cat that can't meow, could she have been "demeowed" like they debark dogs?

melesine

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The neighbors cat spends a lot of time at our house and she can't meow. She just makes a cracking kind of noise in her throat. I've never seen this in a cat before and I'm wondering if she could have been "demeowed" like they debark dogs?

Is it possible? Is this a normal variation of cat vocalization? It sounds so odd and is very quiet. 

One of my cats rarely meows but he can if he wants to and he doesn't sound like she does. 
 
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catspaw66

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It sounds like she is a "silent" meower.  Some cats just don't make much noise, just as some are very talky. Wickett had a silent meow.  You would see his mouth open, but no sound.  My Psy had a vocabulary from a cracking noise to bleating like a lamb to THE VOICE.  I don't think they demeow cats as it would serve no purpose.  Dogs are debarked (mutilated) to make them silent attackers.
 
 
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Willowy

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  Dogs are debarked (mutilated) to make them silent attackers.
That's an odd statement. Since a de-barked dog can still bark (just softer--it sounds like a smoker's hack), that doesn't make sense. The only reason I've heard of dogs being de-barked was because the dog was a problem barker, the owner's neighbor's complained, they weren't able to move to a new home, and they thought de-barking was better than getting rid of the dog. And some breeders who routinely de-bark just because it's expected in their breed (Shelties, mainly). It's not a terribly painful or invasive procedure (much less horrible than de-clawing a cat). I'm not for it but as long as it's not done routinely I don't think it's awful.

I can imagine that a cat who is a problem meow-er might run into the same neighbor problems. But I don't know if a cat's vocal cords are the same as a dog's or if devocalization is possible in cats. I really doubt that's what happened anyway. Maybe she swallowed something that damaged her throat or burned herself or something like that. Or maybe she's just a mute kitty :). I'm sure that kind of thing happens naturally occasionally.
 

jessica00

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i know what you mean, when i was picking out my cat in a batch of kittens, there was this one kitten who couldnt seem to meow it was almost like a squeaking airy sound, she came from a pretty shady pet store so it wouldnt surprise me if it was health related
 
 

whollycat

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My Izzy is like this to a degree. I'll see her mouth open and know that she is meowing, but unless I'm holding her when she "meows" I only hear a very faint meow. Same goes for her purring; very quiet. Also if she chatters at birds, I just see her mouth moving with a very faint clicky-chatter. Way different from my two boys, and it took some getting used to.


One thing with Izzy is that she'd been shot in the neck and body with a bb-gun when she was a wee little kitten. I don't know if this had any effect on her meow. The bb's had all been removed a few years ago right after I rescued her. I still get so sad for what she had to endure before she came to us. She's the most loving little miss in the whole world!

I wonder if this kitty is just a quiet meow-er, or had some past trauma as my Izzy did?
 

niecyt

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I rescued a cat that was near starvation, had never been neutered and can't meow. He makes a hissing type noise but tries to meow. It sounds like a cat with laryngitis. He hisses just fine, purrs normal, just doesn't make much sound when he meows. I have taken him in had all his shots, neutered him and he was tested for the leukemia virus. He he is healthy, fat now and happy and healthy, but still can't meow loudly.
 

blueyedgirl5946

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I don't think there is anything odd about it.  Our cat, Muffin opens his mouth and just a little sound comes out.  I don't know what you would call it, but it is not a meow.  He has been that way for as long as we have had him, almost ten years.
 
 

peer jones

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Kat-Kat (aka Flash) is real quiet, 'talks' rather than meows (really sound like he's trying to talk sometimes, very strange noises-German maybe?
)

He was abandoned very young, I think he learned that being loud was hazardous?

Kitten on the other hand (aka Pauli) is REALLY LOUD even though she's only half the size (and third the weight) of Kat
 
 
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