In today’s blog Ann asks why cats don’t meow at each other the way dogs bark at one another. We even get to see a video of our two dogs, Oakley and Wynn, rather boisterously interacting in a bark-fest. Ann learned that cats only meow to get the attention of humans, not of each other. And they definitely don’t meow to communicate with dogs.
But Ann didn’t address the issue of whether dogs can communicate with cats and if they can, whether there’s more going on than exchanges of meows and barks. In an earlier Andy’s Corner (Oakley’s Secret: A Tailless Dog’s Tale) I included a video of Oakley’s interaction with and apparent affection for our cat Ono when she was a kitten. Notably there were no barking nor meowing exchanges between Oakley and Ono in that video.
Indeed, researchers have found that any communication that may occur between cats and dogs is more likely to involve nonvocal exchanges.
When it comes to animals, vocalizations only make up a very small part of their communication techniques. Body language plays a huge role in how animals communicate with each other, so your dog and cat will quickly learn each other’s body language (Hepper.com).
So, as an empirical contribution to the understanding of the role of body language in cross-species communication I am offering a short video recording of WynnSome (our Cardigan Corgi) attempting to communicate with OnoMoore (our Siamese cat – who is no longer a kitten). Be sure to watch for Wynn’s not-so-subtle bodily cues.
As is obvious in the the video, Wynn’s enthusiastic body language is transparent if not somewhat crude compared to Ono’s subtle gestures of disdain and indifference. All of Wynn’s cards are on the table while Ono plays hers close to her chest. But then, what would we expect from a dog and a cat? This snippet of lyrics from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s delightful musical Cats pretty much sums it up:
The usual dog about the town
Is inclined to play the clown.
Again I must remind you that
A dog’s a dog, a cat’s a cat.
This is sadly reminiscent of my dating experience in high school.
I definitely can identify with that memory!