The title is pretty self explanatory. Is it a voluntary or involuntary response?
And while I’m thinking about it, what exactly does it mean when my cat purrs anyway? Is it because he’s happy? Content? Excited? Something else?
The purr is voluntary.
But they have no idea why cats purr.
They even purr when they are in pain.
Just one view … Why & How Do Cats Purr?
I do know when any one of our cherubs purr, it due to contentment. We humans must be doing something correctly because we often have a home that sounds like a Formula I race, accompanied by head butts, licks and affectionate scratching.
Oh, yeah. And and cats do that, too.
Our cat purrs when he wants something from us. He gets very affectionate around dinner time.
Purring is taught in infancy; a kitten that does not learn to purr from hearing its mother purr will not learn to purr. So it’s not quite instinctive; rather, a learned reflex.
Purring means comfort and solace. It’s a sign of contentment, to be sure – but a cat in pain purrs to attempt to comfort itself, to ease its suffering.
Like some human reflexes, e.g., getting an erection, coughing, it’s on the borderline between voluntary and involuntary – it can be done when appropriate, but sometimes happens without conscious volition, as the proper response to a given set of stimuli.
The purrfect master on why cats purr.
:smack: Why oh why didn’t I check the SD Classics? Thanks, Squink (and all others who responded).
And a cat’s purr doesn’t echo.
Honestly, have you ever heard one echo?
From my own experience, this is not quite true; my cat is congenitally deaf (white with blue eyes), but she still purrs. However, her purr is very quiet, almost anemic, and doesn’t sound quite right compared to all the other cats I’ve known.
(Caveat: I didn’t own this cat as a kitten, so I’m not 100% sure she was deaf then; but given the white-with-blue-eyes thing I doubt it’s anything but a congenital thing.)
You never heard SmudgeKitty purring. Think of a fleet of Macks and Peterbilts and Kenworths all idling in a big metal-sided garage.
here: Kitter Purr Boxes
Is a moan from a human voluntary or involuntary?
And what does it mean when a human moans? Is it because he’s happy? Content? Excited? Something else?
This is only true if the cat has chased and eaten a duckling!
Perhaps it learned from the vibrations of its mother purring?
Moaning is taught in infancy; a kitten that does not learn to moan from hearing its mother moan will not learn to moan. So it’s not quite instinctive; rather, a learned reflex.
Moaning means comfort and solace. It’s a sign of contentment, to be sure – but a cat in pain purrs to attempt to comfort itself, to ease its suffering.
Like some human reflexes, e.g., getting an erection, coughing, it’s on the borderline between voluntary and involuntary – it can be done when appropriate, but sometimes happens without conscious volition, as the proper response to a given set of stimuli.
Touche.
A purr-fect parallel! Good moaning, Vietnam!!! 