Surely you have seen more than once how a cat yawned in response to a similar action on your part.
It is generally accepted that in such cases animals “mirror” human behavior.
Yes, yawning is indeed "contagious." People often yawn after each other, too.
But if we talk about a cat, then its responsive yawning can be explained not only by “mirroring”.
There is one very interesting hypothesis that is worth paying attention to.
Why does a cat yawn in response to a person?
Perhaps the animal perceived your yawn not as a reflexive breathing movement, but as a demonstration of teeth.
Yes, yes, the fluffy one may think that you are threatening him.
In this case, the cat may also begin to show its teeth.
In such a situation, the cat's open mouth does not indicate that the animal is yawning, but that it is demonstrating its sharp "weapon".
Most likely, this is how a furry creature would behave if it saw a yawning stranger.
By the way, a frightened cat can “yawn” (in fact, show its teeth) even without a similar action on the part of the stranger.
Earlier we explained why it is forbidden to look into the eyes of cats.
