A cat is defined as a domesticated carnivorous mammal. Each cat has different features which differ from breed to breed, but they all generally have soft fur, short snout and retractable claws, and are very well known for their hunting abilities.
It is traditionally known that cats were first domesticated back in ancient Egypt time due to cats being found in Egyptian paintings dating back as far as 3,500 years old. It was not until 2004 when a Neolithic grave was excavated in Cyprus that they found a skeleton of a cat lying closely next to human remains. Scientists estimated the both the human and feline remains to be around 9,500 years old.
- Cats spend 70% of their day sleeping which means a cat that is 9 years old has been awake for only 3 years of its life. When awake, a cat will spend more than 30% of its time grooming
- Cats do not have a sweet tooth like humans due to a mutation in their taste receptors. They only have 473 taste-buds, compares to humans 9,000 taste-buds
- When a group of cats get together they are called a “clowder”
- When comparing a cat and dog brain, a cat brain is biologically more similar to a human brain. This is because cats have the same regions in their brains that are responsible for emotions
- In 1963, French cat “Felicette” was the first cat to ever travel into outer space
- Cats use their whiskers to find out if a space is too small to squeeze into. They also have no collar bone which means they can fit into any space that is the size of their head
- The oldest cat recorded was a cat from England who died in 1939. Her name was “Puss” and she was 36 years old
- Have you ever noticed a cat’s tail quivering when it is near you? This is an expression of love
- When cats are happy they knead with their paws
- A cat will fall in a special order. First it’s head will rotate, the spine will twist and the back legs will align. The cat will then arch its back to reduce the impact of the landing. This is why they can fall from great heights and not get hurt
- Cats can sense the tone in your voice. They will know when you are speaking lovingly to them or if you are yelling at them. But, they do not understand punishment like humans do – that is why you will find your cat does not care if they get into trouble. (and I just thought they were ignorant!)
- Cats have amazing vision! They can see anything up to 120 feet away and their peripheral vision is roughly 285 degrees. They also have exceptional night vision as they only need 1/6th amount of light that humans need.
- Cats do not have sweat glands over their body like humans do. They sweat through their paws. Also, Cats have 5 toes on both their front paws but only 4 toes on their back paws.
- A cat purrs 26 times every second. This is equivalent to an idle diesel engine.
- A cat’s hearing ability is unique. They can hear ultrasonic sounds! How well does this work? Rodents use the same ultrasonic sounds to communicate which your cat can hear! But your dog and humans can’t.
- The fear of cats is called Ailurophobia.