It sounds like a question that a three-year-old could answer. Why do cats purr? But in actuality, there’s a lot more going on than you think.

Every cat owner loves to hear their pet purring contentedly away. The sound lets them know that everything is well with their little furball.

But there’s so much more to a purring cat than meets the ear.

Firstly, purring occurs in cats on a number of occasions. They don’t just purr when they’re happy. They also purr away because they want food, they’re hurt or they’re scared.

So why do cats purr on so many occasions?

People have different ideas as to why they do this. But what happens when they purr is truly interesting and needs to be considered first.

Cats purr at a frequency that stimulates their bones to regenerate.

This purring frequency in cats is approximately 26 hertz (it fluctuates a little depending on the cat.) And that frequency promotes bone regeneration. Yes, purring spurs a cat’s bones to regenerate its cells faster. It’s basically the same thing as a human using high impact exercise to make their bones stronger.

And the fact is that cat bones heal faster than the bones of many other animals, likely as a result of their purring.

If you think about it, a cat’s ability to regenerate their bones fits in with the whole, “cats have nine lives,” stereotype.

So are cats aware that they’re healing their bones when they purr?

That’s a tough question for a number of reasons. You have to also ask yourself, are animals really aware of anything they’re doing? Are they just acting purely out of instinct?

So it may be an amazing coincidence that a cat’s ability to purr happens to stimulate bone regeneration. Or it could be a skill that felines have evolved to make themselves heal faster.

Wired’s 2015 article on cat purring concludes that the most likely reason why cats purr is to soothe themselves during stressful situations. The author believes that purring is the cat equivalent of humans laughing, crying, or distracting themselves away from their worries.

But of course, that’s just one person’s opinion. There are conflicting theories. Others believe that cats purr to communicate to those closest to them. And then there’s the theory that cats purr for many reasons. So every potential explanation could be correct.

Purring could be like crying in humans, in the sense that people cry because of different things.

People cry because they’re sad, they’re hurt or because they’re happy. So cats may purr for happiness, communication and regeneration, sometimes all at once!

Of course, one thing should be clear to anyone who has read the above: more research is needed!

There is not yet a definitive answer to the question, “Why do cats purr?” Sure, we know what purring can do to bones, but that’s like confusing the symptom with the cause. (i.e. Someone doesn’t get sick because they start sneezing. They start sneezing because they’re sick.”)

Hopefully, one day, a biologist will conduct a rigorous study of cat purring. Until then, we’ll just have to speculate.

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Source: Wired, Library of Congress, Futurism