Why does the cat not respond to the name

Your cat most likely knows its name very well. But does she always respond to him? You may have noticed that sometimes your furry pet clearly hears you, moves her ears and moves her head, but frankly ignores attempts to call her. What’s happening? Is she offended by something and doesn’t want to hear from you? How to react to the fact that the cat does not respond?

Cats and dogs: the difference in perception Researchers suggest that domestic cats are quite capable of distinguishing their nickname from words with a similar sound. But what is the difference between a dog’s reaction to its name and a cat’s reaction? The ability of domestic cats to communicate has not been studied as thoroughly as the ability of dogs. Of course, a cat, just like a dog, distinguishes the sound signals of human speech and learns well. But cats, due to their independence, are not so interested in showing the owner the results of their training.  

In the course of the study, scientists used the habituation-withdrawal technique, which is often used in the study of animal behavior. Biologist Atsuko Saito’s team visited 11 cat families and several cat cafes. The scientists asked owners to read to their pets a list of four nouns that were similar in rhythm and length to the animal’s name. Most cats initially showed signs of attention by moving their ears, but stopped responding by the fourth word. The fifth word was the name of the animal. The researchers noticed that 9 out of 11 domestic cats clearly responded to their own name – its sound is more familiar to pets than other words. At the same time, cafe cats did not always distinguish their name from the names of other pets.

But the researchers emphasize that the experiments do not suggest that cats really understand human language, they can only distinguish sound signals.

feline finickiness Try to watch your pet. Cats, like humans, can change their mood depending on the situation. Also, cats can react to the mood of their owners. They are sensitive to various voice characteristics – timbre, loudness and others. If you come home from work feeling frustrated, your cat is more likely to notice and perhaps try to calm you down. But your pet itself may be in a bad mood and have no desire to communicate. In such a situation, she will simply ignore all your attempts to call her by name. This does not mean at all that the cat is doing something out of spite – just at this point in time, for some reason, she feels discomfort. Do not be offended by your fluffy beauty if she does not respond to the name, and in no case raise your voice. Try to call her a little later – perhaps the cat’s mood will change, and she will gladly come to your call.

Atsuko Saito says that a cat will only communicate with you when she wants to, because it’s a cat! 

Name for a cat Maybe the reason is that your pet is still a kitten and has not had time to get used to her own name. Did you pick the right name for her? Take advantage of our advice and recommendations from a veterinarian. When choosing a nickname for a pet, try to come up with a name that will have one or two syllables, so the kitten will remember it faster. You should not call a cat a long name, which is also difficult to pronounce. Please note that it is better to choose a nickname in which the sounds “s”, “z”, “ts” will be present – for cats they resemble the squeak of rodents and are better remembered, or “m” and “r”, reminiscent of purring. Try not to use hissing sounds in the name, as hissing is a sign of aggression for cats. 

Always watch your pet’s behavior. It may turn out that she does not respond to the name due to health problems – in this case, be sure to visit a veterinarian.