• Question: How do cats make the purring sound?

    Asked by tallulahblue to Pete, Rebecca, SallyB, Sally, Sian on 17 Jun 2010 in Categories: . This question was also asked by anonymous2.
    • Photo: Sally Fenton

      Sally Fenton answered on 17 Jun 2010:

      Cats purr because they can’t roar! Cat’s are part of the same family as lions so there purring sound is equivalent to the roar of a lion…it is their physical reaction to happiness…like when humans are happy they smile :).

      The way a cats body is made up means they are able to purr. They have a special kind of “wiring” which travels from the brain to the muscles in the voice box (humans have a voice box aswell..it is how we talk). These wires are able to vibrate the muscles in the voice box. the muscles then work as a type of valve for air which travels thorugh the voice box and when the air passess through these valves they open and close really quickly..an bt like a vibration…and it makes the purring sound we hear! These muscles work when cats breathe and out which makes it ound like cats purr all the time.

    • Photo: Peter Styring

      Peter Styring answered on 17 Jun 2010:

      cats produce the purr through intermittent movement of the laryngeal and diaphragmatic muscles. It’s a form of communication as well as a method for transferring energy around the body when the cat is asleep.

    • Photo: Rebecca Randell

      Rebecca Randell answered on 17 Jun 2010:

      It turns out that cats have special wiring! The wiring travels from the brain to the muscles in the voice box, and this wiring is able to vibrate the muscles so that they act as a valve for air flowing past the voice box. The muscles work both during inhalation and exhalation, which creates the impression that cats can purr continuously.

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