Subscribe to Your Pets UniverseNews Feed

Learn the Cat Tail Language

January 22, 2012 by  
Filed under Cat Tail Language

Cats are highly communicative animals and the way your cat moves its tail is a language unto itself. Your Cat’s tail movements serve as words to the discerning cat owner, who is then able to gauge the emotions of their beloved pet. In fact, cat tail wagging works in telling you various things with varying degrees of emphasis. Below is a decoding of the cat tail language and the cat tail meaning.

cat tail language - waggingWhen you observe the tail of your cat, you will sometimes notice that it shakes or quivers. This cat tail movement may mean various things depending on how fast and the area at which the tail is quivering. Mild irritation is typically denoted by a quick shiver of the tip of the tail. On the other hand, when your cat is feeling happy or frisky, they are likely to show this by an all over shiver of their tail.

When your cat swishes their tail back and forth, this is when they are at their most primal state. When in the wild, cats stalking prey are known to swish their tails back and forth to encourage their prey to move. Once this happens, the cat will zero in on the prey and attack. This cat tail wagging means the same thing when your house cat flips their tail quickly back and forth.

Take the time to observe your cat’s tail at a moment when they are relaxed. You will cat tail language-happy catfind that they will often wave their tail from side to side. This is a movement that means that your cat is happy and is hoping for some loving attention.

On the other hand, when your cat flips their tail quickly, this means that they are ready to attack you if you do not back off at once. This is typically meant as a warning to you that they have been petted enough and would now like to be left alone. At this point, you are better off leaving them alone until they relax.

When you cat strolls around with its tail held high, this is a message to let everyone in the vicinity know that he is present and in charge. This is a healthy signal that demonstrates that you cat feels like they belong, and that they are happy and contented.

On the other hand, when the cat’s tail is lowered and fluffed out, this means that at that moment the cat is very afraid of something. During sleep, if your cat flips their tail, this is normally because they are dreaming. This cute action could signify that they are hunting in their dream.