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is a high-pitched meow often produced by kittens. It is apparently used to solicit attention from the kitten's mother, and adult cats may use it as well. The mew is similar to what is described in Brown et al. 1978 as an isolation call. By around three to four weeks of age kittens do not mew when at
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Meowing fundamentally evolves as a learned behavior. Formerly feral cats meow much less often than felines accustomed to human interaction their entire lives. Particularly attached cats will meow in an imitative and reflective fashion in response to
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A cat's meow can be assertive, plaintive, friendly, bold, welcoming, attention-soliciting, demanding, or complaining. It can even be silent, where the cat opens its
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116:, and what is heard can vary from being chattered to calls, murmurs, and whispers. Adult cats rarely meow to each other. Thus, an adult cat meowing to
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132:, yet with people they often make verbal cues around behavior, such as having a specific sound indicate a desire to go outside.
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but does not vocalize. Just as humans may verbalize exhaustively when they are happy, so can cats. According to
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that involves a back-and-forth process between the two beings, which can involve mutual emotional connection.
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Brown, K. A.; Buchwald, J. S.; Johnson, J. R.; Mikolich, D. J. (1978). "Vocalization in the cat and kitten".
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least one littermate is present, and at four to five months of age kittens stop mewing altogether.
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1st
International Workshop on Vocal Interactivity in-and-between Humans, Animals and Robots
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128:: a call for attention. Felines usually communicate with each other via their shared
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Bradshaw, John W. S. (January 2016). "Sociality in cats: A comparative review".
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604:"Do Cats Smile? Here's How to Tell Your Cat Is Happy, at Least on the Inside"
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Schötz, Susanne; van de Weijer, Joost; Eklund, Robert (25 August 2017).
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Journal of
Veterinary Behavior: Clinical Applications and Research
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375:"Why do cats meow? What your feline friend is trying to tell you"
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was first used in 1842. Before that, the word could be spelled
980:
683:
473:. Association of Animal Behavior Professionals. Archived from
194:. Of any variant, the earliest attestation of a cat's cry in
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311:"Here's what your cat really means when they say 'Meow'"
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373:Mulroy, Clare; Munson, Olivia (23 July 2022).
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8:
28:"Miaow" redirects here. For other uses, see
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675:
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112:may have diverse tones in terms of their
399:
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533:"Essay: The Meaning of Your Cat's Meow"
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1036:Associazione Nazionale Felina Italiana
340:Whitcomb, Isobel (15 September 2022).
335:
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287:from the original on 6 September 2012
7:
637:from the original on 18 October 2017
531:Losos, Jonathan B. (27 April 2023).
304:
302:
158:, a chatty cat is likely happy too.
1061:Governing Council of the Cat Fancy
14:
1521:Congenital sensorineural deafness
1076:The International Cat Association
1031:American Cat Fanciers Association
354:from the original on 10 June 2023
144:Background and biological details
1708:
1707:
1056:Fédération Internationale Féline
208:
79:Problems playing this file? See
55:
229:Cross-linguistic onomatopoeias
1:
602:Maurer, Shari (1 June 2018).
1690:List of longest-living cats
1571:Lower urinary tract disease
1551:Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
1071:Southern Africa Cat Council
631:Online Etymology Dictionary
498:Developmental Psychobiology
309:Waugh, Rob (24 June 2023).
1760:
1046:Cat Aficionado Association
581:10.1016/j.jveb.2015.09.004
120:is generally considered a
27:
20:
1703:
1526:Feline corneal sequestrum
1051:Cat Fanciers' Association
1041:Canadian Cat Association
124:extension of meowing by
1685:List of individual cats
538:The Wall Street Journal
277:Virtual Pet Behaviorist
1561:Infectious peritonitis
1556:Immunodeficiency virus
93:
44:
30:Miaow (disambiguation)
1626:Viral rhinotracheitis
1601:Tritrichomonas foetus
1066:New Zealand Cat Fancy
934:Cats in ancient Egypt
510:10.1002/dev.420110605
273:"Meowing and Yowling"
253:Miao (disambiguation)
248:List of animal sounds
91:
43:
23:Meow (disambiguation)
1188:Colorpoint Shorthair
1086:World Cat Federation
820:Cat–dog relationship
614:on 11 November 2020.
196:Early Modern English
21:For other uses, see
16:Vocalization by cats
1388:Traditional Persian
1173:California Spangled
1143:Brazilian Shorthair
939:Cultural depictions
924:Cat-scratch disease
469:Miller, P. (2000).
342:"Why do cats meow?"
198:is from the 1630s.
164:human communication
155:The Purrington Post
1308:Oriental Shorthair
1218:European Shorthair
1133:American Shorthair
1081:World Cat Congress
477:on 5 November 2013
471:"Whisker whispers"
122:post-domestication
94:
45:
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1546:Hepatic lipidosis
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1148:British Shorthair
757:Tortoiseshell cat
625:Harper, Douglas.
427:978-2-9562029-0-5
224:Cat communication
69:
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1711:
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1695:Cats in folklore
1293:Norwegian Forest
1263:Kurilian Bobtail
1243:Japanese Bobtail
1223:Exotic Shorthair
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976:National Cat Day
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731:Coat genetics
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1744:Onomatopoeia
1739:Cat behavior
1496:Diseases and
1338:Russian Blue
1213:Egyptian Mau
1105:experimental
956:Dog-like cat
899:Ailurophobia
864:Intelligence
846:
720:Odd-eyed cat
639:. Retrieved
630:
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612:the original
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479:. Retrieved
475:the original
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347:Live Science
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118:human beings
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1659:New Zealand
1586:Polydactyly
1516:Calicivirus
1408:Turkish Van
1348:Selkirk Rex
1303:Ojos Azules
1193:Cornish Rex
1001:Library cat
986:Working cat
914:Cat massage
909:Cat killers
891:interaction
802:Vaccination
737:Bicolor cat
641:27 December
575:: 113–124.
552:17 December
454:17 December
386:17 December
322:17 December
216:Cats portal
1728:Categories
1581:Giardiasis
1434:Highlander
1333:Ragamuffin
1273:Maine Coon
1253:Khao Manee
1233:German Rex
1123:Abyssinian
1023:Registries
1006:Ship's cat
991:Bodega cat
747:Calico cat
692:Felinology
608:Romper.com
481:5 November
259:References
243:Felinology
81:media help
1644:Australia
1606:Roundworm
1541:Heartworm
1498:disorders
1458:Landraces
1444:Serengeti
1393:Tonkinese
1363:Singapura
1323:Pixie-bob
1318:Peterbald
1238:Himalayan
1203:Devon Rex
1178:Chartreux
1099:full list
961:Feral cat
944:fictional
904:Cat cafés
889:Human–cat
780:Declawing
752:Tabby cat
742:Black cat
710:Dwarf cat
589:1558-7878
547:0099-9660
380:USA Today
170:Etymology
1713:Category
1596:Ringworm
1536:Coccidia
1439:Savannah
1368:Snowshoe
1358:Siberian
1283:Munchkin
1248:Javanese
1168:Burmilla
1138:Balinese
1116:domestic
1013:Zoonosis
996:Farm cat
949:Internet
929:Cat show
919:Cat meat
859:Kneading
835:valerian
825:Catfight
812:Behavior
725:Squitten
705:Genetics
635:Archived
352:Archived
285:Archived
202:See also
1678:Related
1429:Chausie
1353:Siamese
1328:Ragdoll
1313:Persian
1208:Donskoy
1163:Burmese
981:Pet cat
700:Anatomy
358:10 June
126:kittens
1649:Canada
1591:Rabies
1511:Asthma
1481:Sokoke
1476:Kellas
1471:Cyprus
1466:Aegean
1424:Bengal
1417:Hybrid
1398:Toyger
1378:Sphynx
1373:Somali
1298:Ocicat
1228:Foldex
1198:Cymric
1158:Bombay
1153:Birman
1095:Breeds
971:Lolcat
879:Senses
830:Catnip
795:senior
767:Health
715:Kitten
627:"Meow"
587:
545:
518:720761
516:
450:. 2023
424:
291:28 May
1654:Japan
1268:Lykoi
1258:Korat
1114:Fully
775:Aging
442:"mew"
418:(PDF)
411:(PDF)
281:ASPCA
190:, or
184:miaow
150:mouth
114:sound
110:Meows
104:is a
102:miaow
51:Meow!
1616:Tick
1531:Flea
1506:Acne
1383:Thai
1278:Manx
852:Purr
847:Meow
785:Diet
643:2015
585:ISSN
554:2023
543:ISSN
514:PMID
483:2013
456:2023
422:ISBN
388:2023
360:2023
324:2023
293:2012
192:meaw
188:miau
180:meow
98:meow
1486:Van
577:doi
506:doi
174:In
137:mew
100:or
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