I ask because my brother’s girlfriend had a pet bat, which would happily purr when petted.
I always thought only cats (and related members of the cat family) purred.
Are there any other animals which purr?
Also genets.
I have met a few human women and one shar-pei dog who purred when contented.
Raccoons
Can purring occur in the smaller wild cat species, like lynx, cougar, ocelot and bobcat?
Cavers I know have told me that bats will purr when held, but this is entrely anecdotal evidence.
Yes, for all of the above. In fact all cats can purr, however the big cats in genus Panthera can only do so on exhalation ( apparently due to an anatomical difference in the hyoid apparatus ).
‘True’ purring appears to be limited to the Felidae and Viverridae ( civets, genets, and such ). Their are analogous sounds produced by other mammal groups, but via a different mechanism, so some have argued it should be called something else.
- Tamerlane
I can confirm this with personal observation.
I don’t know if this is the same mechanism as cat purrs (indeed, I don’t know what that mechanism is), but is sure feels like purring.
Guinea-pigs purr. They purr when you rub their backs (unless they are too scared), when they hear the sound of keys or coins rattling, and when they are reunited after being separated for a while. Sometimes they purr when the phone rings.
A guinea pig’s purr sounds and feels very different from a cat’s purr, but it’s closer to a cat’s purr than another other sound or senation I have ever experienced in the animal kingdom.
Many pet rabbits “purr” when they are calm and happy and you pet them the way they like, whatever way that happens to be for the particular bunny. It’s actually a noise made by making sort of nibbling motions with their teeth, but it sounds like purring. They make a similar but much louder and more disturbing noise, more like grinding than nibbling, when they’re in pain.
BTW, bunnies can also growl. Mine did, usually while also lunging. She scared the crap out of not a few humans, cats, and dogs doing so. Bunnies can also make little grunting or chirping noises if they’re excited and happy, usually while running in circles around their favorite human, with pauses to nudge said human to demand petting. Bunnies can be very bossy.
I thought my dog purred once. But it was gas.
Didn’t the giant pink sea snail purr in Dr. Dolittle?
Elephants purr.
I was just going to post this. I was sitting on an elephant while it let loose a long purr after relieving itself.
Coeurl.
Of course, Van Vogt describes it as looking like a cat, so what do you expect?
Some of the fiction about the Kzinti talks of them, purring, too
The Kinti are also cat-like. I think that any science fiction catlike aliens should be suspected of purring unless proven otherwise.
What, Cal, no mention of flatcats?
And while it’s not true purring, I’ve personally known at least two dogs who made a purr-like noise when contented (both were raised in a house with multiple cats, and were probably imitating them). Interestingly, the two dogs chose different ways of doing it: The one used a modified growl, while the other used a modified grumble.
I used to have an elderly distant relative who purred after every meal. Gas.
Right, :dubious: it was the dog that farted, while in another room with the door closed.
Don’t recall if flatcats purred.
But, speaking of them, Tribbles definitely do.
They’re not cats, but they’re what cats would be if they lacked those claw-bearing paws. and the fang-bearing head. and the annoying tail.