Ever since childhood, people seem to be worried about a seemingly trifling problem - why do cats purr? And to be more precise, how exactly do they do it. Zoologists can tell about this. Pet pets have special thin bones near the vocal cords, located between the base of the skull and the place where the tongue grows. When an animal feels pleasure, its brain generates impulses that cause the muscles to contract around the hyoid bones. The muscles then tighten, then relax, which is why a vibration occurs in the vocal cords, which resonates in the bones with an echo. Therefore, we hear such a quiet "rumble".
Among the vast family of these animals, not everyone purrs. Big cats - lions, tigers - growl, but they don’t know how to make a rumbling: in their vocal cords there is a hyoid cartilage that produces a roar, and not sounds pleasant to the human ear. The remaining large representatives of this species can make grumbling, howling, hissing, even grunting and coughing sounds, but they do not purr. But this art was mastered by medium and small wild animals of this family: cheetah, cougar, lynx, ocelot, manul and serval. Why do they do this and does the character of the cat play any role in this? Let's look at situations when our pets make these sounds.
In most cases, the kitty purrs when she is well. She ate and washes herself. She froze a little, but she warmed herself on her master’s lap and turned on her “music box” at full capacity. She buried herself with her offspring, licks the kittens and “sings” a lullaby to them, and they, in turn, sucking milk, quietly rumble in response. Yes, in the overwhelming majority of life situations, the correct answer to the question “why cats growl” would be: “Because they feel good”. Purring is a statement of the fact that everything is in order. Mom cat so conveys to her children information that there is no reason for concern. Still blind kittens instinctively make such sounds when feeding, showing that they are healthy and viable. The cat, with satisfied "rumble", shows his love for the owner and demands that he be stroked.
But felinologists also describe other cases in which animals can make similar sounds. Sometimes a sick or injured animal begins to purr, and the owner mistakenly accepts these sounds as a sign that his pet has become easier. Why do cats purr in such a life-threatening situation? They are trying, as we would say, to “do auto-training”, to convince themselves that nothing terrible is happening. It happens that when meeting with the dominant cat, the weak one starts rumbling, thereby showing that he does not intend to get involved in a fight, that he is already giving up and defenseless. Most often, the principle of “do not hit the bed” works. And sometimes cats-fighters, being in excellent spirits, when meeting with other brethren purr, showing friendly intentions.
Sometimes a cat rumbles when it requires something. But then this sound is more loud and persistent. By the way, the “loudest" kitty lives in the UK. The sound level of Smokey reaches almost 68 decibels, for which she is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. It is noteworthy that the mistress of Smokey likes to keep a pet on her lap, which buzzes like a working tractor. After all, scientists have proved that this normalizes blood pressure not only among the pets themselves, but also among those who are nearby. Therefore, kittens are used in the treatment of nervous and easily excited children. An even purr helps babies relax and sleep.
But if scientists have found the answer to the question “why cats growl,” then the question “why do they stop doing this when they hear the sound of pouring water,” remains a mystery. But the fact remains: the veterinarians have long noticed this feature, when they need to listen to the lungs and the heart of the animal with a stethoscope, they simply open a faucet in the washbasin in the office. Mur-mur immediately ceases.