Yawning is a common involuntary behavior. Scientists have not yet figured out the exact reason why cats yawn, despite how common it is. Some theories as to why your cat yawns when he sees you are worth considering.
The cat will yawn when it sees you because it feels content and comfortable. This is a way to show that your pet is completely relaxed in your presence. Yawning is your cat's way of getting more oxygen and waking up as she wants to regain her energy and is ready to spend time with you. Of course, some cats just want to sleep.
Some experts suggest that cats yawn as a unique form of communication. Yawning works like body language to get your attention, except for actual meowing. In most situations, an occasional yawn means that the cat is relaxed.
Your cat needs more air
Sometimes cats open their mouths wide and yawn to take deep breaths. This may indicate that your pet is having difficulty breathing.
If you notice that your cat is yawning a lot, it's probably a good idea to take her to the vet as soon as possible. While this may not be dangerous, it's worth being on the safe side just in case.
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Many people yawn when they stretch, which is completely normal. However, this is their way of getting more oxygen. This is usually not something you should worry about unless it is accompanied by some abnormal behavior.
Stressful situations
Under the influence of factors that frighten a cat, significant amounts of hormones are released into the blood, bringing the body into full readiness to fight difficulties. Such situations can often be observed when visiting a veterinarian, for example, or while traveling in a vehicle with an animal previously unfamiliar with open spaces.
In addition to yawning, cats sometimes begin to breathe with their mouths open, which does not occur under normal conditions. This indicates a special degree of stressful tension and enormous fear.
If possible, all necessary manipulations should be performed with maximum speed in order to minimize the total duration of the pet’s state of shock.
Boredom
Another explanation for a kitten yawning is that it is bored. Cats can get bored and anxious, just like their owners.
If you don't give your cat enough attention or play with him every day, boredom can quickly creep in. Almost all animals breathe deeply when they are stimulated in some way. If your pet doesn't get enough mental and physical stimulation, he may start yawning.
It's important to make sure your fuzzy friend gets the attention he deserves every day. You should take time to play with your cat, especially if it seems like she might be bored.
You may interpret this behavior as your cat trying to tell you that she needs to be entertained and that this is partly your responsibility.
Why and how cats purr: we understand the usual “business” for cats
We yawn when we wake up in the morning and fall asleep in the evening. We yawn during boring meetings and during long pauses. We yawn as soon as someone nearby yawns. It would seem that such a habitual reflex, or a ritual. But it’s surprising: researchers are still confused about the reasons for its appearance.
What is yawning?
Yawning is a breathing process that occurs involuntarily with a long, deep inhalation and a relatively quick exhalation. The mouth, as a rule, is wide open and this breathing action is accompanied by a peculiar sound, and for some, tears also appear reflexively.
The process of yawning is in most cases a normal physiological phenomenon that appears when there is a lack of oxygen, stressful situations, overwork, but it can be a sign of certain diseases in the body.
Causes
The most common version is that yawning is a protective mechanism that allows the brain to relieve fatigue by invigorating itself with a fresh dose of oxygen, and at the same time getting rid of excess carbon dioxide.
Statistics and research support this hypothesis: people are most likely to yawn at times when their gray matter is tired and clearly in need of rest - for example, in the evening after a hard day at work, during a boring meeting, or during an overly complex lecture.
A yawn is essentially the same as inhaling, allowing the lungs and blood to become saturated with oxygen. However, as it turned out, people yawn even if they are given pure oxygen for breathing - that is, the reflex opening of the mouth is in no way associated with hypoxia (lack of oxygen). With what then?
Our gray matter works on a similar principle: with prolonged or intense work, its temperature rises, which impairs connections between neurons and ultimately has a destructive effect on thinking.
Therefore, the brain needs cooling - this can be facilitated by an open window or a walk in the park, a glass of cool water, or (since neither the walk nor the glass is shining) a sweet yawn.
In principle, the cooling theory is confirmed by experiments. For example, volunteers who had an ice compress applied to their forehead while watching boring movies yawned 2 times less often than a group of volunteers without a cooling compress. So, if you feel like you're gaping, be sure to note: Your brain is overheated and would benefit from a walk in the fresh air.
This cannot be explained either by oxygen starvation or overheating of the brain, because everyone’s physiological processes occur individually, which means they cannot be simultaneous. This means that the reflex has some other meaning. And he was actually discovered after stumbling upon another fact.
Yawning in people begins not only with visual contact with someone yawning nearby: often, to start the process, you just need to think about yawning, read about it, or hear the specific sound of yawning. It follows from this that a reflex is not always a physiological process, but also a mental one.
After conducting research, scientists came to the conclusion that yawning is contagious due to mirror neurons.
These neurons are responsible for the ability to imitate (for example, when learning foreign languages) and empathize. They force us to consciously experience the emotions of other people, which is actually called empathy.
Roughly speaking: You yawn means you have empathy and are able to function in social groups. It is assumed that our ancient ancestors in this way determined “their own” - those with whom we could play in a team.
By the way, as experiments show, children under 4 years of age and those who suffer from autism are not subject to mirror yawning: they have not yet learned to act according to social laws.
However, interesting facts about yawning are not limited to this.
Interesting Facts
Yawning can be “infected” both from person to person and from person to dog. Research by Swedish scientists proves that dogs can yawn when yawning people come into their field of vision, and the older the dog, the more prone it is to reflexive imitation, and yawning is not transmitted to puppies less than 7 months of age.
If we talk about spontaneous, non-imitative yawning, then different animals have their own reasons for it. The same dogs often “reflect” when they are nervous - for example, when they find themselves in an unusual environment.
While waiting for lunch at the zoo, the lions begin to yawn intensely. Hyenas - when preparing to attack a victim. Many monkeys, by opening their mouths wide, show their superiority in a pack of relatives.
But herbivores yawn much less often than cold-blooded and carnivorous animals. For example, it is extremely rare to see a horse, cow, camel or hare yawning. This, by the way, leads scientists to the idea that yawning may be somehow connected with the level of intellectual development: those creatures whose IQ is higher yawn more often than “silly ones.”
What could frequent yawning be a sign of?
Frequent yawning in itself cannot be a sign of any disease. Its appearance can be triggered by lack of sleep, fatigue, stress, nervousness, overeating, and boredom. In this case, this is a normal reaction of the body to such factors. Once they are removed, yawning will return to normal. By the way, a person yawns at least 10 times during the day.
The presence of other symptoms with frequent yawning may be a sign of illness. For example, with constant drowsiness and frequent yawning, a possible diagnosis is vegetative-vascular dystonia or cardiac arrhythmia.
Dizziness with blurred vision, increased body temperature along with frequent yawning may be a harbinger of an epileptic seizure.
How to overcome yawning?
There are situations when yawning is inappropriate. There are several ways to deal with it:
- When the next yawn approaches, you need to take a deep breath through your mouth and exhale through your nose.
- Many people find that taking a sip of water or wetting their lips with it helps.
- Adequate sleep prevents frequent yawning.
- Exercising will keep the body alert, saturating it with oxygen. You can do squats, push-ups or other physical exercises to tone your body.
- Proper nutrition and drinking the required amount of water throughout the day prevents frequent yawning.
- Don't slouch. Smooth posture contributes to the full filling of the lungs with oxygen. When your back is bent, the diaphragm is not completely saturated with air, which can cause increased yawning.
- Walking in the fresh air, ventilating the room, and quitting smoking will help get rid of causeless yawning.
Discomfort
There is a chance that your cat is yawning due to some kind of discomfort. Some cats yawn if they experience pain, especially in the mouth. This could be anything from a toothache to a sore mouth.
If you notice that your cat is drooling excessively and yawning a lot, it's time to visit your veterinarian. It is very likely that something is wrong with them and needs to be sorted out.
You should also pay attention if your cat seems to be pawing at the mouth. This could very well mean that they are in pain for some reason. In this case, the cat may attack if you try to touch its mouth. These are all signs that something is wrong with them.
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How to help an animal with frequent yawning?
If your cat yawns frequently, you need to analyze the cause of this condition and eliminate the problem.
- Provide peace and quiet to the animal if it does not get enough rest or does not get enough sleep.
- Reconsider the diet towards something lighter and more easily digestible if your cat constantly yawns after eating.
- Provide the cat with more attention, active games, physical or intellectual exercise if he is bored at home without his owner.
- Protect the animal from stress as much as possible. In the event of a suspected tense situation, give him a sedative - drops, tablets, or use calming drops on the withers or a diffuser.
- If unusual changes in behavior occur due to yawning or other alarming symptoms, it is important to immediately consult a veterinarian.
One of the popular sayings is that cats yawn when the weather is clear and warm.
Now you know why cats yawn. Did the imitative reflex work for you? How many times did you yawn while reading this article and looking at photographs of touchingly yawning pets?
Your cat imitates you
There is a known phenomenon among people when one person yawns if he sees another doing it. The scientific term for this is “mirror neuron response.” Some researchers believe this could even happen between two different species.
This means that your cat may yawn simply because it notices you yawning. Next time you find yourself yawning in the same room as your kitten, take a quick look to see if they've copied you. It may seem far-fetched, but it's definitely not the strangest theory about cat yawning.
Reasons why a cat yawns
The reasons why a cat yawns can be very diverse. But they are caused either by physiological reasons or psychological.
Natural causes
Natural causes of yawning in cats include all physiological and behavioral processes that require rapid enrichment of the body with oxygen.
After waking up
During sleep, your cat's metabolism slows down. The work of all organs proceeds in an energy-saving mode. The animal's body is relaxed. Oxygen consumption is reduced. When an animal awakens, it must quickly prepare itself. Dispel the fogginess of perception, put the muscles in order, because relaxation is the first enemy of any animal, as it threatens trouble. Stretching and yawning help a cat quickly restore the functioning of all parts of the brain and the body as a whole. Stretching warms up stiff muscles, increases blood circulation, and yawning provides an influx of oxygen.
By yawning, a cat supplies the body with a large portion of oxygen, and stretching stimulates blood circulation in the muscles.
Before physical activity
Yawning before physical activity replaces the cat's warm-up. If a person warms up his muscles with a set of exercises, then a cat prepares itself by yawning.
Before going to bed
Everyone yawns before going to bed. Drowsiness occurs only when the entire body requires recharging in the form of sleep. Having exhausted all energy reserves, it must be restored by shutting down. But during sleep, all processes slow down very much, so by yawning the body increases the amount of oxygen that will be required to maintain the functioning of all systems. This process is identical for all living beings.
Yawning before bed will provide the body with an influx of oxygen, which is required for the operation of all systems while the cat sleeps
Video: everyone yawns
Stress
During stress, there is a sharp release of adrenaline into the blood, contraction of blood vessels throughout the body, and increased heart rate. Stress is caused by fear, aggression, pain. This process is also the same throughout the animal world. The breakdown products of chemicals entering the blood can cause intoxication of the body. In this case, yawning is a great help. By saturating the blood with oxygen, it helps rid the body of harmful impurities and improve the functioning of all sensory organs: vision, hearing, smell and touch. Stressed yawning is easily distinguishable, as it occurs against the background of unusual situations for the cat (for example, a visit to the veterinarian) and has a high repetition rate.
After meal
Nature dictates that spending a lot of time on the digestion process is detrimental to a cat. She cannot afford to lie quietly and wait for it to end. Of course, this does not apply to pets, but there is no escape from the reflex developed over millennia of evolution. Therefore, yawning helps the cat cope with digestion faster, again by saturating the blood with oxygen.
There is another reason why representatives of the cat world yawn. This is a demonstration of one’s leadership position at the hierarchical levels of the community. By yawning, a cat shows its superiority, in this process all its teeth are perfectly demonstrated.
Forced reasons
Forced causes of yawning include various pathological processes in the body, as well as the impact of meteorological phenomena.
Diseases
When a neurotic disease occurs, the cat often yawns. Moreover, the yawns are short, frequent, convulsive. As a rule, this symptom is not isolated. There is a group of signs:
- scratching;
- head tremor;
- frequent swallowing.
First of all, the veterinarian will suspect not just stress, the examination will be aimed at identifying a brain tumor. The fact is that the reason for yawning in this case is not a lack of oxygen, but the pressure of the tumor on certain areas of the brain and their irritation, which causes the yawning reflex.
By yawning, a cat partially relieves stress and pain.
Changes in atmospheric pressure
Cats, just like people, can be weather dependent. Changes in atmospheric pressure cause the same headaches as in humans. It has already been proven that some cats suffer from hypertension, which worsens when atmospheric pressure drops. Cats are more sensitive to this, so they react by yawning, trying to restore the blood supply to the body's cells with an influx of oxygen.
There is a popular belief: a cat yawns often - a sign of warm, clear weather.
Imitative reflex
Cats that have a strong bond with their owner are sensitive to the physical condition of a person. They are no strangers to responding to people's behavior. When someone nearby yawns, the interlocutor involuntarily begins to yawn too. So are cats. Being close to the owner, their reflex is triggered, and the cat yawns, imitating the owner.
Causes
Cat breeders have identified several reasons for this behavior:
- It is believed that no matter what age a cat is, it remains a kitten at heart. Being small, the future cat feeds on milk, which it has to obtain through constant pressure on the mammary gland. In adulthood, the cat's caring mother is replaced by a mistress or owner, and therefore the habit of trampling passes on to them. This is how the cat shows that it trusts the person, is under his protection and is grateful for it.
- Since its inception, the cat has developed its main character trait – independence. She provided herself with food and arranged her “life” absolutely independently. And in order for a bed of grass or leaves to be soft in the wild, she had to trample with her paws to level the bed, make it soft and comfortable. The ritual, performed many times, has become an instinct in a cat that has become a pet. Climbing onto the owner's lap, the furry pet purrs, caresses, closes its eyes, and performs all these manipulations unconsciously, instinctively.
- Although it is believed that a cat is attached to the house, and a dog to its owner, a cat will never trample a stranger. And in the family, the animal will choose only one member to whom it will give such a massage. On the paws, between the pads in which the claws are hidden, the cat has sweat glands. With repeated pressure, a special secretion is released from the glands, with which the pet marks “its” owner. Thus, laying claim to it.
- A cat sitting on its lap and quietly snoring demonstrates the highest pleasure and gratitude. It has been noticed that such positive emotions are transmitted to the owner, causing a state of calm and tranquility. The feeling of joy helps to cope with diseases of the heart, nervous system, and blood vessels. At the moment of highest pleasure, the cat begins to purr, its body vibrates, producing a kind of massage. That's why the cat is called a natural healer.
- But such a session is necessary not only for the owner or hostess. This is how cats relieve their stress. After all, these pets, like people, can experience nervous tension, stress, and pain. Trampling with paws becomes the key to happiness and peace, and the endorphin released during this process causes a state of joy and euphoria.
Forced reasons
Yawning is always a lack of oxygen. The owner should be alerted by the pet's frequent yawning, state of apathy, lethargy. After all, yawning can be a sign of illness:
- changes in atmospheric pressure can cause high or low blood pressure in a cat, cause headaches, vomiting, and lack of appetite;
- neurological disorders - neuroses, brain tumors - cause oxygen starvation of the brain and, by yawning, the animal somewhat relieves its well-being.
Many owners are touched when their cat yawns, stretches, sits down, and an absolutely satisfied expression spreads across her face. Have you ever wondered why four-legged animals yawn, does this reflex matter for the life of the animal? Let's figure it out.
How to get rid of yawning, recommendations
To stop your pet from yawning you need to:
1) Allow the animal to get enough sleep, that is, organize a daily routine.
2) Provide physical activity, namely, play more. The latter is easily achievable if you use special toys for cats , which allow you to use all muscle groups in the body of the mustachioed tabby.
3 Balance your diet. Food should be easily digestible
4) Try to reduce the number of stressful situations. If such problems occur, use special herbal preparations to relieve tension, fear, stress, allowing the four-legged animal to relax.
5) Be regularly examined by a veterinary specialist; in case of illness, carry out treatment measures in a timely manner.
What happens when a cat yawns?
Yawning in a cat is an uncontrolled respiratory process of the body, consisting of a deep, slow inhalation and a quick, sharp exhalation. The result of the process is the enrichment of blood with oxygen and an increase in the rate of vascular blood exchange in the brain. And this leads to the enrichment of brain cells with nutrients coming from the bloodstream and cleansing them of carbon dioxide and harmful substances. Consciousness becomes clearer, well-being improves, some lightness appears in the body, and stress is relieved.
Physiology and psychology of cats - features
How do you feel if you yawn in a crowded place? Some people don’t care, what’s the big deal, some are embarrassed, but cats feel superior. Yes, by yawning and confident gait, four-legged animals demonstrate who is in charge in the territory , showing their strength and readiness to use it.
If you've watched films about wildlife, you've probably seen a lion basking in the sun, contemplating the pride and yawning widely. Perhaps it’s a matter of falling drowsiness, but more often than not, the behavior of the king of beasts indicates to his subordinates their status.
Note! When a cat yawns, it shows off its teeth and muscle mass.
Many people who observe their feelings confirm that after yawning, consciousness clears, the quality of well-being improves, there is a feeling of lightness and a decrease in stress levels. Yawning is especially important in a stressful situation, when the body works hard, a person yawns without even noticing it.
And it happens that after a serious quarrel or conflict, one of the participants begins to feel sleepy, a depressed state sets in, and appetite disappears - all these are the consequences of oxygen starvation. The body had a hard time because it lacked oxygen, and the person, “spurred on” by adrenaline, screamed (actively consumed oxygen) and did not yawn.
In a dream, the cat’s body is at rest, the immune system is working at full strength, but all organs are “resting.” Against the background of relaxation, blood flow in the animal’s body weakens and the oxygen content in the blood decreases. After waking up, the cat yawns and stretches to quickly get into shape and saturate its body with oxygen . The cat performs similar actions reflexively every time an oxygen deficiency is created.
This is interesting! The process of yawning is inherent in all living beings, even fish.
When a cat yawns, he is preparing for physical activity. Most cats hunt by waiting for prey and making a dash, and the games of four-legged animals are always somewhat reminiscent of hunting. During a jerk, the duration and speed of running depends only on the animal’s heart muscle; more precisely, a cat will not be able to run faster or longer if the heart does not provide the brain with oxygen. Yawning before the jerk, the tailed one seems to feed the blood with oxygen for its rapid, sharp and voluminous consumption.
Note! During stretching and yawning, the muscles are actively saturated with oxygen.
Yawning in the evening, according to the owner, indicates that the cat wants to sleep, but often this cliché is not true. All cats, even those born and raised in an apartment, are active at night and quieter during the day - this is an instinct. Even if your pet has adjusted to your rhythm of life, he will yawn in the evening and most often not in anticipation of sleep, but to warm up before any activity.
Some owners are perplexed how it turns out that during the day their cats are very calm, and in the evening they begin to run along the walls - this is the very instinct of night activity, it is absolutely natural and needs to be tolerated.
