When cats play, they mirror each other’s faces

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Animal play is fun, fair, chaotic, and serious business. The different ways in which non-human animals (animals) play with each other has been studied by many researchers, citizen scientists, and people who simply want to know what animals do, think, and feel when they play. It continues to interest people. Species “j”I want to have fun. ”

That’s natural. Cats, dogs, and many other non-human animals love and enjoy playing with their companions in a variety of ways. In the essay,dog playful fun” issue current biology dedicate to fun biology (look Also) covers much of what we know about social play in dogs, and other essays discuss the enjoyment of a variety of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and invertebrates.¹

As individuals struggle energetically and enthusiastically, it is important that play remains fun zoom Here and there. Play across many species incorporates actions from a variety of situations, including: invasionpredation, reproduction, and players need to be able to tell others, “I want to play with you, not fight, eat, or mate.” Similarly, if play gets rough and out of control, you need to tell your playmates, “This is play, and I still want to play.” apologize Then say something like, “I’m sorry for biting you too hard or mounting you, but let’s keep playing.”

Play is a kaleidoscope of sensations. When canines, cats, and other animals play, they engage in behaviors that can be easily misunderstood by participants, such as violent biting, mounting, and slamming. Research shows that many animals, including pet dogs,golden rules of play“Ask questions first and communicate clearly, be mindful of your manners, admit when you’re wrong, and be honest about your plays to prevent, for example, rough play from escalating into a serious fight.” To negotiate.

Cats use facial expressions to get along, have fun, and play fairly

There are more and more ways to play with companion cats Note So, for example, Are the cats playing or fighting?. When cats are playing and “going crazy,” they are just being cats, not cats. psychopath. As someone who has focused on the play of dogs and their wild relatives such as coyotes and wolves, I was very interested in a recent detailed study on cats.Computational study of the social functions of domestic cats’ facial signals” This study showed that playful felines use facial cues when playing, and that they mirror each other’s facial expressions to maintain a playful mood. consent Play fair and get along.² An overview of this research can be found in Christa Leste Lasserre’s essay “Copy cat: kittens become friends by mirroring each other’s faces. ”

To study the facial expressions of cats while they played, researchers photographed cats at the CatCafe Lounge in Los Angeles, California. More information can be found in the research paper and in Lesté-Lasserre’s article. So, a quick summary of how the study was conducted: Cats were filmed interacting with each other, and the encounter was recorded as either: friendly (“Grooming and/or physical contact, such as resting together, sniffling, sniffing, and vertical tailing”) or unfriendly (“Warning behaviors such as staring or approaching slowly; defensive postures such as stiffening the body or raising the fur; and combat-related behaviors such as biting, hissing, scratching, and slapping.”) Facial expressions were studied using a method called the Cat Facial Actioncoding System (CatFACS), in which researchers analyzed facial expressions using 48 facial markers. They then used a machine learning model to classify interactions as either affiliative or non-affiliative, and learned whether the cats were imitating each other using a method called type matching.

The results of this time-consuming and laborious research are very interesting and important. Simply put, data shows that cats mirror each other’s facial expressions, allowing them to behave fairly and get along better. The researchers write:

“Our analysis suggests that domestic cats exhibit more rapid facial mimicry in affiliative than non-affiliative situations, which is consistent with the proposed function of mimicry. In addition, we will examine the movement of the ear (E “We found that cats (such as AD103 and EAD104) were significantly more prone to rapid facial mimicry.” brings new possibilities. A.I.based approach. ”

This research also includes practical field applications for cat health. Leste-Laserre said:

“Studies like this could one day help cat owners choose good partners for their cats and know when to intervene,” said Francesconi, one of the researchers. “Monitoring cats’ RFM has many practical possibilities,” she says. “Especially when it comes to understanding their reactions and needs, preventing conflict and improving their well-being,” he says.

It’s fun to play, but it’s not always fun to study. But you have to make a lot of effort

As someone who has spent decades researching play, I feel this study is one of the most important published in a long time. Many animals, including humans, love to play, but studying play is time-consuming and frankly boring to the point of saying, “This isn’t fun at all!” I remember asking my students if they would help me study the play of dogs, coyotes, and wolves, and so many said they would help. Also, after analyzing the movie frame by frame, a significant number of people said that it was not so much fun, they wanted to see the animals playing, what the animals were doing and why. I also remember saying that I wanted to see him go blind trying to understand what was going on.

We are thrilled that the researchers who conducted this study in cats took the time to do what they needed to do, and we look forward to further comparative research in this area. There is no substitute for doing what it takes to learn the nitty-gritty details of how animals communicate with each other in different situations. This study of play opens the door to broader comparative studies that focus on how animals talk to each other in the different situations they encounter, such as when they just want to “have fun.” Don’t share that feeling and agree to act impartially.