Theoretically, animals with lacrimal sacs will shed tears. As advanced vertebrates with developed nervous systems, cats naturally shed tears.

But one concept that needs to be made clear here is that shedding tears is not the same definition as crying in our traditional sense.

We understand that crying is usually an expression of emotion, but cats’ tears are usually due to external stimulation or internal diseases. In other words, the cause of cats “crying” is not emotions, emotions are just imposed by us humans.

An aunt came to the hospital anxiously holding her cat in her arms, saying that her daughter had picked up her dog, and the cat kept crying... and asked me how to comfort her cat. . .

I just wanted to complain that I am not a psychiatrist... but when I opened my eyelids, it turned out that they were completely red and swollen. Looking at the little guy's tearful eyes and sneezing all over the place, it's almost certain that he has conjunctivitis. It has nothing to do with the fact that my aunt's dog was given away for half a dime.

I also met an enthusiastic poop shoveler. During a casual chat, he told me that a little stray cat recently appeared downstairs in his house. It looked like it was only three or four months old. It was dirty and skinny. He went home and gave half of his master's leftover to the little stray cat. As a result, the kitten cried while eating.

When he said this, his expression was very moving, as if he was talking about a poor child who lived on the streets without enough food and clothing. He was hungry for a long time before being given a meal by a kind person. He was so moved and aggrieved that he cried bitterly. Runny nose.

I spent all my energy to restrain myself from telling him that the cat shed tears when eating, either because the food he gave was too exciting for the cat to eat, or because some cats have cartilage when opening their mouths due to structural problems. The nasolacrimal duct is blocked, causing the nasolacrimal duct to be unable to divert tears in time, causing tears to come out of the eyes.

To summarize here, the specific causes of cats crying can be summarized into the following two types:

1. External stimulation:

External factors such as strong light, dust, oil smoke, taste stimulation, etc. may interfere with the cat's body.

Just like we humans will shed tears when eating spicy food, weep when we are choked, or weep when dust gets into our eyes, the tears in this case are a kind of immune measure produced by ourselves and are the physiological instinct of mammals to defend themselves.

Cats, as mammals, naturally have this instinct.

2. Own diseases:

Eye diseases such as conjunctivitis, nasal congestion, etc.Disease or inverted eyelashes will cause cats to shed tears uncontrollably. In addition, when cats’ eyes are dry and uncomfortable, they will also actively secrete some tears to moisten their eyes.

In other words, if the cat is always tearful, then its cat should pay more attention to it. Because once a cat sheds tears frequently, it means that it is either sick or its living environment needs to be cleaned.

So what is the traditional form of expression of "crying" in the cat world?

Cats' emotional expressions are mostly done through sounds and behaviors. For example, when a cat is scared, it will turn into airplane ears, when it is angry, it will arch its back and explode its fur, and at the same time, it will "breathe" at the object it feels threatened.

Similarly, when cats "cry", they will make various sounds that are different from usual ones, sometimes it is a sharp howl, sometimes it is a low whimper. This cry is not accompanied by tears, but it is indeed an expression of cat's emotions.

If your cat’s meows sound a little strange or different from usual, then it may be that he is expressing emotions...