come home, or to find you when they don't know where you are, and many cats have developed an insistent cry-purr mixture to wake their humans up.

There have also been studies to suggest that cats meow at humans because it mimics the sound of a baby crying and chirruping. Humans are hard-wired to respond to this kind of sound and cats have found that they can use this to their advantage.

It's not that cats have studied human babies and purposefully developed this for thir own nefarious needs, but our natural nurturing response to the sound reinforces the behaviour in the cat and means that they never lose the association between meowing and having their needs met.