VOCAL COMMUNICATION IN CATS
Keywords:
Felis catus, vocalization, feline behavior, animal welfare, communication.Abstract
Cats are enigmatic creatures, but they are by no means silent. They possess their own system of communication, and learning to understand it can help establish trust, strengthen the human–cat bond, and even facilitate meaningful interaction with a companion animal. Cats use vocal signals to express their emotional states. Meowing, purring, hissing, growling, and many other sounds constitute the feline vocal repertoire, with each vocalization conveying a specific meaning depending on the context. This article presents a literature review on feline vocal communication, the characteristics of the domestic cat’s vocal repertoire, the functional significance of different vocalization types, and current approaches to the interpretation of acoustic signals in the context of behavior, emotional states, and animal welfare. Vocalization is an important component of communicative behavior in domestic cats. Environmental conditions have a substantial influence on vocal behavior; therefore, wild and domestic cats differ in their patterns of vocal communication. The feline vocal repertoire is extensive, and the literature describes numerous vocalization types used to attract attention, communicate needs (e.g., hunger or pain), and express emotional states. Vocalizations can be analyzed using a range of discrete acoustic parameters, including pitch, frequency modulation, amplitude, and structural characteristics. Despite the widespread distribution of domestic cats, their vocal behavior has been studied considerably less than that of several other domestic animal species. Contemporary studies demonstrate that the characteristics of meows and other vocalizations may reflect stress levels, physiological needs, health status, and the quality of the relationship between the cat and its owner. At the same time, the available scientific literature demonstrates that feline vocalizations are context-dependent communicative signals whose interpretation requires the integrated assessment of acoustic characteristics, behavioral expressions, and situational context. The study of feline vocalizations is of both theoretical importance for understanding the mechanisms of animal communication and practical significance for veterinary medicine, ethology, and the improvement of companion animal welfare. The review was based on a search of original scientific studies indexed in the international bibliographic databases Scopus and Web of Science, as well as publicly accessible electronic information resources, to identify and analyze evidence regarding feline communication, behavioral signals, emotional states, and methods for their assessment.
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