Cats-R-Us
Cats can be Our Friends!
My previous writings concerning cats have noted a concern about felines as the single source needed by T. gondii, (a parasite that infects 50% of the world with no cure), life cycle.
As the reader may know, there are many stories of animals as healers. Studies have indicated simply petting a cat or dog can lower your blood pressure. Dogs or therapy animals visit nursing homes and hospices and bring peace and joy to patients. Most of us are comforted when we do not feel good by having our pets close to us. There is research that indicates the frequency of a cat’s purr can aid with healing of bones, tendons, ligaments, and muscles as well as provide pain relief.
When the Cats are Injured, they Purr and Heal Themselves
The measurable Hertz of a cat's purr lies between 25 and 150. 20 to 50 HZ has shown great promise in speeding bone injuries in human medicine. These same frequencies are optimal for bone growth or repair – although cats seem to be able to ramp up the range to 140 Hz. It seems cat purrs create frequencies that fall directly in the range that is a processes that builds up organs and tissues for bone growth. The Institute of Fauna in North Carolina came to the conclusion that the vibration at frequencies can accelerate cell regeneration. Perhaps, when the cats are injured, they purr and heal themselves.
Cats will purr when they are injured and in pain as well as when they are content. It is plausible that cat purring is a means of communication and a potential source of self-healing. There is no research that has attempted to explain the extraordinary ability cats have for healing themselves.
Perhaps their purring benefits the cats' quick recovery from such things as high-rise syndrome, as mentioned by Dr. Gordon Robinson. Another study reported in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association. They documented 132 cases of cats' falling an average of 5.5 stories from high-rise apartments, with some of them suffering severe injuries. Interestingly, 90 percent of these cats survived! Most cats fell from seven stories or more managed to live. The record for survival from heights is 45 stories! The durability of the cat has facilitated the notion that cats have "nine lives!”
Are These Healing Abilities Transferable to Humans?
There is documentation that low frequencies, at low levels dB are helpful with regard to pain relief, and the healing of tendons and muscles. Vibrational stimulation between 50-150 Hz has been found to relieve suffering in 82% of persons suffering from acute and chronic pain (Lundeberg, 1983).
Given the data on the above frequency vibrations, fracture and healing research, the exact match of the frequencies and amplitudes of the cat's purrs to vibrational therapy research, and Dr. Cook's study, (1973) The relief of dyspnoea in cats by purring, New Zealand Veterinary Journal, it is certainly not a leap of faith to speculate that the cat's purr is a healing mechanism.
