All the movements of a cat, when feeling affectionate, are in complete
antithesis to those just described. She now stands upright, with
slightly arched back, tail perpendicularly raised, and ears erected;
and she rubs her cheeks and flanks against her master or mistress. The
desire to rub something is so strong in cats under this state of mind,
that they may often be seen rubbing themselves against the legs of
chairs or tables, or against door-posts. This manner of expressing
affection probably originated through association, as in the case of
dogs, from the mother nursing and fondling her young; and perhaps from
the young themselves loving each other and playing together. Another
and very different gesture, expressive of pleasure, has already been
described, namely, the curious manner in which young and even old cats,
when pleased, alternately protrude their fore-feet, with separated
toes, as if pushing against and sucking their mother s teats. This
habit is so far analogous to that of rubbing against something, that
both apparently are derived from actions performed during the nursing
period. Why cats should show affection by rubbing so much more than do
dogs, though the latter delight in contact with their masters, and why
cats only occasionally lick the hands of their friends, whilst dogs
always do so, I cannot say. Cats cleanse themselves by licking their
own coats more regularly than do dogs. On the other hand, their tongues
seem less well fitted for the work than the longer and more flexible
tongues of dogs.
Cat Terrified at a Dog. Fig.15
Cats, when terrified, stand at full height, and arch their backs in a
well-known and ridiculous fashion. They spit, hiss, or growl. The hair
over the whole body, and especially on the tail, becomes erect. In the
instances observed by me the basal part of the tail was held upright,
the terminal part being thrown on one side; but sometimes the tail (see
fig. 15) is only a little raised, and is bent almost from the base to
one side. The ears are drawn back, and the teeth exposed. When two
kittens are playing together, the one often thus tries to frighten the
other. From what we have seen in former chapters, all the above points
of expression are intelligible, except the extreme arching of the back.
I am inclined to believe that, in the same manner as many birds, whilst
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