I can't hear my cat purr.

[MsFortunaMajor]

Just as the title says, I can't hear my cat purr. Or rather, his purr is too quiet to hear. The only way I know he actually does purr is by putting my ear to his neck/shoulder area to hear the very quiet rumblings of his purring. He has no issue communicating through meows and chirps, he is quite vocal in that respect. He was rescued as a stray at about six months old by the RSPCA. We've had him for over two years now and he is a very happy cat. But the purring issue is still puzzling to me. Is it unusual? My previous cat had such a loud purr, and he would purr for extended periods of time as well.

Some cats are just quiet. My two have the loudest purrs I've ever heard. Can you feel it if you have your hand on him? He's lovely.

Aw he's a lovely cat! Very nice shark house too

I have two cats. One purrs incredibly loudly whilst the other is an extremely quiet purrer that can hardly be heard unless I put an ear on his tummy. I guess some people have louder voices and so do cats.

My cat can't miaow. He tries so had but nope. If he is truly desperate he makes a quack.

All cats are odd in their own way.

One of mine is quite loud, but his sister is so quiet the only way I know she is purring is feeling the vibrations in her throat when I scritch her there. She is very much the more vocal of the 2 in all other ways.

Mugga, one of mine can only quack, I have had he almost two years and she's only just finding her voice. (She's 7) it is really cute. She also squeaks.

Some just pure louder than others. Current cat was completely mute for several months when we go him as an adult rescue. He then started with a few tiny squeaks and now provides a running commentary on everything he's doing!

Is he okay in himself? Has he always had quiet purrs? Without alarming you my cat Troy when he was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy his lungs would fill with fluid and he was unable to purr. He would have to go to the vets for a chest drain.

I think all cars are just different when it comes to volume.

A previous cat had a purr so loud, it sounded like a mini motorbike revving up!

Another had a silent miaow. She would go through the motions of miaowing, her mouth would open like she was going to do a big miaow, but no sound came out.

My cat has an incredibly quiet purr, although he also has an exceptionally loud miaow, and is super vocal. I think he's taken pity on me though, and now sits on my head so I can hear him purr. He can't purr and swallow either apparently, so I tend to get a lot of dribble down my neck.

One of my cats has a mega-loud rumbling purr; the other's is barely audible .

One of my girls hardly purrs and when she does it's so quiet. My very old boy purrs like a motor and doesn't stop talking. He even wakes himself up with all his noise!

Mine purrs loudly but his miaow is hardly there.

My girl has an interior purr too. I used to put my ear to hear, or rather feel, it. She's started to purr audibly more recently, but never for long. She was a rescue and we got her when she was two, so we wondered if it was something to do with how she was socialised as a kitten.

• put my ear to her side

I have 2, my boy cat has a really loud purr but my girl has a very quiet purr. She is more chatty and talks to me in miows, chirrups and brurrs all the time.

I have 2, my boy cat has a really loud purr but my girl has a very quiet purr. She is more chatty and talks to me in miows, chirrups and brurrs all the time.

My cat purrs but doesn't really miaow. She occasionally does a very quiet miaow if she's stressed or hurt but it's a pathetic little noise. She does chirp at flies occasionally and coos like a pigeon most of the time. I wouldn't worry, cats make a range of different noises. My neighbour's cat has an outrageously loud miaow, I think it embarrasses mine because she's got no hope of competing.

My two can't meow, lots of chirps and squeaks but no meows. They do both purr oh and snore like beasts

I have a nearly two year old cat that doesn't purr, she meows very rarely (normally when she has got shut in a wardrobe) but her snores could wake the dead! Some cats just purr on the inside.

SisterCat has no voice generally! It's like watching a cat in a silent movie! Purring is very rare, and when she does, its broken - a few seconds of sound, as if it's catching in her throat, silence for a while and then a few more seconds of sound!

Yesterday, she lay on my chest and purred properly for the first time ever!

Layla is ridiculously vocal - she squeaks, miaows, snores and purrs - it's very rare to hear silence from her direction! She's an oriental breed so I think it's just down to genetics.

Purrlock is silent unless he's miaowing for food. He doesn't snore, and you can only feel him purring if you put your hand on him, or really listen with your ear on his tummy (if he doesn't maul you to death first!)

All cats are different :)