“Responses of Cats to Petting by Humans”, 2002 (; backlinks; similar):
There is evidence that different gland areas in animals of the cat family have different functions.
This study showed that 9 cats gave more positive and fewer negative responses to petting by their owners in the temporal region (between the eyes and ears), the reverse to petting in the caudal region (around the tail), with the perioral (chin and lips) and non-gland areas intermediate.
This suggests that cats prefer being petted in certain body areas.
[Keywords: allomones, Felis catus, interspecific rubbing, pheromones, scent marking glands]
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