Do cats learn from other cats?

[PinkSparklyPussyCat]

Ever since a Bengal moved in next door Harry has become extremely vocal. He doesn't seem remotely stressed, just loud! He woke me up at 4.30 this morning singing the song of his people so I let him out in the garden and he sat outside having a good old meow then he settled down.

Is he taking lessons from the Bengal? Is that even possible?

I definitely think this is a thing! We had two boys, both very very different, one vocal, affectionate and a purr-er, the other quiet, a bit standoffish and not. The quiet boy “learned” that singing the song of his people got him more attention and took up a duet with his brother.

If you’re sure there’s nothing wrong then there’s nothing to be done but put up with it I’m afraid

That's what I was thinking. I was worried about his thyroid but he's got no other symptoms and he had a thorough check up at the vet in May. It only started when the Bengal moved in so I think he's thinking he's some kind of pedigree!

I think they do learn. I’ve also seen a hunting cat teach one who didn’t know what they were doing.

BTW I love your user name!

Bugger, I'm stuck with it aren't I? I'm toying with letting him stay out all nigh as the garden is cat proofed so I know where he is. The problem with that is he's hardly stealthy when he uses the cat flap, I'm sure it'll come off it's hinges one day!

Haha, thank you!! By the sounds of it he simply won’t tolerate you being able to ignore his presence in any way. He’s obviously reminding you of your place in the pecking order, and never shall you forget it

After seeing Col show Dexter how to climb trees ..... yes

nextdoors dcat taught our dcat taught our cat how to flick clothes pegs off the washing linr

Well mum cats teach their kittens - so it follows that cats can learn from other cats.
My older two have definitely taught the three youngest ones a few things. One copies and follows Mr cat all over the boat, another follows Mr cats sister and watches her and has learnt the outside rules from her.
Convert the older two watch over and are protective of the younger three.
They are not related.

Our cattery used to put our Bengal next to Siamese & he’d come back with a different miaow that he’d slowly lose.

Definitely it's a thing. Snorg has learnt loads from Cheddar about how to cat.

And she's learned to be vocal as well.

Mine got taught how to strip wallpaper when I moved number three in

Love that Little shite but I also loved my wallpaper 🤣

Cats are clever. They are not vocal to each other, they have learnt to be vocal towards humans though to get their attention. It works! 😂

Definitely. Emo Cat learned how to jump through the high kitchen window by watching Mensa Cat.

But there are still things Mensa Cat can do that leave Emo Cat standing on the sidelines, shaking their head in bewilderment.

Our old family cat adopted a “padwan” who lived nearby who was about 1 or 2 when he was about 12 and getting too old and fat to get much done.
The most upsetting incident happened when young cat got up into a tree with a blackbirds nest and bopped all the baby birds out for old fat cat to dispatch…

100% this was under fat cats direction he was a ruthless predator in his day who bought in hares, chickens and dropped live mice in peoples school shoes.

@Fluffycloudland77

Our cattery used to put our Bengal next to Siamese & he’d come back with a different miaow that he’d slowly lose.

That’s hilarious. He picked up an accent.

Cats are very observant and they learn from us too, all our routines, where important things live.

OP your Harry has had his horizons expanded by the Bengal. He didn’t realise he could use is Really Loud Voice any time he choose. And now he does 😂

Loving this thread.

This makes me doubt girl cat's brain capacity even more. Despite living with clever boy cat she is still unable to cat effectively (jump, bury in litter tray, catch anything) think she is definitely taking instructions from a fluffy cushion rather than her brother.

@Fluffycloudland77

Our cattery used to put our Bengal next to Siamese & he’d come back with a different miaow that he’d slowly lose.

Like Kevin and Perry when Perry came back from a week in Manchester?

Brilliant!

Yes. SnoreCat learnt how to hunt from NDN cat. He took him through all the cat tunnels in the hedges and they hunted together.

Then when NDN got a kitten SnoreCat showed it how to hunt. It’s very sweet. SnoreCat is a very friendly cat and I think due to the bond he had with NDN cat. Sadly NDN cat died so their friendship didn’t last long. But it was lovely to see. NDN cat would come to call for SnoreCat in the morning and wait by the back door for him. Then in the evening NDN cat brought SnoreCat home. They were always together. Adorable.

We had a totally silent cat until she went to the cattery for the first time, heard all the other cats howling and really went for it in the car on the way home.

Growing up we had a cat who used to sit and growl at closed doors rather than meow or scratch. When he was old we got a kitten who learnt it off him and then that kitten taught the next kitten and somehow I ended up in my own house with four cats later with a cat that growled at closed doors.

“taking instructions from a fluffy cushion” 😂😂😂😂🤣

She’s probably so proud she chose a role model that has the snoozing thing down perfectly @Cattitudes

This sounds ridiculous I know, but I genuinely saw this happen.

Years ago I used to live on a busy road in Slough. I had one adult streetwise cat and then got three kittens. When the kittens firat started going out they only went into the back garden. I came home one day to see my old cat and the kittens all sitting at the front of the house in a line on the verge. The old cat was looking up and down the road and when clear he walked over the road followed by the kittens. Convinced he was teaching them when to cross safely.

I love the cat teaching kittens to cross the road, I can totally believe it.