There’s no question that cats are a popular choice for pets — in fact, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association, about 25 percent of U.S. households have these cute, furry felines as a live-in friend.
Cat tongues are actually dotted with sharp, backward-facing hooks that help them groom and eat meat.
Cat forelimbs are attached to the shoulders by free-floating clavicle bones. This means they can twist and contort their bodies to fit through any opening their head can fit through.
Cat whiskers can sense vibrations, relay important info about prey, helps them navigate their environment, and even help them determine if they can fit through tight openings.
Cats are more likely to survive a fall from higher up than from shorter heights. This is because it takes them a while to adjust their bodies in mid-air. With more time to adjust, they can flip their bodies and land on their feet.
Cats get stuck in trees because they can’t climb down head-first. All of their claws curve downward, meaning they can only crawl down backwards.
Cats spend 14-20 hours a day sleeping, storing up as much energy as possible to attack their toy mouse through the night. By the time your cat is 15 years old he or she will have slept for up to 10 years of their life!
Ever wonder why your cat stares at you all the time with her mouth open? It’s because they have a special organ calls a Jacobson’s Organ that lets them “taste” smells. It is especially used to analyze scents.
Cats have the largest eyes in relation to body size of any mammal.
A cat’s tail has 10% of its total bone structure. This helps them stay balanced when walking on fences or tree limbs.
Due to their hardworking kidneys, cats can drink salt water.
Male cats are more likely to be left-pawed while females are the opposite.
Cats have 300 million neurons, about double that of dogs. This is probably why your pup is always so excited to see you and your cat doesn’t even bother getting up.
Cat paws are extra soft so they can sneak up on prey, or you!
Domestic cat has over 1,000 times more data storage space than an iPad…and yet they’re still perpetually foiled by doors!
Cats can move their ears 180 degrees and at separate times, this is very useful for remaining constantly alert while on the hunt.
A cats nose is ridged and are completely unique to them. They are basically the equivalent of a human fingerprint.
Cats need 7 times less light to see at night than you do, which is why they run around your house in the middle of the night in pitch blackness with ease!
It sucks for them, but cats can’t taste sweet things. The upside to this is that, unlike dogs, most cats won’t be that excited about sharing your dessert.
Domestic cats have between 230-250 bones in their body, some of their bones can fuse together with age hence there is no exact number.
Cats in ancient time
- There is evidence that people have had pet cats for over 11,500 years; a young wildcat was found buried with a human in Cyprus at a burial site believed to date from 9,500 B.C.
- The earliest evidence of widespread cat domestication comes from China around 5,300 years ago. Where they were used to keep the rodent population in check and stop them from eating all their grain.
- When a family cat died in Ancient Egypt, the family mourned their loss by shaving their eyebrows. We think this is one tradition that should be bought back!
- There are 8 million domestic cats in the UK, making them the UK’s second favourite pet trailing narrowly behind dogs of which there are 9 million in the UK.
- Ancient Egyptians dressed their cats in jewels and ornate costumes. Step your game up.
- Cats represented sexuality and fertility in Ancient Egypt. The Egyptians also thought they were magic animals capable of bringing good luck.
- As many as 300,000 cats were found mummified, many with their owners, at a temple dedicated to Bastet (a god depicted as a feline/human).
- Dogs were more useful to humans when we were hunter-gatherers, so cats were domesticated long after. It wasn’t until humans settled and stored surplus crops that cats began to notice how useful we were for supplying them with delicious rodents.
- The first cat show in England took place in 1871 since then the world of cats shows has grown to unimaginable proportions with the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy overseeing much of the cat show proceedings.
- Pope Gregory the 9th declared black cats to be instruments of the devil, this led to people killing off a lot of black cats.
- which ironically led to the growth of the vermin population and the rise of the deadly Black Plague (read our article on the history of the domestic cat for more info), a scourge carried by fleas of rats. So never take your cat for granted!
- Cardinal Richelieu, of “The Three Musketeers” fame, was a cat fanatic who had a cattery on his residence and popularized them as pets in French society. He gave his cats amazing names like Ludovic le Cruel, Ludoviska, and Gazette.
- Catherine the Great of Russia promoted her cats to guards and gave them a salary!
- Unsinkable Sam survived 3 shipwrecks during World War 2. One with the German navy and 2 with the British Royal Navy.
Behavior
- Brits with cats are 33% less likely to have a stroke. Yes apparently owning a cat helps you relax and lowers your heart rate!
- The average house cat lives about 15 years, so remember a cat is a big responsibility which is for life not just for Christmas.
- Your cat perceives you as just another cat. Only a big, hairless one that dispenses food and gets rid of their poop.
- Owning a cat decreases your risk of heart disease.
- A litter of cats is called a kindle, sometimes groups of kittens are also known as Intrigues or Entanglements.
- In 2004 the first commercially cloned cat, little Nicky, was cloned from 17-year-old “big” Nicky at a cost of £27,000 – unsurprisingly this was a controversial move and pet cloning hasn’t taken off!
- Cats will lick an owner’s hair or massage your lap to signify they love you and consider you part of their family.
- Cats also display their love for you by kneading – it’s just a shame it hurts so much, the sharp claws often ruin the moment!
- Cats rub against you to mark their territory and show affection, yes that’s right, your cat considers you to be their territory…their property!
- Cats lick themselves after you pet them to take your scent off, this is a habit which stems from their desire to not be easily hunted down by bigger predators who may get a whiff of them.
- Your cat’s instinctual prey drive tempts it to attack your ankles when you walk, thankfully a lot of cats grow out of this habit as they age.
- Meowing is a language developed exclusively for humans. Cats communicate to each other in a variety of ways but only meow to get things from people—and also from mothers at birth.
- Ever wonder why your cat is always in a cardboard box or laundry basket? Their instincts tell them to seek out safe places for hiding, stalking prey, and sleeping and there’s nowhere that feels more secure and safe to your cat than a nice enclosed box.
- Cats will often steal things from their owners that look like prey. House cats are known to take stuffed animals and hide them.
- Pet cats bring you dead birds or mice not as gifts but to show you hunting skills they think you lack!
Records
- The Egyptian Mau cat can reach a top speed of 49 km/hr.
- The largest litter ever recorded was 19 kittens! 15 survived.
- The largest feline animal is the Siberian Tiger. At 317 kg (about 700 pounds), it’s the size of a small car.
- The Maine Coone is the largest pedigreed cat at roughly 11 kg.
- The smallest pedigreed cat is the Singapura at 1.8 kg.
- The fattest cat of all time was Himmy, a cat from Australia who weighed in at a whopping 21.3 kg. Maybe his automatic cat feeder broke like this guy and he just went wild!?
- The smallest cat of all time is Tinker Toy, at a teeny 7 cm tall and 19 cm long.
- The record for most kittens from one cat belongs to Dusty, a tabby cat from Texas. She produced 420 kittens over 17 years.
- The oldest cat on record was a tabby cat from Devon. “Puss” was a whopping 36 years old when he went to cat heaven in 1939.
- The oldest known cat to give birth was “Kitty,” who mothered 2 kittens at the ancient age of 30.
