Your cat headbutts you out of love, shows you tummy, brings you “gifts”, nibbles you a lot, and slow blinks at you. Sometimes she hisses at you or other cats at home, tries to cover her food, hides for too long, or just doesn’t eat. What is she trying to communicate? We all want to understand our cat’s language but can only assume based on studied behaviors and expert opinions. What if we cannot speak a cat language? There are quite a few ways to show cats your love and care, and that you are trying to understand their needs. These little attempts will surely strengthen that trust and bond you both are trying to build with each other.

Contrary to most common beliefs, cats certainly know to express love for their humans in unique ways. Though they demonstrate it in less evident than dogs, cats do want to give and receive affection.

By knowing how to read and react to the signs they offer, you can learn how to show cats your love for them. Yes, you can play with them and give them treats, but there is a lot more to that.

Here are some cute ways of telling your cats how much you care for them – in a language they understand.

• Give them time to accept you if they have not already
• Half Closed Eyes / Slow Blinking / Kitty Kisses
• Give them the attention they desire
• Train your cats to help them deal with boredom
• Show cats your love by attempting to communicate
• Help cats with their grooming sessions
• Don’t force a new entry on your territorial felines
• Treat them with Treats responsibly
• Give Them Plenty of Comfortable Beds and spaces to hide
• Scratching Posts for healthy cats and long(er) lasting furniture
• Whiskers need special care
• Help them relieve stress
• Grow the plants they love
• Look for signs of trust

Give them time to accept you if they have not already:

If you want to know if your cat is interested in becoming your friend, extend your index finger at their nose level. If the cat comes closer and brushes her nose and side of her face to your finger, it’s a sign of acceptance! The cat will rub its cheeks along your hand to leave its scent on you, marking you as a trusted individual. This feeling is genuinely heartwarming. By taking the first step, you demonstrate your willingness to communicate in a language they can understand. This also means giving them a choice not to engage. Some cats may have had painful experiences in the past and may be distrustful. Keep trying, though. Just like us, cats appreciate being given a choice and eventually warm up to consistent displays of friendship.

Half closed eyes / slow-blinking/kitty kisses:

Ever noticed how your beloved feline looks your way and slowly blinks? You’ve been kitty kissed! You can reciprocate by mirroring this behavior. This simple trick helps us to express our love and kinship for our cats. Any time you catch your cat lazing by your side, return her affectionate gaze and give her a kitty kiss to show you care.

Jackson Galaxy, popularly known as the cat whisperer from My Cat From Hell on Animal Planet, calms cats down and gets them to trust him using this technique.

Give them the attention they desire:

From lap cuddling each evening to sharing a pillow on the bed at night, your special companion deserves special attention. Cats love being stroked – from nose to tail. This lowers the cat’s blood pressure and remarkably, ours as well. Your cat may especially like being petted or brushed under his cheeks or at the base of his tail. Indulge them. Petting, touching, and massaging your cat also helps you keep a check on fur mats, bumps, or sores that may need a visit to the vet.

Train your cats to help them deal with boredom:

It is no secret that most resident cats get bored with their protected lives. That latent energy desperate seeks an outlet! So, we have our cats playing Spiderman on curtains, knocking breakables off ledges at Flash speed, going all Wolverine on other cats and furniture, and causing all-around havoc in hyperactive bursts. Training is a means to help your cat expend this energy in a fun way while providing some much-needed exercise to keep them agile and fit. It is a unique opportunity to bond with your cat and help them hone their natural skills while keeping their boredom at bay.

Kitten Mira playing with strings of yarn

You can play with your cat with a string of yarn or interactive toys like this Feather Interactive Cat Teaser Rat Toy helps sharpen their predatory instincts and allows them to fulfill their desire to hunt prey. 10-15 mins of playtime every day with your cats goes a long way in keeping them physically and mentally fit. Playing with your cats also gives you time to bond and show cats your love for them.

Show cats your love by attempting to communicate:

How do you feel when someone ignores your attempts to tell them something? Your cats know you love them and return the purrs when you appropriately respond to their language. We must make an effort to understand what our feline friend is trying to communicate with meows, their tail, ears, and more. Current research indicates that cat vocalizations are more complex and quite diverse from what we previously believed. These studies also establish that most domestic cats have developed vocal cues to communicate with us, a feature their cousins in the wild lack entirely.

You may notice different sounds and pitches of purrs, meows, chirps that a feline makes in the presence of their special someone. Take note of these sounds and try to make correlations based on their reaction to your response.

As an example, one of our cats, Akki, makes high-pitched mews every morning when we awake. We initially thought she was asking for food but seemed disinterested when we did put some down in her bowl, continuing to mew. She calmed down, began purring, and crawled into our lap as we sat nearby and petted her. We guess she just missed us while we were asleep. This has now become a happy morning routine for both our cat and us.

Learning to understand what your cat’s telling you can be a gratifying experience. When your kitty “talks”, respond with sweet endearments while trying to mimic the tone and pitch. This, along with physical cues, will help reassure your cat that she is safe and loved.

Help cats with their grooming sessions:

Most cats are sticklers for self-hygiene. They can spend hours grooming themselves, and some even overdo it. Want you give your FFF (Furry feline friend) a hand? Join in by running a comb or brush over them. This not only helps in keeping their fur mat-free, skin clean, and reducing furballs but also serves as a feel-good massage while bonding with your cat. 

We recommend The Pets Company Rubber Deshedding Dog Bath Hand Band for Dogs and Cats available on amazon. It’s inexpensive and works well without being too intrusive on your felines.

Don’t force a new entry on your territorial felines:

Cats are ferociously territorial creatures. The introduction of a new pet on the premises can cause them stress and make them question your love. By following guidelines for properly introducing new pets, your cat could welcome it as if accepting a present, thus helping stabilize the transition for the new pet as well.

Treat them with Treats responsibly:

It is no surprise that our feline friends love to eat. Many cat parents fall into the trap of going overboard with treats because of this. Exercise restraint. Treats can be used to reward cats for good behavior, can be a welcome break from their typical fare, and help establish a loving relationship with your cat. Find something that your cat loves, something unique, tasty, and rare.

We cautiously recommend Canine India’s Chicken Jerky and their other healthy treats since they have a tendency to turn your cute kitties into cat ninjas!

Give your cats plenty of comfortable beds and spaces to hide:

Creating comfortable places for your cat to curl up and sleep is a great way to show them you care. Cats also love to play stealth and hide, watching from a distance. You can easily DIY cat beds and caves with cardboard boxes and fill them with clothes you plan to discard. Another great option for a cat bed is giving them a perched bed, perhaps on a cat tree. Cats love being high up, away from distractions while having a birds-eye view of their territory.

Our cat Zuzu looking at her loyal subjects

We prefer placing cardboard boxes stuffed with old clothes for our cats on top of our wardrobe. This is Zuzu majestically looking down at her loyal subjects from one such perch. We recently bought this amazon basics cat tree and can’t recommend it enough.

We have an entire section dedicated to recommended furniture and toys to help you show cats your love.

Scratching Posts for healthy cats and long(er) lasting furniture:

Like Murphy’s Law, cats will scratch almost any surface they can get their claws into. Be it your wooden doorframe or leather couch. Of course, they prefer some materials over others. Sisal fabric is one such material that cats love to scratch. Wrapping this around a tall, robust post gives them a place to rub against and scratch to their heart’s content. You can also buy a scratching post from amazon here. Another DIY (but messier) route to show cats your love is to place flat cardboard boxes on the floor or secure them on walls. Just be aware that these don’t last too long and mean more clean-up chores.

Whiskers need special care:

Did you know that felines can suffer from whisker fatigue? Food and water bowls that push a cat’s whiskers back can cause them pain. You could place a container with a large surface or cat fountain for water. We noticed that our cats love drinking from a large source of water like tubs and buckets. Ensure to change out the water at least once a day and keep it fresh. Similarly, bowls with large surfaces or anti-whisker fatigue bowls can be used for food. Place food and water sources away from each other to give their tender whiskers a break.

Help felines relieve stress:

Cats are sensitive creatures and react to changes in their environment, sometimes adversely. Enrich their spaces with things they are familiar with, like cat caves, boxes, cat trees, a window bird feeder for their viewing pleasure. This helps them calm down significantly.

Also, place special attention on their toilet needs. Large litter boxes with ample dry cat litter sand massively help cats regulate stress. Cats don’t like damp and unclean litter boxes and sometimes refuse to relieve themselves for hours. Make it a practice to clean out their litter boxes at regular intervals. We highly recommend Intersand Cat Scoopable Cat Litter (Cat Exclusive Litter), as it clumps effortlessly and makes it very easy to clean. On that note, if you are anything like us and have gotten frustrated with the repeated breaking of plastic litter scoops, then we suggest Petmate Metal Litter Scoop, Silver. Yes, it costs more but it’s worth every penny.

We wrote a detailed article on how you can prevent litter box problems effectively here.

Grow plants cats love:

Some herbs give cats an enjoyable “high”. Sure catnips are fun, but cats also love chewing on plants like wheatgrass, millet grass, barley, sweet basil, etc. These plants help cats clear their digestive tract and also help with cleaning their gums and teeth to a certain degree.

We have made a detailed list of Indian plants suitable for cats to chew and eat.

Look for signs of trust:

Though most domestic cats are fine in their own company, it doesn’t imply they prefer being alone. Over time, your feline will display behaviors of affection like brushing against your legs, cozying up next to you and lying on its back, and exposing its underbelly. Show cats your love by giving them hearty body rubs, strokes, massages, and saying sweet nothings. There is no better feeling when your cat and you share a special connection.

Last but not least, keep them well-nourished and ensure regular vet visits. Consult your veterinarian regarding your cat’s particular emotional, nutritional, and medical needs. In the long run, your cat will recognize everything you do is to ensure she lives a happy, healthy, and long life.