Bree-Anna Burick Jul 18, 2024 9 min read

How Do Cats Show That They Love You?

One of the biggest misconceptions about owning a cat is that they don’t like showing affection. People often think of cats as aloof, standoffish creatures who don’t want to interact with their human masters. However, nothing could be further from the truth.

Cats associate love with safety and security.

Being naturally skittish is thought to have been a way that cats protected themselves from larger predators in the wild, so the way that your cats act when they’re around you, their source of safety and security, is actually a way of showing their love and appreciation. A cat that loves you is a cat that feels safe in your presence.

That’s why so many of the signs your cat loves you are linked to signs that they feel peaceful when you’re around.

While your cat may not act like an excited puppy that wags its tail wildly and nearly tackles you when you come through the door, your cat does have ways of showing how much it loves you.

One of the most rewarding aspects of pet ownership is receiving the unconditional love of a creature who doesn’t process emotions the same way that we do. With this in mind, learn more about some signs your cat loves you.

Slow Blinking

Sometimes, knowing how cats show affection involves looking into their eyes. Some people assume that their cats are trying to establish dominance when they stop what they’re doing and stare at them, but that’s not the case at all.

According to some experts, when a cat stares at you and starts blinking slowly, it’s actually a sign of their love for you.

Whether your cat is lying beside you on the sofa or standing across the room, these slow blinks are a method of showing how calm you make them feel.

With this in mind, mirroring their slow blinks by maintaining eye contact and slowly blinking back can help your pet realize that you love it, too.

A Bad View

Let’s be honest; pets don’t communicate like humans.

If you have ever owned a dog, you’ve probably seen it sniff another dog’s hind parts, especially when they first meet. What many people don’t realize is that cats operate quite similarly.

If you introduce a new cat into your household, your current cat and its new roommate may sniff one another all over, with an extra emphasis on the hindquarters. This is because that’s where some of the strongest scent glands are. Think of it as how animals shake hands when first meeting.

However, getting a closer view than you would like of your cat’s rear end may also be its way of telling you that it loves you.

While you probably don’t want to deal with your cat putting its hind parts in your face, it can be endearing to know that it’s a way of letting you know that they’re feeling calm and safe around you.

Tail Curving

Your cat’s tail can give you a lot of insight into how it’s feeling in general. In addition to letting you know how calm and comfortable your cat is, a curved tail is also how cats show love.

If your cat sees another feline that it likes, it may approach with its tail up with a slight curve. This is your cat’s way of showing the other cat that it’s approaching amicably. The same is true for you. If your cat approaches you with its tail high in the air with a slight curve, it’s letting you know that it’s friendly.

Approaching you with a curved tail isn’t the only way that your cat shows affection. When you’re standing up, you may notice your cat getting around your feet and wrapping its tail around your calves or ankles.

This is another method that your cat uses to show love. Wrapping its tail around you is a way of keeping you close by.

Kneading

Sometimes referred to as “making biscuits,” when your cat uses its front paws to knead into your flesh, it’s showing you one of its greatest signs of affection.

If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Does my cat love me?”, think about the times when your cat has climbed on you and kneaded your flesh with its front paws.

This is actually a call back to your cat’s early days when it would press on its mother to generate milk.

Again, this is a sign of your cat being confident in your ability to provide it with the care that it needs. This slow, methodical, rhythmic kneading means that your cat adores you and trusts you completely.

Nibbling

When your cat was a kitten, it likely playfully wrestled with its siblings. Mother cats often teach their babies how to play, and this includes gentle biting or nibbling.

Many people assume that any time an animal nibbles or bites at them it’s showing some type of aggression. This isn’t always the case, especially with cats.

Your cat gently nibbling, especially on your hand, is a sign of love. When you pet your cat, it may nibble at your fingers when you stop because it wants to keep your hand close by.

Your cat nibbling at your hand is a way of treating you like it treated its siblings, which is a sign of affection.

Urination

No one wants to walk into their home and smell cat urine, but it may be a way of your cat trying to get you to come back home. It’s been said that cats can smell their own dirty litter from miles away.

In fact, there are several stories of people whose cats have run away only to be lured back by putting their litter box on the porch.

With this in mind, your cat may assume that urinating around the perimeter of your home, even on the inside, will lure you back home once you’ve left.

While you don’t want to reward your cat for urinating outside of a litter box, it’s worth noting that your cat may be doing this because it wants to make sure you can find your way back home.

Headbutts

Sometimes referred to as “bunting,” your cat rubbing its head and face on you is a sign of love. Cats have scent glands in their chin, cheeks, and around their noses.

With this in mind, rubbing their face on you is a way of “marking” you with these scent glands. Not only is your cat giving you a form of a hug, but it’s also making sure that other cats know that you belong to them.

Gift Giving

Cats bring gifts to the humans that they love, even if some of those gifts may make you squeal in terror. It’s common for a cat to kill a mouse and bring it to its owner as a token of their appreciation.

If your cat never gets to kill a mouse, it may pick up a toy and bring it to you. This method of showing love is as easy to understand as it seems.

Your cat wants to impress you and bring you something that lets you know how much it loves you.

Following

People typically think of cats as being grumpy and wanting little to do with their owners.

However, that’s not nearly as common as internet memes would have you think. In the same way that other types of pets follow their master, a cat that loves you will sometimes follow you around.

No, this doesn’t mean that your cat only loves you if it takes every step that you take.

However, your cat following you around your house is just its way of letting you know that it wants to be where you are.

Belly Exposure

Cats are naturally defensive creatures. With this in mind, a cat that’s scared will never roll over on its back and expose its stomach.

As cats evolved over the course of history, they realized that exposing their most vulnerable areas leaves them prone to an attack.

However, if you’re walking by your cat and it flops over on its back and exposes its belly, it’s telling you that it loves and trusts you.

If your cat lets you rub its belly, it’s another sign of love. Since cats know that the stomach is vulnerable, letting you touch that area is a huge sign of trust and adoration.

Purring

Perhaps the most well-known sign of affection from your cat is purring. This low, rumbling sound coming from your cat almost always means that he or she is completely relaxed.

Since cats equate comfort with love, your cat purring when you’re petting it or when it’s in your lap is their way of verbalizing their love and comfort to you.