| The dominance of male cats is decided by the | | | | of sounds by passing air over their vocal chords, |
| following; the bigger, stronger and younger cat | | | | varying the extent to which the mouth is open, |
| wins his place in the hierarchy. He does not | | | | and altering the muscle tension in the throat and |
| always have to fight to work his way up the | | | | lips. |
| ladder, because older or weaker cats may submit | | | | Every owner will be able to distinguish between, |
| peacefully; nor does any one cat have to fight | | | | and to understand, various miaows, which will be |
| every other cat in a group where the hierarchy | | | | indistinguishable to another person. House-cats |
| has been well established. | | | | converse much more than feral cats because |
| As he matures, a strong young cat may become | | | | they have discovered that language is important |
| dominant to one who was dominant to him | | | | to us. For instance, most of us talk to our cats as |
| previously, therefore working his way up the | | | | we prepare their food, telling them not to be |
| ladder. At the same time, an aging cat will likewise | | | | impatient or greedy; if we open a door to let |
| work his way down. In any group of feral cats, | | | | them into the house, we say hi, or when we |
| the most dominant will be a male. Dominance in | | | | complain about their wet feet on the carpet. |
| wild-living female cats is usually, though not | | | | In this way, cats associate language with action, |
| always, linked to the number of litters she has | | | | and will then train us to understand their language. |
| produced; the more litters, the higher she stands | | | | A cat will miaow in a certain way and run to the |
| in the hierarchy. | | | | door, which obviously means 'let me out'. When |
| In the average group of house-cats, the balance | | | | we go into the kitchen, a cat will give a quite |
| of power may well be different. Sometimes | | | | different miaow sound which means 'I am hungry'. |
| neutering can alter the hierarchy, or in any | | | | The owner is not the only one who can |
| household the most dominant cat may be a | | | | understand; if there are other cats in the home |
| neutered male or female. Where there is a | | | | which hears the 'I am hungry' meow, they will |
| mixture of neutered and entire cats, the most | | | | rush to the kitchen also in the hope of being fed. |
| dominant may still be the neuter cat; it may be | | | | Their own 'I am hungry' meow may sound quite |
| the one which has lived there the longest, or | | | | different to the one they have responded to, but |
| perhaps a more assertive young cat. | | | | they understand it nevertheless, just as we do. |
| Cats can make over a hundred different sounds, | | | | We soon learn to distinguish between the |
| from the pleasant purr, to a wide variety of | | | | different calls if we listen and watch our feline |
| miaows, to the fierce growl. They create a range | | | | teachers. |