Although it’s easy to assume that cats purr because they’re content, research shows that purring is likely a means of communication and a form of self-healing.
Yes, your feline friend purrs when you stroke her fur, but cats also purr when they’re frightened or feel threatened, such as during a visit to the veterinarian.
Veterinarian Kelly Morgan equates this reaction with smiling. “People will smile when they’re nervous, when they want something, and when they’re happy, so perhaps the purr can also be an appeasing gesture.”
A cat’s purr begins in its brain. A repetitive neural oscillator sends messages to the laryngeal muscles, causing them to twitch at a rate of 25 to 150 vibrations per second. This causes the vocal cords to separate when the cat inhales and exhales, producing a purr.
According to researchers at the University of Sussex, domestic cats can hide a plaintive cry within their purrs that irritates their humans while appealing to their nurturing instincts.
Karen McComb, who headed the study, says cats may be exploiting “innate tendencies in humans to respond to cry-like sounds in the context of nurturing offspring.”
Dr. Benjamin L. Hart, a veterinarian, says that “Cats apparently learn to do this to get people to feed them sooner.”
Purring isn’t just good for cats though — it’s also healthy for cat owners. Studies show that cats do a better job of relieving stress and lowering blood pressure than other pets.
In fact, a 10-year study at the University of Minnesota Stroke Centre found that cat owners were 40 percent less likely to have heart attacks than non-cat owners — and purring might play a role in that.
“Purring is an auditory stimulus that people attribute to peacefulness and calmness,” says Dr. Rebecca Johnson, director of the Research Centre for Human Animal Interaction.
“That gives us positive reinforcement for what we’re doing and can contribute to the whole relaxation effect when we interact with our cats.”