Cat Bite Abscesses: Why Fight Wounds on Legs and Paws Get Infected
A small puncture from a fight can seal over and quietly turn into a swollen, painful abscess days later. Here's why it happens and what treatment involves.
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Diabetic Neuropathy in Cats: Why Some Cats Start Walking on Their Hocks
A cat dropping down to walk flat-footed instead of up on its toes is showing a recognized, and often reversible, complication of uncontrolled diabetes.
Arthritis in Cats: Why Limping Is Rarely the First Sign
Studies suggest most senior cats have some degree of joint disease, yet only a small fraction ever actually limp. Here's what to watch for instead.
Why Do Cats' Pupils Change Size? What Dilated and Slit Eyes Really Mean
Pupil size is doing two jobs at once: controlling light, and broadcasting fear, excitement, or focus. Here's the research behind both, and why cats have slit pupils at all.
What Is the Flehmen Response? Why Cats Make That Weird "Stinky Face"
The open-mouthed grimace a cat makes after sniffing something interesting isn't disgust. It's a second scent organ at work, and it's been documented since the 1970s.
The Feline Grimace Scale: How Vets Read Pain in a Cat's Face
Cats are built to hide pain, but a validated facial scoring system, developed at the University of Montreal, can catch it without ever touching the cat.
Why Do Cats Chirp and Chatter at Birds? The Prey Frustration Theory Explained
That rapid jaw-clicking at the window has a few competing explanations, from frustrated hunting instinct to a documented case of prey mimicry in a wild relative.
Why Do Cats Yowl at Night? Common Causes in Young and Senior Cats
In a young cat it's often just attention-seeking. In a senior cat, new nighttime yowling is a recognized sign of cognitive decline or an overactive thyroid.
Why Do Cats Meow at Humans but Not at Each Other?
Adult cats rarely meow at other cats. The meow is largely a human-directed sound, and the research behind that finding goes back to a 2002 Cornell study.
What Is Cat Trilling? The Chirrup Sound Explained
That short, rolling "brrp" sound cats make on the way over to greet you starts as mother-to-kitten communication and often sticks around for life.
Why Do Cats Wiggle Their Butt Before Pouncing?
It's one of the most recognizable pre-pounce signals a cat gives, and also one of the least formally studied. Here's the honest state of what's actually known.
Why Do Cats Twitch or Kick When Petted Near the Base of the Tail?
For most cats it's a harmless, sensitive-spot reflex. For a smaller number, it's feline hyperesthesia syndrome, a distinct condition Cornell researchers describe in detail.