What is he saying?

bounty_hunter

Hi all

Maybe somebody can lend their experiences to this, I'm a bit puzzled.

For the last couple of weeks my young male cat (who has recently been neutered) has been chatting constantly and very noisily to me at every possible opportunity, and I can't quite figure out what he's trying to tell me!

Generally I'm very good at spotting what he's harping on about just from the tone of his voice/his facial expression, but this really has me stumped.
He'd normally only do this for one of 3 reasons:
1) He's lost a toy/wants to be played with/cuddled
2) He wants some more food
3) He wants his litter tray cleaned (yes, he does come and tell me when his tray isn't in a 100% satisfactory condition so I can sort it out for him before he'll use it :rolleyes: )

Obviously I've checked all of these options first of all, and none of them seem to be what he wants. He's been sitting by my side or following me around and staring intently at me while yowling as if he's trying to tell me about something he thinks I should know.

He's always been quite a vocal cat, but this is a lot more frequent and more forceful than usual! Is it just a case that he's suddenly feeling a lot more talkative and is just discussing his day-to-day business with me, or could there be something else he wants that I haven't been taught the "command" for yet?

Anybody got any ideas? Just to note, he has had full health checks since this has been happening and is completely healthy.

hullaballoo

Could it be that he's in pain due to the neutering? I know cats don't generally complain about pain that much, but it must count for something to be immasculated like that!

tj-music.com

It could be a rare case of after-surgery-depression ( I am not joking) although they usually get off food for a while as well.

I can only suggest that you perhaps allow him to be more clingy as usual and to give him more cuddles than usual.

Have you rearranged any furniture lately? Sometimes they feel displaced by changes!

bounty_hunter

Hullaballo, it would not be the case at all that he's in pain from the neutering, don't worry
However, it is highly possible that he's just feeling a bit odd following such an op, and this could be the explanation for his change in behaviour.


tj-music, I sincerely doubt that it is depression. He has not been off anything at all, and is just as bouncy and enthusiastic as ever. I have been giving him as many cuddles and as much attention as he'll allow, but the yowling is still continuing. He is a fairly clingy little cat under normal circumstances, so the amount of cuddling, etc. he's getting at the moment isn't really much of an increase on what it would have been before. Any views on this?

Thanks for the replies guys, keep them coming!

franksm

Did you put a new collar on him recently ? Perhaps it's too loose/tight/itchy.
Or the bell annoys him, etc.

Maybe the house is just too cold what with the change in weather

bounty_hunter

No new collar or anything of that nature, and no furniture rearranging either.
I did move my bed a couple of weeks ago, which he complained about for a while, but he seemed to have been well over that.

The heat in the house is may be something to think about though, I've certainly been a bit more cold over the last while!

galah

he might just be missing his balls...:D

I heard about this before though, that cats get more chatty once they're neutered - I wouldn't worry about it too much! ;-)

morgana

galah wrote:

he might just be missing his balls...:D

I heard about this before though, that cats get more chatty once they're neutered - I wouldn't worry about it too much! ;-)

Our neutered 2 year old male mutters all the time, to himself or anyone around - he did this before as well though but I'm sure it got even more pronounced after the snip.
Also, have a look here http://kittenadoption.proboards80.com/index.cgi?board=health&action=display&thread=1161433668&page=1#1162459958- just a nice long post about feline vocalisations.

Nala

Funny you should post this thread because my cat is doing the very same thing! She usually gives a chirp when she sees me and answers when she is spoken to but has got very chatty and seems hungrier as well lately. I think she's just feeling the cold or something because she is perfectly healthy, but I am starting to think maybe she just likes a bit of a chat! She meows really loudly and her face is really animated as she does it, she also sits on the floor watching whatever I am doing and chirps anytime I look at her- and as I said she always answers when she is spoken to.

Alfasudcrazy

Its great that you have such a communicative cat. Our big male cat only says one thing 'Food Now' and the little orange female have never meowed or made a sound in her life - must be dumb. Even the dobermans are getting fed up of them and their anti-social ways. :rolleyes:

I just don’t understand (or like) cats that much so I can’t help with the problem.:o

bounty_hunter

Thanks for the replies everyone. After observing him a bit more I've come to the conclusion that it's more than likely just chattiness. Still a mystery what he's chatting about though, which is why I posted in the first place!
I'll assume for now it's just things in general, and he's simply imforming me of what he gets up to. He pretty much announces every little action her performs, but has always done this, so I see no cause for concern.

Interestingly enough he appears to know rightly when he's being told to shush (I have done it on occasion out of pure frustration), because he'll look me right in the eye and let out a loud drawn-out wail as if to say "But I'm just telling you somethingggg!".

Alfasudcrazy, great most of the time, but not at three or four in the morning when he wakes me up to tell me that he's discovered a piece of paper on the floor or something of that nature!