![]() Squinty eyelids protect the eyes from potential injury. An offensively aggressive cat’s pupils may be slits or dilated. Direct StareĪ direct stare in feline parlance is threatening and confrontational. People often miss the cue because of the subtlety. This is an important control message in multi-cat households with limited resources such as food, water, litter box, toys, and territory. The general message is “I know you’re there and I don’t want a fight.” But the unblinking stare is also a communication megaphone for wanna-be aggressive cats to adversaries. When a cat starts to show interest, the eyes look more directly with an unblinking stare at the object, person, or animal of interest, and the pupils dilate slightly. The eyelids may be squinty, brows are soft, and the cat may offer cheek rubs. In friendly greetings, pupils are at normal dilation. Eyes Wide OpenĪlert, wide-open eyes signal trust. The surrounding environment sets the stage. Think of it like a silent movie: the autonomic nervous system is the director, the pupil plays the lead role, the eyelid is a supporting character, while other facial features, body, and tail comprise the remaining cast. Eyelids may be fully open, partially closed, or drawn into a squint.Ĭauses for these changes may be emotional arousal, such as fear, aggression, pleasure, or excitement, or environmental, such as a change in ambient light levels. A cat’s pupils can shrink to the narrowest of slits or widen into black pools. Whether they are blue, green, or gold, round, oval, or almond-shaped, your cat’s eyes communicate emotions through physiological changes in pupil size and eyelid position. Let’s decipher the emotions hidden in the windows of the soul, the eyes. Each blink, twitch, and flick communicates a meaning ranging from “I’m okay, you’re okay,” to “Back off, buster!” to “Affectionately, yours.”Īmong the most expressive parts of the feline body are the orbs of vision. ![]() ![]() Cats have a refined way of communicating between themselves and humans using primarily their body, tail, and facial features. Learning to interpret understated feline body language enables us to avert calamity and strengthen our bond. Misreading a cat can land us on the wrong end of sharp claws and teeth. People often find feline communication more difficult to interpret than that of dogs because it can be so subtle that nonverbal communication cues are completely missed or misinterpreted. They differ in nutritional requirements, training techniques, and body language. We’ve heard it before–cats are not small dogs.
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