Cats trill for numerous reasons, though the sound is not to be mixed up with meowing or purring.

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Our favourites use this soft sound signal, similar also to purring and meowing, because they are happy or because they long for affection. When the kittens are still very young, their mother trills to draw their attention to themself, to encourage them to follow them. This is always a positive signal, expresses contentment.

Friendly greeting when we arrive home

Why Do Cats Trill?

1.) Cheerful greeting

Arriving home from work, when our kitty has not seen us for hours, they may greet us happily, trilling. With this they express that they love us and are glad that they may see us again. Cats may also greet their four-legged companions with friendly trilling.

We may assume that our cat is hungry if during food preparation they rub against our leg

2.) General form of communication

Some cats by their nature are more talkative than others; they communicate their feelings at any time, they are not shy about it. If our sleepy cat sits next to us on the sofa, it may occur that they send a quick, but all the more affectionate trill towards us. This means that they are happy and peaceful. If we are adventurous, let us also return the trill.

3.) Pleading

Cats sometimes try to get us with the same sound to pamper them with a little treat. It may also happen that they become talkative already from seeing the treat in our hand. If meanwhile the cat also rubs against our leg, we may calmly assume that they are hungry – or at least they could eat. If it is not mealtime, let us try to resist, thus achieving that the animal does not associate the sound signal with immediate feeding.

How Does Meowing and Purring Differ From Trilling?

The trill sounds like a combination of meowing and purring, however it has a special meaning. Meowing and purring depending on circumstances may be positive or negative, but trills are generally positive. In distinguishing these sounds metacommunication and tone may help us. Below we have briefly collected how meowing and purring differ from trilling:

Meowing

Interestingly, in the wild only young felines meow, during communication with their mother. However, as cats become older, the meowing falls away. With domestic cats meowing has several meanings, but they use it almost exclusively during communication with humans.

With cats meowing, just like trilling, may be a greeting or calling attention, but may also be a sort of pleading for food or attention. Cats know how to change their meowing according to their needs thus meowing may signal the cat’s anxiety too. This is not at all characteristic in the case of trilling.

If there were a universal sound for peace, it would be the cat’s purring

Purring

Purring is generally connected with the cat’s feeling of joy and contentment. Purring is the sound that one often hears when cats relax and enjoy being stroked. When a cat purrs, they are in a state of calm and contentment, which is also connected with the trill. If there were a universal sound for peace, it would be the cat’s purring.

Contrary to the trill, however, purring may also serve to calm the cat when they are anxious or feel pain. This is like when a little child sucks their finger. Purring can also be one of the cats’ ways of self-soothing.

If you are curious what sounds cats hate the most, then click here to read our article about it.

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