Chatting to your cat isn't a sign that you're losing your sanity; perfectly normal people converse out loud with their cats all the time. Although your cat may not understand everything you're saying, at least you have an audience that won't contradict with more than a bored blink of the eyes. Cats sometimes seem very intuitive about human moods. Many an upset cat owner has looked up to find his or her feline companion sitting quietly close by, as if offering emotional support. Such responsiveness may result from a feline ability to interpret human body language, a natural talent considering that all cats communicate among themselves in this way. In fact, cats probably read human body language better than they interpret human speech.
Nonetheless, your cat may learn up to as many as twenty different words. Typically this vocabulary will include his name; repeated often enough, the cat usually makes the connection. If you chant, “Come here” at mealtimes, the reward of food reinforces the command's meaning; your cat eventually may respond even when his stomach is full.
A cat will come to associate an entire package of words or phrases, your tone of voice and your gestures with specific activities and things. For a good relationship with your cat, learn to understand his unspoken language and the different sounds he makes. Eventually you'll be able to interpret even the subtle distinctions in your cat's meows and know what he is asking. And if you enjoy having your cat talk to you, be sure to encourage him by always responding favorably to his sounds.
