Everyone knows the typical signs that a cat likes you or has welcomed you into their inner circle. Slow blinks, headbutts, exposing their bellies in your presence, etc. But when you are more than just one of the gang to your cat — someone very special to them — they have secret ways of letting you know. So let me break down the code for you and give you six examples.
- “Accidentally” touching or brushing against you.
There are the leg rubs humans get at mealtimes, but this is something different. In fact, it may almost seem like an accident. But when a cat just barely touches you with the tip of their tail, or stretches out and gives you a little paw pat when they’re lying next to you, they know exactly what they’re doing. It’s like when a partner touches their loved one while walking by them. It’s a casual but intentional closeness.
- Napping in odd spots just because they smell like you.
Have you ever found your cat sleeping in an open purse? Or curled up on a discarded sweat shirt of yours? Or anything you’ve recently used or sweated on? Cats are very scent oriented, and when something smells like the person they are most bonded to, we are drawn almost irresistibly to it.
- They pause during playtime and look at you.
Playtime with cats involves engaging their hunting instinct. So normally a cat will be completely focused on their prey — the toy they are chasing, stalking and trying to catch. A cat that is very bonded to you will break game and look at you, as if to include you into their hunting world. It’s a really subtle cue, and humans who recognize it think it’s kind of cute.I have an example that involved an actual hunt. One late night I found a rat in the bathroom and I was playing with it. Well, I thought I was playing — it kept chattering rather angrily at me. I had it cornered in the shower when my human finally found us. And of course I paused to walk up to my human because I wanted to include her in my fun! You can see a post about that little adventure here.
- They have their own special language just for you.
Cats mostly meow at humans, and not so much at other cats. That’s because cats learn vocalization is how humans primarily communicate. So they vocalize back at you. But if you are really special to them, they will create specific meows or sounds just for you. It could be a little chirp, or a certain meow that they only do for you. We cats are capable of making over 100 different vocal sounds, so we can get pretty creative!
- They stalk you.
Are you hanging around the house, just minding your own business — and suddenly your cat just appears out of nowhere? And then you go into a completely different part of the house and bam! There’s your cat again, and you didn’t even notice them coming into the room. If it feels like your cat is behaving like some sort of lovesick stalker, you aren’t too far off the mark.Cats like to be around their people, but usually we don’t need to be right next to them. Just being in the same room with a person shows that we enjoy your company. But when a cat wants to be everywhere you are without making a big deal out of their presence, it indicates a deeper bond.
- You can hold them upside down.
Some cats like to be cradled like a baby (and some cats really hate it). But if a cat allows you to hold them upside down without cradling against your body, there’s a huge bond there because it requires a lot of trust.Case in point: one of my favorite (and one of my human’s favorite) Instagram cats, @laylathaplaya. Her owner holds her upside down in just about every video — often while she’s wearing clothes — and she is totally in heaven! My human says she has never seen another cat so utterly bonded to their owner.
As you can tell, these signals are very subtle. We cats rarely make a big deal out of really important things. But once you know what to look for, if a cat’s really bonded to you, it’s unmistakable.
Have you gotten any of these signs? Or has your cat done something else that tells you how bonded they are? Let us know in the comments.
The post Six Top Secret Ways Cats Say You Are Special to Them appeared first on Summer’s Fabulous Cat Life.
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