Are you looking for ways your cat shows you love? Have you ever felt like your cat doesn’t actually like you? Maybe he's aloof for a reason. Maybe he sits across the room from you and doesn’t look at you because he wants you to know he's ignoring you. Well, here is a list of 11 ways a cat shows you love (they just don’t want to be too obvious).
Snapshot Survey
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Please subscribe for your personalized newsletter:
Petting
It may seem a little trivial, but if your cat allows you to touch him, he loves you. Cats are predators. They hunt and stalk and kill. which means they’re reluctant to show vulnerability to someone they don’t trust. Any cat allowing you to touch him is a huge sign of trust. Don’t try and pet a cat before they are ready. The best way to show a cat you aren’t trustworthy is to force things. Try and allow the cat to become used to your smell and presence before you make your move. And if the cat shies away or hisses at you, step back and wait a little longer. Earning a cat’s trust naturally is way more rewarding than earning it by force. Allowing you to pet him is just one of the ways a cat shows you love.
Purring
Once again, this may seem like a small thing, but if a cat purrs when you pet him (or even just look at him), it’s a sign of love and trust. When a cat purrs, it signifies that the cat is comfortable and content. A cat’s purr is similar to a human smile. They do it when happy and content, when they wish to appease or persuade, or even when they’re nervous. A good way to differentiate between purrs is noting the body language of the feline in question. Are his eyes closed. Does he seem relaxed? Is his tail flickering? The body language of cats can give clues to the nature of their purrs, but it’s safe to assume that if you’re petting them, it’s a good purr.
Frequently asked questions
Being around 98% of the Time
You may think that your cat being in the same room with you but being halfway across the room, means he's ignoring you for some unknown reason. Wrong. Cats are social creatures, yes, but they understand the concept of personal space. A cat being in the room with you is him saying “hey, I genuinely enjoy your presence and wish to spend a majority of my time near you, but I also don’t wanna be all up in your face.” It’s similar to when you visit a friend and you both just kinda sit there on your phones together for hours, occasionally making light conversation. Cats know how to respect personal space and just chill with you.
Bringing Presents
Now, you may not enjoy it or feel super loved when your cat brings in a half-dead mouse for you. However, this is just a simple miscommunication between species. The cat is bringing you sustenance, making sure you’re fed well and, often times, will bring live rodents to try and teach you how to hunt for yourself. But presents don’t always have to be mice guts. Have you ever woken up covered in lost hair ties, bobby pins, socks, etc.? That’s your cat bringing you presents. Now, speaking from personal experience, these presents can also be your cat’s passive aggressive way of saying you need to play with him. Now. Immediately. Right in this moment. All in all, cats bringing their humans presents is just their way of saying they appreciate you and want to make you happy. It’s actually quite sweet, if you think about it.
Love Bites
We all know that feel. Your cat rolls over, just begging for tummy rubs, their eyes wide and adorable. You just can’t resist! You have to comply . So you do. You stoop down, ready to pet the floofy belly and he strikes. Your hand is caught between the jaws of this manipulative beast, your trust frayed and heart hurt. Don’t worry! Your kitty doesn’t actually hate you. Cats have been known to nibble to show some tough love. I’m going to be honest with you. There are multiple translations to cat nibbles. It all depends on the situation. If you’re mindlessly petting your fur baby and he nips at you, it may mean he's done with pets for now. If you’re playing around, the nibble might be a sign of affection in a moment of some nice human-feline bonding. And if you’re just reaching down to give some tummy pats, that betraying nibble might actually be a playful gesture! A little love bite has many meanings, but just remember that it’s not always a bad thing. Your kitty loves you!
Related Videos about
Tummy Displays
A cat showing someone their stomach is a HUGE sign of trust. A cat’s belly is their most vulnerable point, so to show that is a big deal in the kitty world. Now, a cat showing you his tummy can mean many things. Most likely it means "I wanna play!" Not only is kitty playing a sign of affection and trust, it can also be interpreted as trying to teach you! Play fighting is how kittens learn to hunt, so a cat fighting with you is him saying he cares about your well being enough to teach you how to defend and support yourself. A cat showing his tummy can also mean that he trusts you.
Grooming
Adult cats spend most of their time grooming... themselves, their kittens, other cats, and...humans? Yes! Your cat is grooming you when he licks you. And this is a huge sign of affection. Your kitty is making sure you’re clean and showing you his fondness. It marks you with his scent, giving you a place in his family. A cat marking you is basically him broadcasting to all other cats that “this is my human! This is my human and I love them!” Grooming is also a way for cats trying to dispel anxiety or stress, so if your adult cat is licking or suckling excessively, try and find the source of stress and find new ways for your kitty to cope until that source is eliminated. If you can’t find a source of stress, take your furry baby in for a vet visit. It may be a sign of hyperthyroidism. At the end of the day, getting groomed by a cat is a big honor, even if their breath does smell a little funky.
The Happy Tail
When cats are relaxed, happy, content, or comfortable, their tail has a distinct curl at the end. It’s small, and not easily noticeable, but super rewarding if you can read that tidbit of body language. When a cat has a “happy tail” around you, just know that your kitty loves you!
Headbutting
It may seem like your kitty is being pushy, or is irritated about something when they butt heads with you...literally. Fear not! Cats secrete their scent through certain glands just under their skin, and some of those glands are located on the face. When a cat head butts you or rubs his face on you, he's just marking you with his scent! Once again, he's sending out a feline-PSA that, “this is MY human! I love them!” So the next time you butt heads with your furry friend, remember he's doing it because he loves you!
Kneading the Dough
This one is pretty well known! If a cat is pressing on you with his paws like he's making biscuits, it’s not because he's tenderizing your meat for when he finally overthrows the world. It’s because he loves you! Really! Well, okay, there are a few different hypothesis as to why cats knead. First, it’s a leftover from their kitten days. Kittens knead their mother while nursing to encourage milk flow through the teat. Because of this, some scientists think cats associate the feeling of being safe and content with the action of kneading, leading them to believe that cats knead others when happy!
Another hypothesis is that this behavior stems from before feline domestication. Some scientists believe cats would knead the ground or piles of leaves to make a comfortable place to sleep, give birth, etc. Therefore, kneading is just an instinctual urge when settling down. Either way, kneading is a sign of being comfortable. And when a kitty is comfortable, he's in love!
Slow Blinks
Have you ever had a staring contest with your cat that ended in him blinking at you real slow? That’s a kitty kiss! Slow blinking is a sign of trust and affection, just outright pure love. Closing one’s eyes in front of another is showing huge vulnerability and trust. Cats will only slow blink around someone if they trust. So next time your kitty blinks at you, kiss him back!
I promise you that your cat isn’t as aloof as he might seem! Our feline friends love us as much as dogs do, even if they have a different way of showing it.
