Why does a cat "butt" a person: the secrets of cat language and gestures

16.05.2023 12:58

Often, a happy cat meets its owner right at the door of the house, after which it begins to rub against the legs or “butt” the person.

Experts have deciphered what this gesture means when a cat rubs its muzzle against the owner's face, hands or legs. Nothing surprising.

Despite all the existing misunderstandings in communication between animals and humans, cats are quite understandable and predictable. Not at all because all their demands are reduced to eating and cuddling in the owner's arms.

Anyone can decipher the animal's sign language if they observe it closely. But the aforementioned "butting" is a gesture of special attitude.

Why do cats "butt"?

The fact is that a cat has special zones on its forehead, cheeks and other parts of its body that secrete pheromones.

Kitty
Photo: © Belnovosti

They have their own unique smell, and a person with his sense of smell is not able to recognize this smell.

Cats without these "marks" find it difficult to interact with each other. This is like a means of recognizing "friend or foe" in the military, a way of transmitting information or securing rights to territory.

And when a cat or a male cat “butts” with the owner, they mark him, clothes and other objects and body parts, making the owner “theirs”.

It is also an indicator of mood. The more actively the cat rubs, the harder it hits its head on the owner's face, the greater its joy at the owner's return home.

Author: Igor Zur Internet resource editor