Friendly Behaviors 😀 of a Cat 🐱

Here are some common signs that your cat is feeling sociable or wants to be close to you or another cat or person.

Happy Hello!

With another cat of human.

Visual Signs

Approaching with a vertical soft tail

Relaxed face and body

No tension in movements

What Your Cat May Be Feeling

Happy

“I come in peace!”

“Hi there!”

Rubbing Heads and Faces

Also known as bunting. Sometimes referred to as head-bumping or head-butting.

Visual Signs

Rubbing the top of head or face onto someone or something.

What Your Cat May Be Feeling or Doing

Affectionate

Enjoying the reunion

“I like you, my friend!”

Refreshing the communal scent.

Touching Bodies

Visual Signs

Touching bodes (in passing or while resting).

May also touch or intertwine tails.

What Your Cat May Be Feeling or Doing

Friendly

“I am no threat.”

“We are family.”

Enjoying a reunion.

Refreshing the communal scent.

Touching Noses

Nose-to-nose contact usually happens between cats who are already friends. Each individual cat’s body language will tell you how the interaction is going.

Visual Signs

Touching another cat’s nose with his/her nose.

What Your Cat May Be Feeling or Doing

Friendly

Checking in

Saying hello

Flopping and Rolling

Also called a social roll. A cat may flop and roll in front of another cat to check that all is well between them and there is not going to be any conflict.

Visual Signs

Flopping and rolling onto the cat’s side or back.

Relaxed face and body

Soft, bendy movements

Sometimes the cat will initiate play with another cat.

What Your Cat May Be Feeling

Friendly

Trusting

“How are you?”

Kneading

Often referred to as making biscuits/muffins/dough or smurgling, and usually happens on top of a soft bed or human lap.

Visual Signs

Kneading rhythmically on a surface with the cat’s two front paws.

May be purring and/or drooling

What Your Cat May Be Feeling or Doing

Affectionate

Trusting

Getting comfortable

Releasing stress

Putting down scent from the cat’s paws.

*Fun Fact: Kittens knead on their mother cats while nursing to release milk.

Licking Each Other

Also known as allogrooming or social grooming, this is an activity shared between cat friends.

Visual Signs

Licking a cat friend on his/her face or head.

May include gentle face or neck nibbling.

What Your Cat May Be Feeling or Doing

Affectionate 

Friendly

Wanting to prevent conflict.

Enjoying a reunion

*Tip: Allogrooming can also lead to irritation. For example, when one cat is licking and the other cat does not like it, you may see stressed body language from the cat being licked  such as, lashing tail and swatting, which means “That’s enough. Stop now!”

Being Near

When cats hang out together in the same space at the same time without touching (or wanting to be touched), it is often misinterpreted as “aloof.” Sharing space with other cats and humans is a big deal in the cat social world.

Visual Signs

Cats sitting or resting nearby even if not physically touching.

Relaxed faces and bodies

What Your Cat May Be Feeling or Doing

Comfortable

Content

“I’m with my family.”

Enjoying the communal scent.

*Tip: Cats who dislike each other and are forced to share space are merely tolerating each other if there is nowhere else to go. In this case, they may position themselves at specific distances and will show less relaxed body language. 

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If you or your friends or family live in Renton, Washington (or surrounding area) and are looking for a compassionate cat sitter to care for your feline friends this summer, book me on Meowtel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reference

Chin, L. (2023). Kitty language: An illustrated guide to understanding your cat. Penguin Random House, LLC: New York. P. 107-121.