Source link : https://las-vegas-news.com/what-a-cats-slow-blink-means-according-to-animal-behavior-researchers/
Your cat looks at you from across the room, eyelids drooping, and then shuts its eyes for a moment. Many owners have long called it a cat kiss. Researchers decided to find out whether that guess holds up.
The work comes from psychologists in the UK, and it has been widely discussed ever since it appeared. Here is what they found, how they tested it, and what remains unclear.
What a Slow Blink Actually Looks Like
It’s more than one lazy blink. A slow blink sequence involves a series of half blinks, where the eyelids move toward each other without fully closing, followed by either a prolonged narrowing of the eyes or a full eye closure. The whole thing is quiet and easy to miss.
Researchers describe it as a sequence rather than a single movement. One published figure shows it moving from a neutral face to a half blink, then toward eye closure and an eye narrowing expression. Watch for that gradual softening next time your cat looks your way.
The Study That Put It to the Test
Before 2020, the slow blink was mostly folk wisdom. It had been recognised in cats for a long time, but this was the first study to investigate its role in communication between humans and cats. The paper appeared in the journal Scientific Reports.
The team came from the University of Sussex and the University of Portsmouth. Their paper was titled “The role of cat eye…
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Author : Matthias Binder
Publish date : 2026-10-12 08:20:00
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