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Can you read your cat's tail?

post #1 of 12
4/18/10 at 2:47pm
Thread Starter 
Here are some tips..

http://www.xmission.com/~emailbox/tailtalk.htm
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post #2 of 12
4/18/10 at 10:09pm
Thanks for sharing! I did not know that the twitching tip was a sign of annoyance.
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post #3 of 12
4/18/10 at 10:19pm
It kind of depends on the motion of the twitch as well. The annoyed one is usually a quick twitch. Usually when they are seated they will keep their tail mostly stationary but flick the tip very fast back and forth.

My cats will flick the tip of their tail around when happy too but is a slower and calmer motion when they are happy.

From what I see this is pretty true from my experiences with cats. It also depends on the cat itself. EG will swish his tail back and forth in a large motion when he is happy as well. Which looks like he's angry to someone who doesn't know him.
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post #4 of 12
4/18/10 at 10:42pm
Speaking from experience, I can say that I know my cat's annoyed tail twitch when I see it. I can also tell when she's scared because she will suddenly develop a foofy tail.
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post #5 of 12
4/19/10 at 12:08am
Here, read this tail
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post #6 of 12
4/19/10 at 11:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by sk_pacer View Post
Here, read this tail
My kitty does that tail when she's doing something she knows she shouldn't, like bully our other cat or claw the furniture. I've also seen her make this curly tail when she's outside chasing birds/mice.
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post #7 of 12
4/19/10 at 5:33pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by fisheater View Post
My kitty does that tail when she's doing something she knows she shouldn't, like bully our other cat or claw the furniture. I've also seen her make this curly tail when she's outside chasing birds/mice.
His tail is almost always this way, and his brother is the same. They both can and do straighten the tails but the happier these two are, the flatter to the back that tail goes. It took me a while to read those tails.
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post #8 of 12
4/19/10 at 5:46pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by sk_pacer View Post
Here, read this tail
I haven't seen Charlie doing that kind of tail position
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post #9 of 12
4/19/10 at 6:05pm
You won't see Charlie doing that - some of the cats here have a mutation that curls their tails into a ring
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post #10 of 12
4/20/10 at 7:45pm
Thread Starter 
Mutation? What do you mean?
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post #11 of 12
4/20/10 at 10:40pm
The mutation results in a ringed tail, The tail is perfectly normal and the cats use it the way other cats use theirs, but the tail returns to either flat on the back in the case of Streak, or a ring like his brother has. If something frightens either, that tail will come out of its curl quickly, and when they eat, the tail lies flat on the ground except for the last third which is still curled into a small hook. That tail is also more muscular than a normal tail. There were some people working on registering these cats as American Ringtails

Some tail forms: http://www.messybeast.com/bobtail-cats.html

American Ringtail Cats: http://www.americanringtail.com/
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post #12 of 12
4/25/10 at 11:36am
Thread Starter 
I see, now I understand...
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