Cats ‘shout’ more at men

Cats are louder towards males.

Researchers from Ankara University filmed 31 cats and their humans in their homes using chest-mounted cameras to capture those first precious seconds when their owners walked through the door.

While cats meowed an average of 4.3 times to their male owners in the first 100 seconds, this number was only 1.8 for women.

That’s apparently more than twice the vocal effort it takes just to get one guy to look up and say, “Oh, hey, man.”

The team’s theory is clear: Women are better at chatting with their cats.

Female owners tend to use “cat-directed speech,” which is baby talk, singing nonsense that cats absolutely adore, and they are much more responsive to cats’ cues.

“It is therefore possible that male caregivers require more distinctive vocalizations to recognize and respond to their cats’ needs,” the researchers wrote in Ethology.

But it wasn’t just about the noise. The team also documented all of the cat’s welcome rituals: erect tails, eager approaches, and allorovation = the affectionate head-butt movement that makes you wear your cat’s scent like a badge of honor.

And despite jokes that cats are just in it for the food, the study found their greetings don’t come from food. No; the animals looked genuinely happy or relieved that their humans were back.

Other research supports how complex cat communication really is. Turns out people are terrible at reading them.

One study showed that people can barely distinguish between relaxed and stressed cats.

Another feline found has nearly 300 facial expressions, from slowly blinking “I love you” to “I’m going to finish you” with flattened ears.