Strange sounds from animals

[Turgon]

In the last few years my cat has made some of the strangest sounds I have ever heard. Last night she did it again, which prompted me to start this thread.

She only makes these sounds late at night when everyone is sleeping but it sounds so odd, not a sound a cat normally makes. The best way to describe it, is as if she is trying to talk, kind of like a baby tries to sound out words. It almost sounds as if she is trying to say 'Hello' but it sounds closer to an 'Eh-Whoa' but in a high-pitched, whiny sound. My family hears it too, but they have no idea why she does that late at night. They think it's just because cats are nocturnal, so they are more active at night.

Has anyone else experienced these types of things with their pets? Could it be some type of 2D/3D bleedthrough? Or do cats normally make sounds that sound almost 'human-like'?

 

[Buddy]

Hi Daniel.

Have you seen this interesting SOTT article on 'unusual' cat sounds here?

Researchers at the University of Sussex have discovered that cats use a "soliciting purr" to overpower their owners and garner attention and food.

Unlike regular purring, this sound incorporates a "cry", with a similar frequency to a human baby's.

The team said cats have "tapped into" a human bias - producing a sound that humans find very difficult to ignore.

 

[Turgon]

Hi Daniel.

Have you seen this interesting SOTT article on 'unusual' cat sounds here?

Researchers at the University of Sussex have discovered that cats use a "soliciting purr" to overpower their owners and garner attention and food.

Unlike regular purring, this sound incorporates a "cry", with a similar frequency to a human baby's.

The team said cats have "tapped into" a human bias - producing a sound that humans find very difficult to ignore.

Thanks for the link Buddy. That article pretty much nails it on the kinds of noise my cat makes.

She added that the trait seemed to most often develop in cats that have a one-on-one relationship with their owners.

Tiger gets a lot of love and attention from my sister and me. No wonder she's developed this annoying habit.

 

[Mrs. Peel]

In the last few years my cat has made some of the strangest sounds I have ever heard. Last night she did it again, which prompted me to start this thread.

She only makes these sounds late at night when everyone is sleeping but it sounds so odd, not a sound a cat normally makes. The best way to describe it, is as if she is trying to talk, kind of like a baby tries to sound out words. It almost sounds as if she is trying to say 'Hello' but it sounds closer to an 'Eh-Whoa' but in a high-pitched, whiny sound. My family hears it too, but they have no idea why she does that late at night. They think it's just because cats are nocturnal, so they are more active at night.

Has anyone else experienced these types of things with their pets? Could it be some type of 2D/3D bleedthrough? Or do cats normally make sounds that sound almost 'human-like'?

Yess!!!! One of my Persians (not my avatar) has started saying "hello" also! Scared the bejeebers out of my husband and I the first time he did it. He goes off in a corner, or someplace else and does it, like he is greeting "someone.". And yes, he only does it at night. Both cats sleep in the bedroom with me, and it really freaks me out if he starts doing it after I'm in bed. I just tell him to tell his "friends" to go away!!!

 

[3DStudent]

Yeah, we have two cats and you can hear this sound at night. It's really abnormal and they only do it at night. I think it's our affectionate and normally noisy male cat that does it.

 

[Cumulus]

Hi,

This is a long story but it goes somewhere possibly relevant.

Some years ago, I took in a cat that my parents had owned for a long time. When she lived with them she was very irritable, intractable, but only with people; they had several other cats, and she got along fine with them.

She was a great-granddaughter of a cat I'd owned as a child, who had one litter of kittens (oops) - we found good homes for all of them. So none of us wanted to give up on her, but my parents were growing old and really couldn't deal with her. They couldn't pick her up, take her to the vet, couldn't even pet her without being shredded. She was just impossible, and getting worse.

First night she stayed with me I heard a very strange cry at about 2 a.m. Since I had several cats, I got up and went looking, and I found her proudly sitting in front of a catnip mouse toy. Very proud. Sitting tall and all fluffy and excited. Eyes glowing. So I praised her and took the risk of petting her, and she was very receptive to being petted. (unusual to say the least).

After that, I heard the same "announcement" from her each night, always after I went to bed. I got up and praised her and petted her the next few nights, then after that I'd just call out praise to her without getting out of bed, always using her name so she would know I was responding to her call.

Before long she was sufficiently at ease to engage in her hunting play during daylight hours and where I could see her, and always she would go through the play of stalking, hunting, then at the end she would announce her "kill", and I always praised her. Not long after that, she began to bring the mouse to me and set it at my feet before making her "announcement".

You will not be surprised that she also became calmer, much more approachable, and finally reached the point where I could lift her and kiss her on the top of her head. Amazing?

But the explanation, I think, is simple. Her great-grandmother was a formidable mouser, and at that time the neighborhood was rural so it was safe for cats to go out. Development brought too much traffic for that, so little fuzzy buzzsaw could never go out, and my parents simply didn't think to give their cats toys.

She was just about frustrated to death, I think, and as soon as she had a way to relieve the pressure of this frustrated instinct, she began to "heal". My other cats never had a problem with her, and she became a very affectionate, true pet. She would greet me each evening when I came home and purr so loudly it could be heard throughout my apartment.

Her hunting announcements sounded very much like the call you describe. "rrr-RROWW? rrr-RROWW?" very bell-toned and clearly meant to carry some distance.

What truly amazes me is how strongly she wanted not only to "hunt" but to be praised and appreciated for her successful "hunting". No wonder she was frustrated with my parents. They wouldn't allow her to provide for them, and didn't give her a play outlet for this, although they had no way of knowing that is what she needed; it wasn't their fault.

Maybe your cats are similarly announcing that they have protected you from spiders or centipedes in the night, or are "bringing home the groceries" in the shape of catnip toys, too.

:)