Cats have a reputation for being hard to read, but a new study suggests that women and those with veterinary experience were particularly good at recognising cats' expressions. For the study, published in the journal Animal Welfare, researchers at the University of Guelph decided to look at how well people were able to read the expressions on cat faces.

"The ability to read animals' facial expressions is critical to welfare assessment. Our finding that some people are outstanding at reading these subtle clues suggests it's a skill more people can be trained to do," said study lead researcher Lee Niel from the University of Guelph in Canada.