Kim Beazeo, age 9, of Kingston, Ontario, Canada, for her questions

Why does a cat purr?

Most animals have ways to tell us what they think and feel about us. The purr of a pussycat has a comfortable contented sound. And usually this is' dust what it means. A little cat purrs when she is happy, when she loves you and wants to tell you so. If something happens to startle or scare her, she stops purring at once. This is because she cannot purr unless she is relaxed    and to be relaxed she must feel sure that everything around her is safe and friendly.

The purring machine is down in her throat, near the voice box which she uses to make her loud me ows. Both the purrer and the voice box work as she breathes back and forth. The voice box can create cat sounds that can be heard, loud and clear. The purrer can make only that soft contented rumble. She purrs when she's happy, she's happy when you love her    and nobody has to tell a pussycat what love is.