In reply to Ingrid's Dad: maybe what I call "prinking" is what you call "squeaking." Some people call it "trilling" I think. I just call it "prinking" because that's what it sounds like to me: "prink!" Or - "prrrrrink!"

I know the problem of not wanting to compare cats unfavorably. Fortunately for all of us, cats are all so different and so endearing, they make it difficult for us to cling to the memory of one to the disadvantage of another. We can still love our "gone" ones and go on to love the new ones.

I asked my vet about my silent cat's silence, and she just said, "Some cats are just like that." I knew another cat who was even more silent - did not even prink. He had been abandoned as a tiny, tiny kitten and hand-raised from only a couple of weeks old, so I don't know if his separation from other cats had something to do with it - but he seemed healthy and he led a long and happy life. I wouldn't worry about a non-talker. It seems within the bounds of normal cat-ness, at least from my anecdotal experience.