During a recent session, Tonto the cat was explaining to his person that when he lays upon her chest and purrs, he is content but is also purring to increase the blood perfusion to the cells of his gastrointestinal tract.
Tonto further explains, “‘When I purr, I activate a particular frequency within my body that has a powerful effect on my cells. My purr can boost my immune system temporarily and can increase the blood flow to my heart, teeth/gums, lungs and other specific areas like the intestines. I don’t specifically tell the vibration of my purr what to do with the blood in my body, it just takes care of things naturally.”
Me: “Tonto, are you saying that purring isn’t just something cats do for the sole purpose of showing contentment?”
Tonto: “Cats can purr when happy. Some cats purr when in distress or sad. It’s like a self soothing mechanism then.”
Me: “I understand that some cats can’t purr. My vet tech training explained it was due to a gene that determined if a cat could purr or not. So not all cats can per… according to what I was taught. What are you aware of here?”
Tonto: “It’s like people. Some are born with a good sounding voice and others have low voices that are barely audible. Cat’s have purrs to varying degrees- some loud and soft.” He reacts in surprise to the idea that some cats don’t purr at all and has little comment on it. He does say, “I’ve always had the ability to purr and can’t imagine life without the mechanism.”
In asking my own feline family what purring does for their body or health (if anything) each cat replied as follows…
Lyra– “I like the feeling of my own purr. It’s soothing, relaxing. It relaxes you. You respond well to it. It also ‘shakes’ my cells up to make them healthier because they get more blood flow.”
Beetle Bailey– “Purring is an immune booster for me. It also warms me up by increasing blood circulation.”
Eliza– “Purrring is a deep-seated tradition for me and many other cats. It’s health benefits is that we do it to decrease our stress so we can be more alert, without stress in the way. I use it to calm and center myself. Sometimes there is an effect on the immune system. A happy can can purr and an unhappy or fearful cat may not. I purr a lot which is an expression of being happy or wanting your attention.”
In Joy of the Animals,
Danielle
Thank you very much, Danielle. Everything you do for 4-legged and 2-legged just so great and helpful. World need more people like you and it will be much more happier place.Thank you for your work.
It works the same for humans. “Western traditions purr when we hum. Eastern traditions “purr” when they “hum” like in “ohmmmm”. The vowels have different frequencies and affect the body differently. So “purr” the vowels as a practice for better health. Except it’s done with the mouth open. Infinite Love and Gratitude.
How wonderful to read this information– Thank you for sharing this here, Kay! It DOES makes sense how our own hum or “ohmmm” is like a purr.
Hi Danielle. I attended your Introduction to Animal Communication last Sunday and truly enjoyed the experience. At the time of your class, I had had my dog Elvis for two years, a cat named Ginger for one week, and GrGr; she came to us last night from a friend who had to move and could not take her with them. I used the knowledge that I gained from your class, and, even though there have been a few hissing/batting incidents, all is going better than expected. Thank you!
I am interested in taking your one-day (8 hour) session/s on how to communicate with animals.
Your article on purring is interesting. I now understand why GrGr purrs and growls at the same time.
Thank you again, and talk to you soon.
Kay
Glad to hear that regarding GrGr and all going better than expected! 🙂
Ahhhh yes— great example of why a cat would purr and growl at the same time, indeed!
Danielle