 Cats have excellent hearing and can detect an extremely broad range of frequencies . They can hear higher @-@ pitched sounds than either dogs or humans , detecting frequencies from 55 Hz to 79 @,@ 000 Hz , a range of 10 @.@ 5 octaves , while humans and dogs both have ranges of about 9 octaves . Cats can hear ultrasound , which is important in hunting because many species of rodents make ultrasonic calls . However , they do not communicate using ultrasound like rodents do . Cats ' hearing is also sensitive and among the best of any mammal , being most acute in the range of 500 Hz to 32 kHz . This sensitivity is further enhanced by the cat 's large movable outer ears ( their pinnae ) , which both amplify sounds and help detect the direction of a noise . 
