Diana the Cat
Diana the cat (aka Tie-Dye) is my 9-year-old half-Siamese tortoise-shell. When I moved away from home, I left both my cat's behind. The Siamese, Ringer, will be 16 in a week - too old to uproot. And Diana... well, other than the fact that Ringer needs a fellow cat to keep him company when the humans aren't around, she's a bit nuts and would do horribly as an indoor cat in my new little apartment (both cats are currently indoor/outdoor pets). When I lived with my parents, Diana didn't seem to like me very much. She seemed to be able to tell that Ringer was my favorite, though even when I tried my best to be nice to her, she freaked out. She's mellowed a bit in her old age, even sitting in my lap occasionally. But the following was still a bit strange.
My parents called me last night and put me on speakerphone so they could both talk to me. In the midst of the conversation, I heard Diana's unique cry in the background (Siamese and non-Siamese vocal genetics are an odd combo indeed). Yes, that's Diana, my parents confirmed. I continued talking, only to hear a very loud "MREOW!" in my ear. She had jumped onto the desk where the phone was sitting and meowed directly into the mircophone. She then swatted the phone. After a few seconds, she settled down next to the phone.
Ringer (who is now deaf) exhibited similar behavior one time when I was at college. He even padded the speaker on the phone a few times, probably wondering how I fit in there. But he never said anything (which is weird for Ringer). I avoid the phone as much as I can (the subject for another post), so I'm afraid I don't have multiple datapoints. But neither cat ever showed interest in the phone or the voices coming from them at any other time.
So did they recognize my voice? Did they miss me? Did they think I was trapped inside the phone, or did they think the phone was playing a cruel joke on them by pretending to be me? I remember playing recordings of their meows to them (why? because). Each reacted to the other's voice but not their own (your own voice is often difficult to recognize). Cats are not generally vocal creatures (have you ever noticed they don't meow at eachother, only humans?), but hearing is one of their better senses. I always knew smell was important in identifying their "family". Could the sounds we make be just as important?
My parents called me last night and put me on speakerphone so they could both talk to me. In the midst of the conversation, I heard Diana's unique cry in the background (Siamese and non-Siamese vocal genetics are an odd combo indeed). Yes, that's Diana, my parents confirmed. I continued talking, only to hear a very loud "MREOW!" in my ear. She had jumped onto the desk where the phone was sitting and meowed directly into the mircophone. She then swatted the phone. After a few seconds, she settled down next to the phone.
Ringer (who is now deaf) exhibited similar behavior one time when I was at college. He even padded the speaker on the phone a few times, probably wondering how I fit in there. But he never said anything (which is weird for Ringer). I avoid the phone as much as I can (the subject for another post), so I'm afraid I don't have multiple datapoints. But neither cat ever showed interest in the phone or the voices coming from them at any other time.
So did they recognize my voice? Did they miss me? Did they think I was trapped inside the phone, or did they think the phone was playing a cruel joke on them by pretending to be me? I remember playing recordings of their meows to them (why? because). Each reacted to the other's voice but not their own (your own voice is often difficult to recognize). Cats are not generally vocal creatures (have you ever noticed they don't meow at eachother, only humans?), but hearing is one of their better senses. I always knew smell was important in identifying their "family". Could the sounds we make be just as important?
posted by SpakKadi at 10:22 PM
1 Comments:
When I hear your voice on the phone, I am surprised too. You hate the phone.
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