All cats meow. Did you know a cats have two sets of vocal cords? In Willow’s case, both are applied to annoy her owner and her new extended family…excessively.

When I first adopted her, Willow would meow. Loudly and annoyingly. I figured she did this because she had kennel cough and was miserable. She meowed to let me know how bad she felt, event though most of her meows were muffled by the mucus covering her nose and throat. I thought, poor baby… Then she started meowing for fresh running water. I thought…ok. Now, however, I know better. Willow will meow for EVERYTHING. You pick her up, she meows. She wants to go out to the litter box, she meows. She’s hungry, she meows. She’s annoyed…you get the picture. My aunt just recently gave birth to a new baby- she cries more than the newborn. It’s gotten to the point where it’s a family joke- and the bane of our existence.

Tiberuous on the other hand, who easily weighs twenty pounds, has the most ridiculous little voice in the world. His favorite means of communication are chirps that sound like a cat half his size. Princess, who has the true aloof nature of a mature cat at age 14, has eliminated all sounds from her vocabulary when communicating her wants to us lowly humans. On the rare occasion she does meow, it comes out in the tiniest voice you can imagine.

I live to annoy my humans

Despite her constant and annoying meows, I have come to realize it’s part of her personality, just like a valley girl’s “Like” or my friend’s annoying habit of saying “I know huh?”. There are some who decide to remove their animals’ vocal chords, but the results are poor and you essentially are taking away your animals’ only way of communicating with other animals and people. I don’t understand how or why people do it. As much as I hate her meows, I could not imagine taking away such a vital part of her personality because it can be a bit grating. I adopted her like this and that’s just how she is. For more information on the harmful effects of de-vocalization, click here.

On the bright side, I no longer need to set an alarm, since every morning I am guaranteed a wake up call by a long and loud MMMEEEEEOOOOOWWWWW……