If you’d like your shelter and rescue group staff, volunteers, fosters and adopters — as well as cat loving community-members — to speak cat, it may be time to host a party to watch our free online course, Feline Communication: How to Speak Cat!, together!

When you know how to read it, a cat’s body language is your guide to a deeper relationship between humans and cats. Improved communication can benefit the welfare of cats in shelters and foster homes, and help cats put their best paw forward for potential adopters.

Created by Dr. Laurie Peek and Dr. Susan Krebsbach, the course will help you understand what it means when a cat chirps or chatters, curls her tail a certain way, makes “airplane ears,” presents her butt, and more.

The course takes you through the three forms of feline communication: vocalization, body language and scent. Each section provides descriptions of the various forms, along with photos and videos that help you translate what the cat is conveying. Throughout the course, you can test what you learned by taking mini-quizzes. At the end, you will have a chance to earn a certificate of attendance by taking a quiz.

Shelters and rescue groups that would like to host a viewing party can access the course on our website. While the course is free, you can use it as an opportunity to host a fundraiser, or just invite an audience to learn how to parlez-vouz puddy-cat.

Start popping the popcorn now!