# Do cats blink? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 2, 2008, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946 "2008-01-02T00:14:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Seventh\_Deadly\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6bbea6/32.png) [@The\_Seventh\_Deadly\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Seventh_Deadly_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/1 "2008-01-02T00:14:31Z")
I mean, of course they do-- they must, right? Or their eyes would dry out. A better question might be, “How come I’ve never seen a cat blink?” I’ve been sitting here watching Mia Miaow for a while now (yeah, I’m pretty bored), and my first impression is, never put money on a staring contest with a cat. I see them narrow their eyes in a sleepy sort of way from time to time, but that seems associated with other sleepy-type behavior. Is that it? Does a cat just decide to have a nap every time its eyes start to feel a little dry? That would explain a lot, but I can’t believe it’s true. Anyway, what I don’t see is the sort of rapid, eye-moistening blink that we humans use to keep our eyes free of crusty filth. Am I missing it, or is there something special about cats? ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/2 "2008-01-02T00:20:15Z")
Maybe your cat [doesn’t like you?](http://www.newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/vet00/vet00050.htm) I see my cats blink all the time by the way. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Genericuser234](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/5daacb/32.png) [@Genericuser234](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Genericuser234)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/3 "2008-01-02T00:23:05Z")
> [@](#): > > cats send all sorts of nonverbal signals, both to each other and to us humans. One of those signals is a blink. > If you own a cat and haven’t ever noticed it blinking at you, keep an eye out. It usually happens just as the cat enters a room where you are sitting. It will notice you from a small distance, stop, blink both eyes once or several times, and then approach. Once you are on the lookout for it, the blink is quite noticeable. It’s slower than a human blink and looks, well, intentional. > > What is your cat trying to tell you? A blinking cat is a happy cat. Blinking in cats is a signal that they recognize the presence of another cat in their vicinity but they are not going to fight it. A blink sends the message: “You are my friend. I am not angry. I am not threatened, or threatening.” > > This kind of message is very important in the wild, where cats battle for territory. Run across a neighboring cat and you’d better make your intentions clear, or you may find yourself in a fight. The blink serves to say: all’s well here. > > If you don’t feel silly doing it, try blinking at your cat, perhaps while stroking it. Sometimes our facial gestures can trigger a response in them. The two of you can have a mutual friendship moment, sending “I’m okay – you’re okay” messages back and forth. > > So, why do cats blink at us, when we aren’t cats and don’t understand such feline messages? Well – do you ever speak to your cat? i forget what site i got this from, but its something about cats blinking. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/4 "2008-01-02T00:45:58Z")
IM IN UR I, [NICTITATIN](http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1351072) You don’t see it because they’re not using the meat eyelid to blink all the time. Dey haz uder meanz. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Seventh\_Deadly\_Finn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6bbea6/32.png) [@The\_Seventh\_Deadly\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Seventh_Deadly_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/5 "2008-01-02T05:31:00Z")
[QUOTE=Shoshana] IM IN UR I, [NICTITATIN](http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=1351072) You don’t see it because they’re not using the meat eyelid to blink all the time. Dey haz uder meanz. [/QUOTE] O! I C. ---
**Author:** ![butler1850](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@butler1850](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/butler1850)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/6 "2008-01-02T15:49:31Z")
[QUOTE=thetruewheel] my first impression is, never put money on a staring contest with a cat. [/QUOTE] My cats seem to like me, but whenever they’ve declared a staring contest, they always lose. Granted, my eyes are completely dry, and take copious blinking to re-wet, but I take it as a point of pride to WIN. I also have no trouble trimming claws, and give them a bath. Yet more battles they will LOSE! Trying to avoid petting them, however, is a battle that I have yet to win in the long term. They will defeat me due to their cuteness. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/7 "2008-01-02T16:43:21Z")
Cats do blink, just like any other mammal. They just seem to have the ability to reach a very deep focus, when they are staring at something or looking for something. It seems to come out of their hunting ability. They tend to look for small, quick things like mice. I’m assuming that since mice are so difficult to catch, natural selection favors cats that can focus deeply, which includes not blinking. ---
**Author:** ![susan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/susan/32/17537_2.png) [@susan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/susan)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/8 "2008-01-02T18:16:08Z")
Or perhaps there’s some reason to disdain blinking of which we are as yet unaware. ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [January 2, 2008, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-cats-blink/431946/9 "2008-01-02T18:34:05Z")
Cats have eyelashes too, longer hairs on the edge of their eyelids like we have, just to keep up and away the fur on their eyelids. Ever noticed?