Cat meows and sounds

How to read it

Kittens meow to tell their mother they are cold or hungry. The ASPCA says adult cats stop meowing at each other but go on meowing at people all their lives, probably because it gets people to do what they want. Cats Protection makes the same point from the other side: African wildcats are seldom vocal, and domestic cats learned their miaows and chirrups because owners answer them with affection or food. International Cat Care says researchers have noted some 19 vocal patterns in cats, and that individual cats add sounds of their own that they use only with their owners. How much a cat talks varies: Cats Protection says some cats don’t learn to vocalise with people at all, while oriental breeds are very vocal, and International Cat Care names the Siamese as known for being talkative.

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Cat sounds and what they usually mean

Chirps, trills and chattering

A 2019 study at the Federal University of Paraná, published in Animals, offered 40 cats a favourite snack: 14 of them made a sound other than a meow, mostly trills and squeaks, with some purring and chatter. During car journeys, the cats made no sound but meows. The authors link these sounds to situations the cat finds pleasant. On chattering, International Cat Care gives three possible reasons, none confirmed: frustration at seeing prey it can’t reach, anticipation of catching it, or mimicking the prey’s call to draw it within reach. The ASPCA says a cat chatters when it has spotted prey it would like to hunt.

Hissing and yowling

Most people know a hiss as a warning, and Cats Protection agrees: the cat is unhappy or threatened and may attack if it has to. In a frightened cat, the ASPCA says, hissing, spitting and growling come with crouching, flattened ears and dilated pupils, especially when the cat can’t escape what it fears. Yowling is louder and longer. The ASPCA says unneutered cats yowl most: females to advertise that they are receptive, males to reach them. Tom cats facing each other in a stand-off growl, hiss and howl loudly.

More meowing than usual

Cats Protection’s behaviour guide says excessive or increased vocalisation can indicate a medical or behavioural problem. The ASPCA says older cats are prone to an overactive thyroid and kidney disease, either of which can lead to more meowing, and that elderly cats with cognitive dysfunction may meow when they are disoriented. An unspayed female in heat meows a lot, and an unneutered male may meow when he can hear or smell one (ASPCA). If this is new or comes with other changes, check with your vet.