 |
- Both humans
and cats
have identical
regions in the brain responsible for emotion.
- A cat's
brain is
more
similar
to a man's brain than that of a dog.
- A cat has
more bones
than a human;
humans have 206, but the cat has 230 (some cites list 245 bones, and
state
that bones may fuse together as the cat ages).
- Cats have 30
vertebrae (humans have 33 vertebrae during early
development; 26 after the sacral and coccygeal regions fuse)
- The cat's
clavicle,
or collarbone, does not connect with other bones but is buried in the
muscles of the shoulder region. This lack of a functioning
collarbone allows them to fit through any opening the size of their
head.
- The cat has
500
skeletal
muscles
(humans have 650).
- Cats
have 32
muscles that
control the outer ear (compared to human's 6 muscles each). A cat can
rotate
its ears independently 180 degrees, and can turn in the direction of
sound
10 times faster than those of the best watchdog.
- Cats'
hearing
is
much more
sensitive than humans and dogs.
- Cats'
hearing
stops at
65 khz (kilohertz); humans' hearing stops at 20 khz.
- A cat
sees
about
6 times
better than a human at night, and needs 1/6 the amount of of light that
a human does - it has a layer of extra reflecting cells which absorb
light.
- Recent
studies
have shown
that cats can see blue and green. There is disagreement as to whether
they
can see red.
- A
cat's field
of
vision
is about 185 degrees.
- Blue-eyed,
pure white cats are frequently deaf.
- It
may take
as
long as
2 weeks for a kitten to be able to hear well. Their eyes usually
open between 7 and 10 days, but sometimes it happens in as little as 2
days.
- Cats
can judge
within 3 inches the precise location of a sound being made 1 yard away.
- Cats
can be right-pawed or left-pawed.
- A cat
cannot see directly under its nose.
- Almost
10% of
a
cat's bones
are in its tail, and the tail is used to maintain balance.
- The
domestic
cat
is the
only species able to hold its tail vertically while walking. You can
also
learn about your cat's present state of mind by observing the posture
of his tail.
- If a
cat is
frightened,
the hair stands up fairly evenly all over the body; when the cat
is threatened
or is ready to attack, the hair stands up only in a narrow band along
the
spine and tail.
|
|
- A cat
has
approximately
60 to 80 million olfactory cells (a human has between 5 and 20 million).
- Cats
have a
special scent
organ located in the roof of their mouth, called the Jacobson's organ.
It analyzes smells - and is the reason why you will sometimes see your
cat "sneer" (called the flehmen response or flehming) when they
encounter a strong odor.
- A cat
has a
total
of 24
whiskers, 4 rows of whiskers on each side. The upper two rows can move
independently of the bottom two rows. A cat uses its whiskers for
measuring
distances. The whiskers of a cat are capable of registering very
small changes in air pressure.
- Cats
have 30
teeth (12
incisors, 10 premolars, 4 canines, and 4 molars), while dogs have 42.
Kittens
have baby teeth, which are replaced by permanent teeth around the age
of
7 months.
- A cat's
jaw has
only
up and down motion; it does not have any lateral, side to side motion,
like dogs and humans. For this reason, don't rely on feeding dry
food
as a dental care program - cats need to have their teeth cleaned by a
vet.
- A
cat's tongue has tiny barbs on it.
- Cats
lap liquid from the underside of their tongue, not from the top.
- Cats
purr at
the
same frequency
as an idling diesel engine, about 26 cycles per second.
- Domestic
cats
purr both
when inhaling and when exhaling.
- The
cat's
front
paw has
5 toes, but the back paws have 4. Some cats are born with as many as 7
front toes and extra back toes (polydactl).
- Cats
walk on
their toes.
- A
domestic
cat
can sprint
at about 31 miles per hour.
- A
kitten will
typically
weigh about 3 ounces at birth. The typical male housecat will
weigh
between 7 and 9 pounds, slightly less for female housecats.
- Cats
take
between
20-40
breaths per minute.
- Normal
body
temperature
for a cat is 102 degrees F.
- A
cat's
normal
pulse is
140-240 beats per minute, with an average of 195.
- Cat's
urine
glows
under
a black light.
- Cats
lose
almost
as much
fluid in the saliva while grooming themselves as they do through
urination.
|
|
|
|
- Miacis,
the
primitive ancestor
of cats, was a small, tree-living creature of the late Eocene period,
some
45 to 50 million years ago.
- Phoenician
cargo
ships
are thought to have brought the first domesticated cats to Europe in
about
900 BC.
- The
first
true
cats came
into existence about 12 million years ago and were the Proailurus.
- The
ancient
Egyptians were
the first to tame the cat (in about 3000 BC), and used them to control
pests.
- Ancient
Egyptian
family
members shaved their eyebrows in mourning when the family cat died.
- In Siam, the
cat was
so
revered
that one rode in a chariot at the head of a parade celebrating the new
king.
|
|
- The
Pilgrims
were
the first
to introduce cats to North America.
- The
first
breeding pair
of Siamese cats arrived in England in 1884.
- The
first
formal
cat show
was held in England in 1871; in America, in 1895.
- The
Maine
Coon
cat is America's
only natural breed of domestic feline. It is 4 to 5 times larger than
the
Singapura, the smallest breed of cat.
- There
are
approximately
100 breeds of cat.
- The
life
expectancy of
cats has nearly doubled since 1930 - from 8 to 16 years.
- Cats
have
been
domesticated
for half as long as dogs have been.
|
|
 |
- Cats
respond
most
readily
to names that end in an "ee" sound.
- The
female
cat
reaches
sexual maturity within 6 to 10 months; most veterinarians suggest
spaying
the female at 5 months, before her first heat period. The male cat
usually
reaches sexual maturity between 9 and 12 months.
- Female
cats
are
"polyestrous,"
which means they may have many heat periods over the course of a year.
A heat period lasts about 4 to 7 days if the female is bred; if she is
not, the heat period lasts longer and recurs at regular intervals.
- A
female cat
will
be pregnant
for approximately 9 weeks - between 62 and 65 days from conception to
delivery.
- Female
felines
are "superfecund,"
which means that each of the kittens in her litter can have a different
father.
- Many
cats
love
having their
forehead gently stroked.
- If a
cat is
frightened,
put your hand over its eyes and forehead, or let him bury his head in
your
armpit to help calm him.
- A cat
will
tremble or shiver
when it is in extreme pain.
- Cats
should
not
be fed
tuna exclusively, as it lacks taurine, an essential nutrient required
for
good feline health.
- Purring
does
not
always
indicate that a cat is happy and healthy - some cats will purr loudly
when
they are terrified or in pain.
- Not
every cat
gets "high"
from catnip. If the cat doesn't have a specific gene, it won't react
(about
20% do not have the gene). Catnip is non-addictive.
- Cats
must
have
fat in their
diet because they can't produce it on their own.
- While
many
cats
enjoy milk,
it will give some cats diarrhea.
- A cat
will
spend
nearly
30% of her life grooming herself.
- When
a
domestic
cat goes
after mice, about 1 pounce in 3 results in a catch.
- Mature
cats
with
no health
problems are in deep sleep 15 percent of their lives. They are in light
sleep 50 percent of the time. That leaves just 35 percent awake time,
or
roughly 6-8 hours a day.
- Cats
come back
to full alertness from the sleep state faster than
any
other creature.
- A cat
can
jump 5
times
as high as it is tall.
|
|
- Spaying
a
female
before
her first or second heat will greatly reduce the threat of mammary
cancer
and uterine disease. A cat does not need to have at least 1 litter to
be
healthy, nor will they "miss" motherhood. A tabby named "Dusty" gave
birth
to 420 documented kittens in her lifetime, while "Kitty" gave birth to
2 kittens at the age of 30, having given birth to a documented 218
kittens
in her lifetime.
- Neutering
a
male
cat will,
in almost all cases, stop him from spraying (territorial marking),
fighting
with other males (at least over females), as well as lengthen his life
and improve its quality.
- Declawing
a cat is the same as cutting a human's fingers off at the knuckle.
There
are several alternatives to a complete declawing, including trimming or
a less radical (though more involved) surgery to remove the claws.
Instead,
train your cat to use a scratching post.
- The
average
lifespan of
an outdoor-only (feral and non-feral) is about 3 years; an indoor-only
cat can live 16 years and longer. Some cats have been documented to
have a longevity of 34 years.
- Cats
with
long,
lean bodies
are more likely to be outgoing, and more protective and vocal than
those
with a stocky build.
- A
steady diet
of
dog food
may cause blindness in your cat - it lacks taurine. Related
page: Cat Munchies
- An
estimated
50%
of today's
cat owners never take their cats to a veterinarian for health care.
Too,
because cats tend to keep their problems to themselves, many owners
think
their cat is perfectly healthy when actually they may be suffering from
a life-threatening disease. Therefore, cats, on an average, are much
sicker
than dogs by the time they are brought to your veterinarian for
treatment.
- Never
give
your
cat aspirin
unless specifically prescribed by your veterinarian; it can be fatal.
Never
ever give Tylenol to a cat. And be sure to keep anti-freeze away
from all animals - it's sweet and enticing, but deadly poison.
Related pages: Substances that are Toxic
to Cats; Plants that are Toxic to Cats; First Aid Kit for your Cat; First Aid for Plant Poisoning
- Most
cats
adore
sardines.
|
|
 |
- It
has been
scientifically
proven that stroking a cat can lower one's blood pressure.
- In
1987, cats
overtook
dogs as the number one pet in America (about 50 million cats resided in
24 million homes in 1986). About 37% of American homes today have at
least one cat.
- If
your cat
snores or
rolls over on his back to expose his belly, it means he trusts you.
- Cats
respond
better to
women than to men, probably due to the fact that women's voices have a
higher pitch.
- In an
average
year, cat
owners in the United States spend over $2 billion on cat food.
- According
to
a
Gallup poll,
most American pet owners obtain their cats by adopting strays.
- When
your
cats
rubs up
against you, she is actually marking you as "hers" with her scent. If
your
cat pushes his face against your head, it is a sign of acceptance and
affection.
|
|
- Contrary
to
popular belief,
people are not allergic to cat fur, dander, saliva, or urine - they are
allergic to "sebum," a fatty substance secreted by the cat's sebaceous
glands. More interesting, someone who is allergic to one cat may not be
allergic to another cat. Though there isn't (yet) a way of predicting
which
cat is more likely to cause allergic reactions, it has been proven that
male cats shed much greater amounts of allergen than females. A
neutered
male, however, sheds much less than a non-neutered male.
- Cat
bites are
more likely
to become infected than dog bites.
- In just
7 years, one un-spayed female cat and one un-neutered male cat and
their offspring can result in 420,000 kittens.
- Some
notable
people who
disliked cats: Napoleon Bonaparte, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Hitler.
- Related
page: A Few Famous Cat Lovers
|
|
 |
- Six-toed
kittens
are so
common in Boston and surrounding areas of Massachusetts that experts
consider
it an established mutation.
- The
silks
created
by weavers
in Baghdad were inspired by the beautiful and varied colors and
markings
of cat coats. These fabrics were called "tabby" by European traders.
- Cat
families
usually play
best in even numbers. Cats and kittens should be acquired in pairs
whenever
possible.
- Cats
lived
with
soldiers
in trenches, where they killed mice during World War I.
|
|
- Cat
litter
was
"invented"
in 1947 when Edward Lowe asked his neighbor to try a dried, granulated
clay used to sop up grease spills in factories. (In 1990, Mr. Lowe sold
his business for $200 million.) Related page: Other Things You Can Do with Kitty Litter
- The cat
appears
to be the only domestic animal not mentioned in the Bible. *
|
|
