What is the ONE complaint that a majority of cat owners have?
The misconception that cats don’t love them back. And I don’t blame them. There’s like a zillion times I’ve wanted to hug or kiss Honey only to get turned down bluntly. But hey, we’re still best friends and I know that my cat loves me too much!
The thing is, cats don’t always display their affection in ways that are obvious. So, it’s good to know the tell-tale signs your kitten loves you.
6 Signs Your Cat Loves you
All it takes is a basic understanding of feline body language and behaviour to know how much your cats love you. Here are 6 obvious signs that I know of.
Rubbing against your leg
In the wild, cats are known to demarcate their territory by rubbing against trees. The idea is to put their scent on the things that are theirs. Most domestic cats rub their heads or bump their head against your leg. In some cases where they feel irresistible love, they will even wrap their tail around your leg. Fortunately, it happens to me quite a lot when I’m in the kitchen. I believe it’s a cat’s equivalent of a human hug. When your cat does this, it’s a proverbial claim that you are “mine”. They sometimes also head bump/face bump when you’re seated. This is the most common way in which cats display affection and also the easiest sign to spot in a loving cat.
Following you everywhere
This one is quite obvious, isn’t it? If your cat follows you into the loo, sleeps near your laptop when you’re working or on the kitchen platform when you’re cooking, it simply means that you are an inseparable part of their life. Reminds me of the Vodafone commercial with the pug 😀
Slow Blink
If you’re in a cheerful mood, your cat will express their love by blinking slowly at you. Many people also call this a cat’s kiss. If your cat makes eye contact with you and slowly blinks multiple times, it’s equivalent to them saying “I Love you”. It works the other way around too. With a loving gaze and a slow blink, you can just as well communicate to your kitty, how much you love them!
Purring
This one’s a bit tricky. Cats do tend to purr a lot under many different circumstances. However, if they start purring when you’re stroking them or cuddled up in bed with them, it means they like what you’re doing.
Exposing their belly
A cat that trusts is the cat that loves. Cats form their relationships based on Trust. When a kitty just rolls over and shows you their belly, means they trust you completely. So much so they’re willing to expose the most vulnerable part of their body to you. Oh, and if they let you caress their belly, it’s love to a whole another level!
Licking & grooming your hair/face
Ever noticed a Mother cat licking her kittens? In cats, it’s a common social practice to lick and groom each other from their family group. When you find your cat licking your hair or any part of your body, it means you’re the chosen one and that they’ve accepted you as a part of their family.
Does my cat love me or just want food?
Each cat has a unique personality and hence may express their love differently. Having said that, your cat isn’t going to love you just because you are their food source. It takes a bit of time to form a bond with your cat and it’s going to take much more than food to form that relationship. If food is just about the only thing you offer without any of the other loving activities such as playing, grooming, talking to them, respecting them etc, then their expectation will be limited to receiving food from you.
However, know them, talk to them and give them enough respect and you’ll be amazed at how much joy they can bring to your life.
Summary
Cats, unlike dogs may give an impression that they don’t give a s*it about their owners and I believe that’s mainly because we as humans have pre-defined ways of perceiving love. We are conditioned to receive it in a certain way, for it to qualify as love.
For example, Dogs are called man’s best friend because we think they know how to love because of how they show love (probably the only other species that shows love in ways we truly understand)
But in reality, every animal species out there is capable of love. And, cats are no exception.
