Why do cats flemming

There is also an element of predictability about the behaviour, so that there is often time to be prepared when it happens.

Also, male lions may sometimes repeat the whole process, which can give us as photographers another chance at capturing it in a different way. When I noticed how high the male lion photographed above was positioning his head whilst carrying out the Flehmen response for the second time, I switched to photographing vertically, for a different take on things.

However, for the images accompanying this post, I was shooting with my earlier version of my favourite wildlife lens, the Canon EF f2. Superb series of photos Grant!

I am completely amazed to read that you have observed the Flehmen behaviour in lions?! I only associated it with hor ses and zebra…. Very intriguing — thanks for the info! Hi Anja, I am thinking that you probably spend more time with horses than I do…I have seen it in zebras too.

Grant, we have seen this response by male lions. Thanks so much for clarifying just what is happening. We love your photos and your informative blogs, postings, etc.

I have seen this in a number of animals including one of my dogs who used to do it but also used did a sort of chattering thing with this teeth and tongue. The lions are definitely the most dramatic and your ways of capturing it certainly do add to it. Hi Darlene, nice that you have seen the lions doing this too. The males especially, sometimes have an uncanny ability to locate places where a female may have passed by, and left her scent in a urine mark.

Glad to hear that you are enjoying the blog posts too.. Thanks Nancy for your comment. But overseas studies have shown trap-neuter-return programs encourage abandonment of unwanted cats at feeding stations.

Numbers of cats can actually go up, despite best efforts. And what is the quality of life for returned cats? Given the difficult, short lives of free-roaming cats, trap-neuter-return programs are arguably a less ethical choice with poor welfare outcomes for the cats themselves.

There have even been calls in Japan to revise trap-neuter-return policies on account of poor health and well-being of the cats. Returning neutered animals to where they were found may also violate state laws. Enforcing these laws is critical to reduce unowned cat populations, improve the welfare of cats, and discourage dumping of unwanted pets. It is an exemplar of what the community can do to improve the lives of cats, and we believe it should be modelled elsewhere in Australia.

The plan has been developed to raise best practice standards, recognising the duty of care needed to ensure the health and well-being of cats. This starts with responsible owners. It calls for improved compliance with compulsory desexing and registration. To encourage people to comply, the ACT government will be implementing free or low-cost desexing and free microchipping. In general, scent is an extremely important sense to cats, and they have far more scent receptors than humans do.

As such, it makes sense that they would come equipped with a specialized organ to take their scent diagnosis to the next level. While both male and female cats have a vomeronasal organ, males tend to engage it more in order to determine sexual availability of females in the area based on urine scent analysis.

So, the next time you notice your cat making a similar face, take stock of her surroundings. Home Cat Care Center. At first, I thought it was simply a look of concern or surprise over what she had just smelled. So, what is a cat flehmen response and why does it happen? Gibbons says. Those ducts then go through the roof of the mouth and join up with the vomeronasal organ a. The ducts contain saliva, meaning that whatever goes in must be voluntarily brought up to the vomeronasal organ.

The article goes on to explain that cats actually have better vomeronasal organs than dogs. An average house cat has 30 different receptors in that organ, whereas a hound dog has a measly nine. Gibbons explains.

Of course, there are exceptions to the cat flehmen response, as with my cats. I catch Merritt, my female kitty, displaying a flehmen response to something about once a day. Gibbons tells us. Thankfully, the answer is a definite no. Gibbons advises.

So, enjoy those cat stinky faces and take some photos — there are not enough good flehmen pics featuring cats on Instagram! A cat flehmen response is normal and you have nothing to worry about!

Tell us: Have you ever witnessed a cat flehmen response? Do you have any nicknames for it? What do you think it looks like? Cait Rohan Kelly is a digital writer, editor and marketer with over a decade of experience working with everything from sports stars to different types of cheese.

Cait is a lifelong animal lover and cat lady. Thanks for the clear explanation. Pingback: Tartarian honeysuckle wood for olfactory enrichment in cats — Smart Pet Club. Pingback: Tartarian honeysuckle wood for olfactory enrichment in cats. Animal Authority.

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