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The Blinking Game

post #1 of 9
12/18/11 at 8:27am
Thread Starter 

The blinking game - face to face with the kitten you blink slowly and look away then back - is totally lost on all three of my cats.  I've tried it multiple times with all three of them and no one EVER blinks back!  I just had Joni in my lap with her looking up at me, and I blinked for at least five minutes - she just stared at me.  I'm not sure if I'm doing it incorrectly or if my glasses are in the way or they just collectively decided they'd be different from all the other millions of cats on the planet. 

 

Do your cats play the blinking game?  Any advice?

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post #2 of 9
12/18/11 at 11:13am
Your glasses really shouldn't make a difference as long as they're not too reflective. I normally have luck with most cats when I blink, even though I usually don't look away between blinks. Jamie loves the blinking game and usually "coos" during it. Miezi remains quiet, but blinks back.
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post #3 of 9
12/18/11 at 7:56pm

Monet blinks a few times with me, then he turns away. Cassie prefers to talk than to blink, lol. guess it depends on the cat!

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post #4 of 9
12/18/11 at 8:46pm

Dexter and I do several binks to each  as an OK to hop on my lap.biggrin.gif

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post #5 of 9
12/19/11 at 12:23am

Just one blink.  I think if you blink more than once they probably get worried and think something is wrong with you.   Its like someone that won't stop waving even after you've waved back.  bigwink.gif

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post #6 of 9
12/19/11 at 3:03pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ducman69 View Post

Just one blink.  I think if you blink more than once they probably get worried and think something is wrong with you.   Its like someone that won't stop waving even after you've waved back.  bigwink.gif

laughing02.gifwavey.gif
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post #7 of 9
12/19/11 at 9:05pm

Parker blinks at me when I do it...Buddy usually just stares at me like I am idiot. He has done it occasionally but it took him almost 2 years before he got it.

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post #8 of 9
12/20/11 at 12:41am

I was told blinking is love squints.

I had only one female who told me this way. We use to give love squints to each other from across the room

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post #9 of 9
12/20/11 at 5:40am
In a feral colony, cats slowly blink their eyes at each other as a form of greeting. It is a sign of acceptance between cats and usually calms down a cat.

In my household, I have only 2 cats (Pinky and Lucky) that consistently respond to eye blinking, and by responding, I mean they blink back at me. I don't know if this is related, but of all of my cats, these were the 2 that lived outside in the feral colony the longest before I got them inside my house to socialize. That leads me to believe that it might be somewhat of a learned behavior and not entirely instinctual. Cats learn quickest at an early age, and if they weren't taught that behavior when they were young, it can take longer as an adult to learn it (such as the case of LuvMyParker's Buddy).

For those that don't know my cats, all of mine were born in feral colonies. Some were socialized at a younger age than others. The ones that were orphaned at an early age don't eye blink at all.
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