Although the faces of its feline relatives are considered cute, evolution has warned humanity to be terrified by an Espurr's stare. Petting an Espurr in the usual feline manner, after all, is an extremely dangerous action, for touching the fur around its ears can unleash their awesome psychic powers. The unwary petter in such instances will be sent flying hundreds of feet, likely to their death, at the center of a vast explosion.
Espurr are unable to control their powers, which are triggered by contact to the ear, but they instinctively know the dangers of an accidental psychic burst to life and limb of everyone in the area; whether they choose to warn them, however, is dependent on their opinion of those around them. Espurr do not warn strangers, bystanders, or even acquaintances, for either they view most living things with such utter disregard that they simply do not care if they are slain by an overdose of psychic energy, or because the pain of avoiding it is so great that they will only endure it for very few.
It is only when Espurr finds someone it can truly consider a friend that they will warn them away from the destructive explosions they can produce through their ears – and they will do likewise to anyone seeking to pet them, should they be unable to verify their friend's absence from the range of the blast. Espurr trainers, who hold a far greater regard both for human and pokemon life than their pokemon, along with the legal consequences of their Espurr's power exploding, take advantage of this fact; they give their pokemon psychic limiters to prevent them from sensing their presence beyond a hundred-foot radius, and their Espurr is left with no choice but to restrain their power at all costs.