What Is The Meaning Of Cat Postures: 7 Common Cat Postures

1. When a cat lies down with its belly up and/or starts rolling on the ground this means one thing clear: the animal wants to play. For this reason, it is usual that, in this position, he can gently nibble on your hand or start playing with your hair. This posture is one of the greatest signs of trust that a cat can give you because he is totally defenseless but he has no fear because he knows that you will not do him any harm.

2. When a cat is about to attack, his posture changes completely. His claws come out, he shows his teeth and his skin stands on end. It visibly denotes that it is stressed and that its next move will be an attack, so if you come across a cat in this state, it is best to walk past it without approaching it, as it could attack. The signs that can indicate that a cat is in this way are the following:

• He will put his ears flat and forward.
• You will have your gaze completely fixed on your enemy.
• His whiskers will be thrown forward.
• Your skin will bristle.
• It will have a swollen tail.
• It will make threatening sounds with its mouth while showing its teeth.
• It will wag its tail as a sign of preparation before the attack.

3. When the animal is completely confident and calmyou will notice that his posture relaxes and that is when you can find him completely lying on the ground supporting your back or one of your sides leaving the belly visible. This position is one of absolute tranquility and trust, since the animal will not be as alert as at other times.

Of course: not all cats that are lying down like this mean that they are willing to be stroked on their belly. Think that if the cat does not know you or lives on the street, it is possible that it is simply resting but is still on the alert. If you want to caress it, approach it little by little and let it smell you first, never be rough with a feline because it could attack you out of fear.

If you have just rescued a cat that lived on the street, at OneHowTo we give you some tips so you know how to take care of a stray cat.

4. We have already indicated at the beginning of this article that different factors intervene in the posture of a cat that can denote how the feline is. When you see it walk with tail raised, with the body upright and with determined movements, it is because the animal is calm and confident; he is simply investigating the environment, wants to get your attention or is walking around the house. The raised tail is a sign that the cat is friendly and is receptive to your attention and affection.

5. When a cat is afraid you will also observe it in its posture. The moment the feline feels fearful, helpless or insecure, you will most likely see his body seem to get smaller. The reason is that the animal will hide its tail, put its head on its shoulders and, most characteristically, he will lower his ears hitting them a lot on the head.

This type of situation usually occurs when the cat is in a stressful or dangerous situation in which another animal is intimidating it; In this situation he can react as we have indicated above, that is, by putting himself in his attack position but if he feels defenseless, the position he will adopt will be similar to the one you can see in the image.

6. In order to detect the meaning of cat postures It is important that you know the different positions in which the animal places its ears and that are totally indicative of its mood. Here are all the meanings:

• ears up: denote that the cat is happy. It may be that he moves them from one side to another since he will be attentive to the sounds around him.

• down ears: frightened cats flatten their ears as a sign of submission and to ensure that they do not get damaged in the event of a fight.

• Flat ears to the side: It is an attack position, the animal indicates that it is stressed and that it is about to attack.

7. However, the tail is the most significant part of the body to be able to understand the postures of a cat. It is an expression of how it feels and, depending on how you place it, the animal will want to indicate one state or another. Below we indicate a series of postures that can present and their meanings:

• tail up: indicates that the cat is happy and confident; in fact, the lower the tail, the lower his mood.

• Slow tail movements: if you see that the animal is staring at something and moving its tail, it is because it is concentrating.

• Fast and waving movements of the tail: Contrary to what happens with dogs that wag their tails from side to side when they are happy to see you, in the case of cats this is a sign of anger.

• inflated tail: We have already said that if you see a cat with a swollen tail, it is because it is in its attack position.

These are the main positions but there is more! Here is an image that sums it up perfectly.

Image: elsecretodelosgatosfelices.com

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