Cat Yawn Ear Movement
This is a video of Tootsie by VG. It is in slow motion. You’ll see Tootsie’s ears flatten while she yawns and then flip forward. The slow motion makes it easier to see how the ears move when a cat yawns. Being an ailurophile I am interested in ear movements during yawning 😉 We don’t know why animals and humans yawn. There are plenty of ideas but nothing concrete.
There is a natural evolutionary reason behind every action the cat makes. So, what is behind the ear flattening during yawning?
The only other time I know of when a cat flattens his ears is when hissing and preparing to fight. It is a signal to the opposing cat to beware and a way of protecting the ears.
Is Tootsie protecting her ears while yawning? She could be because when a cat yawns she is temporarily disabled to a certain extend. The eyes close or a partially closed and the cat’s normal awareness is blunted.
That is my rather vague theory. I can’t think of any other except that there is some useless reason why the nerves and muscles of the ears are activated when a cat yawns.
Tootsie looks very attractive as usual in this video. You can see the video on YouTube by clicking on this link.