I’ll put my hands up ― I straight-up didn’t believe the TikTok trend that saw cats come straight to their owner’s side as if a dog had been called by name, thanks to two short sounds.
″‘Mah-AH’... means, come here [in cat],” a vet shared on the app. Video after video of cat owners using the trick to summon their furry friends played in quick succession after that ― but I wondered whether it was all just hype.
So, I reached out to three cat experts ― vet Dr Liza Cahn, a consultant for Embrace Pet Insurance, Mieshelle Nagelschneider, cat behaviour specialist and owner of The Cat Behaviour Clinic, and veterinarian expert Dr Dwight Alleyne ― about the trend.
And?
“Many of our cat clients have tried ‘Ma-AH’ with their cats and have had immediate results,” Nagelschneider told HuffPost UK.
“Even with our own cats, we can call them over and over again with ‘come here’ with no response and then with ‘ma-AH,’ it definitely gets their attention.”
Dr Alleyne, however, says “The effectiveness of this will depend on multiple factors.”
Cats may simply find the sound novel and appealing, he told HuffPost UK, and “the owner may have unknowingly conditioned their cat to the sound through a positive interaction.”
Dr Cahn agrees, sharing that “If your cat comes, they are most likely responding to your tone of voice and body language. This response will also be reinforced if they receive praise or treats.”
All three experts agreed that “mah-AH” could well work to get cats to come closer to you ― but the two vets weren’t convinced the tones had anything intrinsically appealing to the pets.
In other words, “mah-AH” will probably work depending on your cat’s temperament ― but it’s not quite the same as saying “come here” in cat.
So... what is?
Even Nagelschneider, who seemed most convinced by “mah-AH,” said there are other sounds ― like a kitten’s “mew-mew-mew” ― which will elicit a similar response.
Dr Alleyne told HuffPost UK that a lot of combinations of soothing sounds and cupboard love will get your cat to heel ― “Other methods that may work better include the actual calling of the cat’s name, using treats or clickers, or using a high pitched sound or tone to get them to come,” he wrote.
Dr Cahn says that despite what you might have heard, training cats isn’t as tough as you’d think.
“To train your cat to come when called, first, choose a cue word (such as “come” or “here”) and a high-value reward like a tasty treat or favourite toy,” she told HuffPost UK.
“You can either wait until your cat naturally approaches you, or get them to head your way by luring them with the treat or toy. Use the cue word just as they arrive, and immediately give them their reward.”
Over time you can increase the distance ― over time, your cat will learn to associate the reward with responding to your call.
So, “mah-AH” may not be a magic word; but positive reinforcement, high-pitched sounds, and new experiences are a pretty great way to train your cat regardless.
In that sense, the trick is likely to work at least some of the time.