Quote:
Originally Posted by missdpuck
I just read an interesting study about cats that says the same thing. The premise was "Are cats as manipulative as people think they are?" It discussed the history of the domestic cat, and part of the conclusion as that they have evolved to imitate the sound of human babies crying.
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Yah, my cat has taken that evolutionary step - he kinda starts off low down in the back of his throat, and then rips up through the registers to end on a long high screechy note like a trophy wife whose nail appointment just got cancelled, "rrrrrroooooooooooEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWW!" And loud, damn is he loud. Not baby-loud, but babies generally don't get right up close before starting up, so the perceived annoyance factor is about the same.
He'll also talk to me with little blurts of sound when he's feeling sociable, which I'd imagine is also evolved behaviour, as is the little "Mrow!" when I play "staring contest" with him and he thinks I'm getting a little tiresome.
I wonder if "evolved" is really the right term, though - they've been bred, which is similar but not quite the same. Not to the extent dogs have been molded by humans, but still there has been considerable interference by humans making purposeful matches to get desired characteristics. Although to be fair, I'm not sure banshee-like wailing was ever "desired", but is rather a by-product of choosing chattier/noisier cats over quieter ones.