Cats have stolen one of their most ingenious tricks from babies

There is a surprising link between infant and cat communication.

It is well known that cats are extremely clever and cunning when it comes to getting their way. This time, researchers have unveiled a new masterstroke that is even more powerful than simple purring.

If you have a cat, you know that a hungry cat will do anything. As a recent study has revealed, they have developed one of the sneakiest ways to get their owners to head for the pantry.

They appeal to our instincts

Karen McComb and her research team at the University of Sussex in their investigations have found that cats mix a very specific, cry-like sound into their purring for a reason: to sound similar to a crying baby. This is because it affects the innate instinct of humans to care for their offspring.

The sound mix is what McComb called “a solicitation purr”, which is characterised by the fact that it certainly gets people’s attention, but is not yet disturbing enough to make them leave the room.

The effect of the solicitation purr

According to the researchers, the crucial factor in the noise is a high-frequency element embedded in the naturally deep sound of the cat’s purr.

Embedding a cry into a sound that we usually associate with satisfaction is a rather subtle means of eliciting a response – and solicitation purrs are probably more acceptable to people than open whining

– say the scientists.

McComb and her colleagues have also summarised their experience of their experiment with volunteers. Both the regular and the pleading purr recordings were played back to the participants, who were asked to comment on them.

This suggests that even those who had no previous experience with cats were more affected by the pleading. As they said, they found the pleading purr more urgent and less pleasant than the “normal” one.

Once the embedded crying was removed from the audio material, this effect disappeared. Which proves that the cry-like sound has such an effect on people.

Not a general phenomenon

The studies also showed that not all cats have this mastery. According to the researchers, it is trait of cats that live in close contact with their owners who are more likely to respond to the special call.

Cats are also less likely to try it when a stranger is in the house. As McComb points out, it’s mostly in the morning hours, alone with the owner, that the clever purring machines like to pull this trick.