# Cat question **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 6, 2003, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997 "2003-09-06T22:23:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![RyanV](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@RyanV](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RyanV)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2003, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/1 "2003-09-06T22:23:49Z")
Why do my 2 cats go crazy when I whistle really loud? They follow me around the house meowing. Why is this? ---
**Author:** ![Not\_In\_Anger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3ab097/32.png) [@Not\_In\_Anger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_In_Anger)\ **Post date:** [September 6, 2003, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/2 "2003-09-06T22:26:46Z")
Better question. Why do you keep whistling at your cats? ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/3 "2003-09-07T02:15:25Z")
Maybe they just hate the sound. My last cat used to hop up next to me on the piano bench and bite me if I attempted to practice my saxophone. Thankfully, my current cat is somewhat less critical. ---
**Author:** ![MLS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MLS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MLS)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/4 "2003-09-07T02:15:57Z")
Probably because their hearing is so much more sensitive than yours. There is probably a frequency in the whistle that hurts their poor dear little ears. Either that or you’re saying something really inappropriate in Cat. Or you sound like a bird. Or they just like to annoy you, just like you annoy them when you whistle. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/5 "2003-09-07T03:19:57Z")
One of my cats gets all excited (no not \*that \*way) when I whistle. It’s the only time he jumps into my lap. The other cat doesn’t react at all. ---
**Author:** ![Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harvey_The_Heavy)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/6 "2003-09-07T03:39:33Z")
They may think that there’s another cat in the house, and they follow you around to help you look for it. I used to have a cat that reacted this way to violin music. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/7 "2003-09-07T04:04:46Z")
I think my cat liked it. If I kept it up, he’d start doing that “mommy” thing cats do with their front paws. Do your cats seem pleased, or annoyed? Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![wakimika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/f08c70/32.png) [@wakimika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wakimika)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/8 "2003-09-07T04:11:05Z")
I’d like to know the factual answer to this question. One of my cats cannot resist the whistling, she _has_ to come to me. I’ve even made her come to me by whistling when a large dog was sitting next to me. She freaks out when I sing, too. She responds to that by climbing on me and biting my chin. I know what _that_ means. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2003, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cat-question/199997/9 "2003-09-07T04:15:34Z")
It sounds like how mama cats call their kittens. Really.