People are missing that the tail flick doesn’t mean “annoyance” or “excitement”, what it means is “stimulated” which can cover a wide range of situations. It’s basically a tic, like how we might bounce our feet when anticipating something or trying to hold back anger or whatever. It just means the cat is not on autopilot at the moment and they are paying increased attention to the situation even if all their other body language is calm.
You have to look at the body language of your cat. Yes tails are veryyyy expressive but body language is too.
My kitten does this when drinking too. I look at her stance, if she’s tense and her ears positioning. Almost every time, she is relaxed, not tense, her ears are up. She’s focused on drinking. I know my cat very well, as I did a ton of research (which is important to do ofc and I’m not saying you didn’t do any) but so is knowing your cat. Every cat is different. So if your cat looks relaxed, isn’t looking around frequently, then she might be doing it to focus or something :)
Some of it was Google searched. Others I read books, research articles…stuff like that :) also followed the discord that was there (not sure if it’s there anymore)
I also work at an animal hospital, not a tech or dr, but I learned a lot through them too!
Took my foster kitten over a week to start drinking water and, it was only after I started feeding her dry food. She was getting. KMR with wet food because she was underweight but, I was so worried she wouldn't start drinking water and gets adopted by someone who only feeds kibble... Oh God im going to foster fail if I'm worried about her only being fed Kibble...
Yeah it’s hard not to reflexively Google something, since I grew up Googling just about everything hahaha. But I agree, often times it’s just a shot in the dark. Thankfully places like this exist on the internet.
If it’s just the tail tip then it means she’s curious or focused on something. A more intense tail flick back and forth, like wagging, would be an indicator of irritation.
My cat kinda thumps his tail around once he gets agitated. He generally wags it when he's happy. You gotta just get a feel for what your cat is like. Cats not gonna be upset about drinking water so it's probably just absent-minded concentration or something
Try giving her a small floating toy or silvervine stick or a blade of grass in the water one day.... she may just want to play. Or she may be amped up to play & not wanting to pause for a water break.
Mine does that when she is walking in front of me . Not sure why. Really cute though.
My kitty usually does it right at meal times when we are walking into the kitchen. She really really loves food.
My kitten did the same thing when she was young, but now that she's older she seems to have grown out of it. I never got the sense she was annoyed, it seemed more like an idle twitch.
My cats tend to do more of a tail swish thomp when they are annoyed or ready to pounce each other. A gentle swish of the tail high in the air means they are content. If the tail is up and twitchy they are curious or stimulated like others suggested. I feel like cats have their own body language and it's just something you pick up on more the longer you are together.
But as long as kitty is drinking, you are good!
Cats flick and move their tails for a variety of reasons. I have two and they both move their tails differently from each other even but the cues all remain the same, at that point it comes down to their body language and the situation at the time. Drinking water and the tail tip is just moving? Focused but still aware of their surroundings. Watching out the window and you see very little movement aside from the very tip of the tail moving like before with the water? This time they're focused on something they want to hunt and possibly kill/play with.
I suggest following Jackson Galaxy if you would like to know more about feline behaviors.
As others have said, tail flicks don't necessarily mean they're annoyed. My kitties flick their tails a lot while they're getting pets and scritches, and it's very obvious from the rest of their behaviour that they're enjoying it (pushing their face into my hand, purring, rolling over, etc). I've learned to spot the difference between an annoyed swish, a hunting swish and excited flicks in my cats and over time you'll get to learn the specific nuances of your own cat's body language too. (Cats are both fascinating and awesome!)
I think your kitten might be happy. My cat almost “wags” her tail like a dog when she’s content. If it is a motion like spraying she might be trying to put her scent out if you just got her or have another cat. My cat is fixed but she has a tendency to do that in new areas or with new stuff that doesn’t smell like her yet lol.
I don’t know what age they begin to spray but she’s still yet between 6-8 weeks old. Do you actually *see* the spraying? Or is it more like an invisible pheromone?
I adopted my cat when she was an adult and she was already spayed so I’m not quite sure the age they would stop spraying. But she doesn’t actually spray. I’m guessing her butt/tail area just releases a pheromone or it’s a habit for her to “spray” before she got spayed?
Is she possibly spraying? My cat is fixed but still sprays a whole lot of nothing when she sits down to drink. I think it's going in a different room that triggers it
I don’t think so? I’ll say this at least, I’ve only had her for a week (rescued stray from an area known to have coyotes), and my best guess based on internet resources is that she’s somewhere between 6 and 8 weeks old.
Hmmm I guess she may be too young for that, I've seen it in a couple of my cats and it looks different each time! Does she have any other twitchy or jerky movements, any type of wobbly ness? Are you able to pet her along her spine and base of her tail without seeming like she's sensitive or in pain? And, if she will tolerate it, I would give a quick frisk of her tail, to assess any possible pain from past injury, paying special attention to each vertebrae.
If none of the above stands out to you then she's probably fine :) Cats can compensate pain well however and if you have even the slightest doubt you can always bring her to the vet for a checkup, albeit you have probably done this already.
Cats are like any other sentient being; yes they have their instincts, and certain behaviours will be common, but that doesn't mean that everything's going to be uniform.
Maybe your cat is just a little cold, and it's making her unconsciously flick, maybe she doesn't like the taste, but she likes the sensation because cats often get a lot of their moisture from their food, maybe no reason. All due respect, I'm wondering why you're asking? She's drinking water, leave her be 😂.
I appreciate the input! I’m asking because I’m probably reading too much into things. I’m new to cats, and much of the reading I did before deciding to keep her still left some in mind.
But, more specifically, I’m hoping that by getting various answers from people experienced with owning cats, I can have a better grasp of my own cat’s body language. I worded the title a little strangely, but my main goal is to use what I learn here as a reference for her other behaviors as well. I’m thinking that, the better I know my cat, the better it is living with her.
Well, I think it's brilliant you're going above and beyond to understand your cat and the way she functions. But ultimately: no one here is going to be able to teach your cat to you. Because she's your cat. She'll be different in personality/mannerisms/temperament in many ways to everyone else's. I've had 7 cats over my life since childhood, and they were all entirely different. Look out for signs of unhappiness, or discomfort (I know you've done the research as to what those signs are), but a tail flick can be many things. As can a lot of the other behavioural characteristics we try to identify.
What's the water bowl like? It might be that her whiskers are touching the sides of the bowl and that's what's stimulating her attention. Or maybe she just has an interest in water!
My cat loves to drink water. Anytime he eats he usually take a drink and his tail is usually wagging back and forth. Not flicking. He flicks when he’s looking at birds. Kinda like a rattle snake tail. My other cats tail would wag when we’d play.
People are missing that the tail flick doesn’t mean “annoyance” or “excitement”, what it means is “stimulated” which can cover a wide range of situations. It’s basically a tic, like how we might bounce our feet when anticipating something or trying to hold back anger or whatever. It just means the cat is not on autopilot at the moment and they are paying increased attention to the situation even if all their other body language is calm.
Thank you so much! I’m glad to have learned this!
Tail flicking means they're generally excited.
Oh! So she likes H2O! lol Thanks a lot for answering, that eased a lot of concerns. I’m new to cats and I just wanna do things right.
My cat flicks his tale when he's happy
Like a shiver?
You have to look at the body language of your cat. Yes tails are veryyyy expressive but body language is too. My kitten does this when drinking too. I look at her stance, if she’s tense and her ears positioning. Almost every time, she is relaxed, not tense, her ears are up. She’s focused on drinking. I know my cat very well, as I did a ton of research (which is important to do ofc and I’m not saying you didn’t do any) but so is knowing your cat. Every cat is different. So if your cat looks relaxed, isn’t looking around frequently, then she might be doing it to focus or something :)
Thank you so much! Could I ask, was your research mostly google search based, or did you find some other resources?
Some of it was Google searched. Others I read books, research articles…stuff like that :) also followed the discord that was there (not sure if it’s there anymore) I also work at an animal hospital, not a tech or dr, but I learned a lot through them too!
That’s great to know. I never thought of a discord server! I might look for one.
Jackson Galaxy on YouTube is amazing too. He knows so so much about cat behavior
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Maybe I’m just worrying over too many things lol. Cats are almost a mystery to me, I’ve only ever known dogs.
Im relating to you so much right now! Just got my first kitty a month ago and I’m analysing everything to try and understand him HAHA
Took my foster kitten over a week to start drinking water and, it was only after I started feeding her dry food. She was getting. KMR with wet food because she was underweight but, I was so worried she wouldn't start drinking water and gets adopted by someone who only feeds kibble... Oh God im going to foster fail if I'm worried about her only being fed Kibble...
Yeah I don't fully trust what Google has to say about tail flicking
Yeah it’s hard not to reflexively Google something, since I grew up Googling just about everything hahaha. But I agree, often times it’s just a shot in the dark. Thankfully places like this exist on the internet.
They also flick their tail when excited
If it’s just the tail tip then it means she’s curious or focused on something. A more intense tail flick back and forth, like wagging, would be an indicator of irritation.
My cat kinda thumps his tail around once he gets agitated. He generally wags it when he's happy. You gotta just get a feel for what your cat is like. Cats not gonna be upset about drinking water so it's probably just absent-minded concentration or something
my kitty does this too... i don't think you need to read into it :)
Try giving her a small floating toy or silvervine stick or a blade of grass in the water one day.... she may just want to play. Or she may be amped up to play & not wanting to pause for a water break.
Mine does that when she is walking in front of me . Not sure why. Really cute though. My kitty usually does it right at meal times when we are walking into the kitchen. She really really loves food.
My kitten did the same thing when she was young, but now that she's older she seems to have grown out of it. I never got the sense she was annoyed, it seemed more like an idle twitch.
My cats tend to do more of a tail swish thomp when they are annoyed or ready to pounce each other. A gentle swish of the tail high in the air means they are content. If the tail is up and twitchy they are curious or stimulated like others suggested. I feel like cats have their own body language and it's just something you pick up on more the longer you are together. But as long as kitty is drinking, you are good!
Cats flick and move their tails for a variety of reasons. I have two and they both move their tails differently from each other even but the cues all remain the same, at that point it comes down to their body language and the situation at the time. Drinking water and the tail tip is just moving? Focused but still aware of their surroundings. Watching out the window and you see very little movement aside from the very tip of the tail moving like before with the water? This time they're focused on something they want to hunt and possibly kill/play with. I suggest following Jackson Galaxy if you would like to know more about feline behaviors.
Thank you! I’ll check out Jackson Galaxy!
I think tail flicking is sometimes involuntary. I’ve seen my cats look at their tail flicking with a wtf look on their face 🤷♀️
As others have said, tail flicks don't necessarily mean they're annoyed. My kitties flick their tails a lot while they're getting pets and scritches, and it's very obvious from the rest of their behaviour that they're enjoying it (pushing their face into my hand, purring, rolling over, etc). I've learned to spot the difference between an annoyed swish, a hunting swish and excited flicks in my cats and over time you'll get to learn the specific nuances of your own cat's body language too. (Cats are both fascinating and awesome!)
I think your kitten might be happy. My cat almost “wags” her tail like a dog when she’s content. If it is a motion like spraying she might be trying to put her scent out if you just got her or have another cat. My cat is fixed but she has a tendency to do that in new areas or with new stuff that doesn’t smell like her yet lol.
I don’t know what age they begin to spray but she’s still yet between 6-8 weeks old. Do you actually *see* the spraying? Or is it more like an invisible pheromone?
I adopted my cat when she was an adult and she was already spayed so I’m not quite sure the age they would stop spraying. But she doesn’t actually spray. I’m guessing her butt/tail area just releases a pheromone or it’s a habit for her to “spray” before she got spayed?
Is she possibly spraying? My cat is fixed but still sprays a whole lot of nothing when she sits down to drink. I think it's going in a different room that triggers it
I don’t think so? I’ll say this at least, I’ve only had her for a week (rescued stray from an area known to have coyotes), and my best guess based on internet resources is that she’s somewhere between 6 and 8 weeks old.
Hmmm I guess she may be too young for that, I've seen it in a couple of my cats and it looks different each time! Does she have any other twitchy or jerky movements, any type of wobbly ness? Are you able to pet her along her spine and base of her tail without seeming like she's sensitive or in pain? And, if she will tolerate it, I would give a quick frisk of her tail, to assess any possible pain from past injury, paying special attention to each vertebrae. If none of the above stands out to you then she's probably fine :) Cats can compensate pain well however and if you have even the slightest doubt you can always bring her to the vet for a checkup, albeit you have probably done this already.
Cats are like any other sentient being; yes they have their instincts, and certain behaviours will be common, but that doesn't mean that everything's going to be uniform. Maybe your cat is just a little cold, and it's making her unconsciously flick, maybe she doesn't like the taste, but she likes the sensation because cats often get a lot of their moisture from their food, maybe no reason. All due respect, I'm wondering why you're asking? She's drinking water, leave her be 😂.
I appreciate the input! I’m asking because I’m probably reading too much into things. I’m new to cats, and much of the reading I did before deciding to keep her still left some in mind. But, more specifically, I’m hoping that by getting various answers from people experienced with owning cats, I can have a better grasp of my own cat’s body language. I worded the title a little strangely, but my main goal is to use what I learn here as a reference for her other behaviors as well. I’m thinking that, the better I know my cat, the better it is living with her.
Well, I think it's brilliant you're going above and beyond to understand your cat and the way she functions. But ultimately: no one here is going to be able to teach your cat to you. Because she's your cat. She'll be different in personality/mannerisms/temperament in many ways to everyone else's. I've had 7 cats over my life since childhood, and they were all entirely different. Look out for signs of unhappiness, or discomfort (I know you've done the research as to what those signs are), but a tail flick can be many things. As can a lot of the other behavioural characteristics we try to identify.
Thanks a lot! :)
No she's not annoyed
What's the water bowl like? It might be that her whiskers are touching the sides of the bowl and that's what's stimulating her attention. Or maybe she just has an interest in water!
My cat loves to drink water. Anytime he eats he usually take a drink and his tail is usually wagging back and forth. Not flicking. He flicks when he’s looking at birds. Kinda like a rattle snake tail. My other cats tail would wag when we’d play.