Do You Know This Shocking Facts About Cats ?
Cats cannot see in total darkness. This is why they may attack things that they cannot clearly see, such as shadows or other fast moving objects.
Cats can get “drunk” after eating too much yeast, which is found in bread and alcohol. Their behavior becomes wobbly and unpredictable.
Just like humans, a cat’s eye pupils dilate when they are scared or angry. If a cat is staring at you it usually means it trusts you or is planning to pounce on you.
A cat’s center eye lid does not blink, so you can tell when they are asleep because both of the lids will be shut.
There are three distinct sounds that a cat can make that can mean three different things: “Mew” / “Meeoooww” (Sadness or slow cry) “Miaow” (Call for attention or food) “Meeeooow” (Angry cry or an attack!)
The biggest cats that ever lived were the sabre-tooth tigers. They went extinct between 10,000 to 20,000 years ago. They were twice as big as today’s African lions and could easily bite through a horses neck.
The smallest cats that ever lived were the Siberian Trapdoor Spiders. They were the size of a penny and lived in rabbit burrows.
The smallest cat that ever lived was a small wild cat called the Cloud Ear, which lived in China and ate insects. It was the size of a mouse and weighed less than 1 pound.
The smallest domesticated dog was a Spaniel called ‘Mops’, who weighed just 2 pounds. She belonged to the wife of England’s King Charles II and is also listed in the Guinness World Records book.
The smallest cat on record was a male Tabby called ‘Little Nick’ who weighed just 3lb and was 10 inches long. He belonged to Elizabeth Jagger of Hgen, London.
The longest cat was Cola, a domestic longhair from California. She measured 48.5cm (19.05 inches) from the tip of her nose to the tip of her tail. She has been listed in the Guinness World Records book.
The heaviest cat was a Cat called ‘Sonny’ who weighed in at 46 pounds (20.4kg).
The rarest cat is the Desert Wolf, which is also known as the Arabian Desert Cat. It has large red spots on a sandy coat and is the size of a small dog. They have small populations living in isolated areas of the Middle East, such as Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
The smallest wild cat is the Black Baza from Africa, which weighs just 1kg and is the size of a domestic cat.
The rarest wild cat is the Canadian Lynx, which has beautiful dark brown fur and lives in forests and grasslands across Canada and Northern USA. In 1996 there were only 95 of these cats left. Thanks to good protection efforts this has now increased to 350 in 2006.
The cat with the longest tail is the Malaysian Semaq. Its tail is over 3 feet long (91cms).
The cat that travels the farthest when it leaps is the African Golden Cat, which can jump up to 13 feet (4 meters) in one go.
The cat that walks the farthest when it sleeps is the Main Coon. It has a habit of walking vast distances while it dreams and has been found as far away as next door!
The cat that has the most kittens is the average female cat, who produces around four litters of kittens per year, each containing an average of four kittens. This means that on average, every year a female cat can produce around 68 kittens.
A cat’s urine glows under a black light. Grey and black tabby cats almost always have white whiskers and pink tails.
A cat that is completely white (with no other colors) always have blue eyes.
Cats can detect low blood sugar in a person and will begin to nuzzle and meow until they are given something with sugar in it (such as fruit juice).
Domestic cats (Felis Catus) have a thinner rod in the back of their eyes than humans do. This gives them better night vision.
Cat’s eyes have a special membrane that allows them to see in the dark. It also helps them to see in bright light by filtering out the excess light.
The heaviest cat on record was a Maine Coon from Massachusetts named ‘Hoover’ who weighed in at just over 46 pounds (21kg).
A cat’s heart beats twice as fast as a human heart, averaging about 110 to 140 beats per minute.
The smallest adult cat on record is Mr Pebbles, who weighed just over 2 pounds (0.9kg) and was 10 inches (25cm) long.
Cats take about 30 steps per minute when they walk.
The largest litter of kittens produced 17 kittens. They were born in 2004 and belonged to a Cat called ‘Dusty’, who sadly died after the birth.
A cat can jump 5 times as high as it is long. This means that the world record holder for the highest jump, a Maine Coon Cat called ‘Hi-Desert Lv Cassimus’ could leap vertically up to 17 feet (5.18 meters) high.
Cats take between 30 to 60 minutes to digest their food.
It is impossible for a cat to produce milk.
A cat’s skin is 1/12th the thickness of a humans.
The smallest cat ever was Tinker Toy. He was 5 inches (12.5cm) tall and 6 inches (15cm) long. He belonged to’Joanie Parrish from Wilmington, Delaware and sadly died when he was 6 weeks old.
The cat with the most toes is the Canadian Lynx, which has extra furry ‘paws’ with 2 to 6 extra small toes. These toes are useless, as the bones in them are fused.
A cat has 5Zymes in its stomach to break down the food while it digests it.
Cats can see 6 times better than a human at night because of the tapetum lucidum, which is a layer of extra reflecting neurons which reflect light back onto the retina, allowing more light to reach the eye.
Siberian cats have blue eyes because of a mutation in the pigment gene.
The top speed of a domestic cat is about 31 mph (50Km/h).
Cats have more than one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs only have about ten.
A cat has five more senses than a human: It has touch, taste, hearing, sight and smell. People only have the first four. The sense of ‘smell’ in people is in fact the combination of smell and taste together.
The heaviest Domestic cat on record is 21 pounds (10kg), and the longest is 48 inches (1.2m).
There are about 70 different breeds of domestic cat. All wild cats are members of the leopard family.
All cats give off small amounts of a natural hallucinogenic chemical. This is what makes cats so ‘mysterious’.
They have been living in the English countryside for at least one million years.
Out of all the South-East Asian islands, cats are the only predators on Sumatra. The birds and rats have no natural predators there.
The smallest wild cat is the Black Footed Cat, which grows to about the size of a domestic cat. It is also the fastest mammal, at up to 58 miles (93Km) per hour.
Cats have very flexible bodies. They can even travel though a pipe that is larger than their heads!
All the blue-eyed exotic cats including Snow Leopards, were at one time white. They gradually acquired their colour through evolution.
Cats find it harder to see in the dark than dogs do because they cant move their eyes side-to-side as quickly due to the structure of their eyes.
Most cats can jump 5 times their own height, and fall from any height and land safely on their feet.
The domestic cat is the fastest mammal on earth. They can reach speeds of up to 31 miles per hour (50km/h).
Cats are left-pawed or right-pawed just like people.
A group of kittens is called a “kindle”. Cats have theopia, which means they don’t focus close objects. This is why they seem to be staring at you all the time. They can’t see much detail!
The smallest wildcat is the Black-Footed cat and the largest wildcat is the Siberian Tiger.
Cats are color-blind. They can only see green and blue, which is why carpets seem to be in different colors when they step on them. The red dot (the target) of the laser pointer seems to move around rapidly because they can’t see the color red.
A cat’s whiskers are also called “vibrissae” which means “vibrating hairs”. These help them to determine if they can fit into small places or not.
Cats have two sets of teeth their entire life. When the front ones wear down and fall out, the back ones move forward.
The heaviest domestic cat ever was Himmy, a Maine Coon from Australia, which weighed in at 31 pounds (14.1Kg). Himmy died in 1997 at the age of 8.
In the A.R.C.E. cat show in 1965, a 7 pound (3.2Kg) cat was entered and won first prize for smallest cat. It was called Tiny Tim.
The oldest cat to give birth was called Crumb, she gave birth at the age of 30 and there were 3 healthy kittens.
The oldest cat on record is Pussy, from London, England. She lived for 36 years.
No one is exactly sure where the word cat came from. Some people think it came from the Latin word “cattus” meaning “domestic cat”, but no one can be quite sure.
The first cat show was held in 1871 in England.
The heaviest and tallest cat ever was a Maine Coon name Obaysch who weighed 48 pounds (22Kg) and was 3 feet 7 inches tall (112cm).
A cat has five toes on its front paws and four on its back paws (this is why you never see a cat’s hind foot prints looking the same as it’s front ones).
Cats have a strong sense of self-dependency. If they’re hungry, they often won’t come when called, unless they decide to.
Fever speeds up cats’ metabolism, causing them to eat faster.
The average cat food can’t always be detected by a cat’s taste buds, so it has a strong smell (usually meat based). This is why cats eat less than what you put out for them but still seem to get full.
Cats have an extra vertebrae in their spine that prevents them from twisting their necks. This is called an “ewsil” (extra vertebrae).
The word “cat” in latin is “Felis”, which means cat, but also the word “feline” which means cat-like, like a cheetah for example.
Cats can run at top speed for a very long distance. The average housecat can run at about 30 miles/hour for short distances, and can jump about 7 feet high (2 meters).
A cat lover is called an “aelurophile”.
The heaviest cat ever was an English Liger named Hercules. He weighed in at about 1100 pounds (499Kg). That’s about the size of 4 big elephants!
Cats can see 6 times better than humans in darkness, and about double our distance. This is due to the fact that they have a special membrane, called the “tapetum lucidum”, which allows them to reflect light under low light conditions.
Cats usually have a good sense of balance. If you suddenly lift a cat that is not sleeping or unconscious, they will naturally wrap their paws around you in order to not fall.
Cats can get the hiccups just like people, but for some reason they always seem to fail to catch them in mirrors.
Cats have an extra “a” in their language. This is due to the fact that they cannot move their tongues in our language’s manner.
Cats often clean themselves with their tongues to keep cool rather than to get rid of smells.
If a female cat is away from her litter for more than a day, she will not recognize them as her own when she comes back, even if she has just given birth to them. This is due to the fact that a nursing mother only releases a unique smell while feeding her babies.
A female cat usually grooms itself after it has given birth. This helps to keep the scent of birth away and also causes contractions which help expel the afterbirth.
A cat’s hearing is better than a human’s. Cats can hear higher sounds than we can, and can hear much farther away. This is why your cat seems to always be able to know when someone is at the door, even if they’re upstairs.
Cats have the ability to neutralize their smell with their own perfume (their saliva). This is why if you pet a cat it will often taste salty. This allows them to get up close to their prey without being detected.
Cats can jump up to five times their length. That means, a 6-foot tall cat can jump 3.6 feet high.
A cat’s brain is more similar to a human’s than that of a dog.
Cats have a third eyelid, called the “nictitating membrane” which is inside the eye. It protects the eyes while fighting or eating. You may sometimes see your cat showing this membrane when they are interested in something. As the third eyelid is closer to the eye itself, it ensures that dust does not get into the eye during grooming.
Cats have a special hearing receptor, called the “flehmen response”, which allows them to analyze smells more accurately. This is why your cat seems to be staring blankly at you one moment, and then suddenly jumps away from you as you approach. Your cat has detected that you are nearby by the smell of your hands after you have handled fish, meat, garlic or cigarette smoke. When your cat does this, it also goes blank for a few moments and may even make a odd noise.
Cats are the only animals that walk directly on their tiptoes. This is due to the fact that their paws are flexible and held in a curved posture all the time. This specialized design is to help cats move silently when approaching prey.
Cat’s whiskers are also known as “vibrissae.” These are located on the upper lip, and above the eyes. These help your cat to detect if they can fit into a given space, or if their prey is trying to escape.
Cats can’t taste sweet things, however they often like the taste of honey or chocolate because it reminds them of the taste of blood.
Cats can see in just 1/6th of the light than a human needs to see.
A cat’s nose is incredibly sensitive and is about the same as a human’s fingerprint, no two are exactly alike. Whiskers are also unique to each cat.
Due to their soft fur, cats cannot survive outside in the winter, while dogs survive quite easily.
Female cats are “queen” of their domains. They usually decide where the family lives, and will move the family if she wishes. The males are often just as submissive to the females, except during mating season.
A cat’s mouth can’t produce the proper sounds for meowing, therefore they growl, hiss, spits and even growl-hisses at one another when communicating.
Cats can be lactose intolerant, however some cat breeds such as the Siberian are bred specifically for milk production. These cats have continued to breed over the years and now produce up to five times as much milk than regular cats. This means that Siberian cats have far higher numbers of farms in their territory than other cat breeds, and even dogs.
Several cat breeds also have unusually wooly coats due to breeding with various wool-producing animals.
While dogs are known for eating everything and anything, cats are fairly picky eaters. Some cat breeds will only eat meat and fish, while others will only eat plants. Some eat both, and some just prefer human food.
Cats have an extraordinary sense of balance due to the placement of their ears and eyes.
Because of their far superior night vision, cats tend to be nocturnal while dogs tend to be more diurnal.
If another animal harasses a cat, the cat will often emit a “distress” noise to alert and draw the attention of their human.
There are many places in North America where cat populations have become so large that they have become predators in their own right. The most notable example is in Central Texas, where Bobcats have become the primary predator across most of the area.
The smallest wild cat is the Black Footed Cat.
which typically grows to around a foot in length and is the size of a domestic cat. It feeds primarily on rodents and other small mammals.
The mountain dwelling Bobcat is the primary predator across large parts of North America. While it primarily eats rabbits and hares, it will happily feed on any rodents it finds.
The Pampas cat is a predator native to South America, and primarily eats rodents and slinks. These cats are known for their ability to sneak up on even the largest prey animals due to their natural camouflage abilities.
The Jaguar is the largest cat species in North America, with a few individuals having been recorded at over 300kg. They are stealth hunters, preferring to sneak up on their prey before destroying it with a single crushing blow.
While the jaguar once roamed almost the entirety of South and Central America, the species was pushed out of North America entirely by human settlers. They now only roam the impenetrable Amazon Rainforest, and in smaller numbers the Southern American woodlands.
While Jaguars are solitary animals, mated pairs will often hunt together and raise their cubs in a family group. The pair will stay together until one of them dies.
The age of a cat can be roughly determined by it’s teeth, much like a dog. Cats’ ears never stop growing.
Cats have free-floating clavicles which allows them to squeeze through impossibly small spaces.
The smallest cat on record was Mr. Pebbles, who only weighed half a pound and was 8 inches long. The largest was Minerva, who weighed nearly 30 pounds and was 52.13 inches long.
Cats’ ears are used to determine whether or not an animal is a threat. If the ears are raised, the cat is alert and ready to pounce. If the ears are flat, the cat is preparing to pounce. If the ears are drawn back, the cat has either spotted something it considers a threat or is scared itself.
19th century sailors used to believe that cats could attract fish. To this day, some fishermen keep a cat on board to help them get more catches.
The physical structure of a cat’s mouth gives it the ability to bite down with over 2,000 pounds of pressure per square inch. There are more cats than dogs in the world.
Cats like to be petted behind the ears and under the chin. About 30 years ago, there were only little patches of European Wildcat in Europe, but a conservation program has helped them thrive. It is now classified as a least concern species by the IUCN.
The domestic cat is the sole living descendant of the African Wildcat.
Priceless medieval manuscripts are protected from bookworms by the natural enemies of the bookworm: Cats.
The ancient Egyptian goddess Mihktet was sometimes depicted with a cat’s head or a cat’s body.
There are many African words for cats including: jiogga, tabby, tumtun and many more.
In America, there is a breed of cat called the American Curl. It curls it’s ears, just like a normal cat.
The smallest wild cat is the Blackic which lives in the Amazon and weighs only one kilo.
On average, cats live for 12 to 16 years, but some can live up to 30 years or more.
A catfish’s whiskers are as sharp as needles.
Cats love to be stroked along their heads and backs. Kittens are born blind and deaf. They are also incapable of producing any sound.
Cats lack a true collarbone. The heaviest domestic cat was 21 pounds and the smallest was a tiny 3 1/2 inches tall and 8 inches long. The latter cat, called Tinker, died in 1979.
A cat uses his whiskers to measure gaps too small for its paws to fit in. Cats have five toes on their front feet and four toes on their back feet. During World War II, the British Special Operations Executive trained 500 cats to place bombs inside German ships.
The very first cat show was organized in 1871 by Harrison Weir in England.
The most popular cat name is “Mittens.”
There are about 5 million feral cats in Australia and 95 percent of them are unneutered.
In the 2006 movie “The Devil Wears Prada,” a cat was paid $100,000 for a guest appearance.
Bob Marley’s last album before his death was named after his favorite cat.
The first animated movie is a silent movie about cats called “Hertzfield’s Boxing Cats.” It was released in 1900.
The average cost of a cat to keep one mouse away from your home is $1,600 (over 10 years).
The earliest known pet cemetery exists in the back yard of a house in Ludlow, Mass. and dates back to the 19th century.
Maneki Neko, the Japanese statue cats, are meant to bring good luck to businesses.
The heaviest cat ever was Himmy, weighing 46 pounds.
In Italy, a black cat crossing your path means you’ll get a visit from the devil.
Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds, while dogs only have about ten.
New York City is the city with the most cats, with about 70 households owning one cat each.
The catgut strings on a violin were replaced with steel strings in 1781.
Catnip is an herb that gets its name from the Latin word “nepeta.”
A cat’s shoulder blades are flexible and movable. They can make them incredibly flexible and stretch far enough to reach the ground from a standing position.
The cat lover is called an Ailurophilia.
A cat bite can cause a human to go into anaphylactic shock, which closes the airways of the human. If not treated immediately, it can be fatal.
A cat’s whiskers are also known as proprioceptors. They were meant to help a cat hunt in the dark, but they can’t detect warm prey like rodents.
During the era of the Roman Empire, it was considered a crime to harm cats.
The world’s largest cat sanctuary is located in Coober Pedy, Australia and houses over 600 cats.
Cats do not like the scent of other felines. This is why one cat may seem to ignore the presence of another cat. Cats can pick up on if a human likes or dislikes a certain smell.
A group of cats is called a clowder.
In the 17th century, cats were so popular that they were considered a replacement for crucifixes.
Cats are the only domestic animals that consume a diet mainly of meat.
About 80% of cat owners give their cats a name beginning with the letter “M.”
The world’s richest cat is a 29 pound 6 year old cat called Tinker who has an estimated net worth of $38 million.
Your cat most likely grooms you because it associates you with feeding and it loves your smell.
There are more than 500 million domestic cats in the world. Cats have been domesticated for about 4,000 years. cat does not meow at humans, but will meow at other cats. A cat’s heart beats twice as fast as a human heart. About 33% of cats are allergic to tuna.
Cats do not see in black and white. They see in shades of gray. cat’s back is covered with more bones than any other part of its body. A cat has five toes on each front paw, but only four on each back paw. cat’s foot pads generally have sharp claws hidden underneath.
Cats can reach up to speeds of 31 mph when running. About 27% of cat owners carry their cats. When they are happy, about 25% of all cats will purr. A cat’s brain is 90% similar to a human brain. The nose pad of a cat is its only unpigmented spot. But it is not because they are albino. The average cat can jump about seven times its length.
Cats sleep for about 70% of their lives, which is about 16 hours every day.
Mother cats spend more time with their kittens than any other animal.
A cat’s brain is less developed in the learning department than most animals, but has an advanced sense of smell. Together, these factors make them excellent hunters.
Cats have been known to survive falls from up to five stories high.
Cats are the only animals that land on their feet when falling.
The cat family consists of about 60 species, including the tiger, lion, jaguar and mountain lion.
A cat has a double-row of teeth that fit together like a saw.
Cat’s eyes have a special protective membrane that lets them stay open under water.
If you consider yourself a “dog person” and your only exposure to cats is the cat drinking from your garden hose before licking itself for hours on end, then you have never met the real cat. Many people see cats as boring pets that just sleep all day. For one thing, a cat’s lazy behavior is more of a pretense to make them better hunters. It helps them conserve their energy and stay focused on their intended prey. Sometimes, though, they just like to take it easy.
Cat’s eyes have a special membrane that helps them see in all directions at once.
Cats do not actually see in total darkness the way that humans cannot see in total darkness. If it is really dark, their vision will be somewhat impaired, but it is still better than humans in the dark.
Cat’s eyes are able to adjust to different degrees of darkness.
In order for a cartoon cat to look round, the artist must draw the top of the head with a clockwise circle and the bottom with a counterclockwise circle, otherwise it will look like a square head.
Cats’ ears are almost always pointed on cartoons.
The earliest ancestor of the modern house cat was found in China, called the Martelli feline.
Cats cannot taste sweetness. Cats have over 100 vocal sounds, while dogs only have about 10. Dogs have reacted very positively to the sound of a cat’s hiss.
Despite popular belief, most cats do NOT land on their feet when falling from great heights. This popular myth originated when people saw their cat survive a fall through its ability to twist and turn in the air, landing on its feet. This was later found to be inaccurate when the cat died from its injuries, unseen due to its landing on its side. The misconception remains today, but is untrue.
This myth has been debunked by science, as it has been proven that cats can in fact twist in the air and land on their feet. Washington University in St. Louis proved this fact through a series of tests involving dropping cats from different heights into soft boxes. While the test was going on, the cat was put into a slow-motion camera to even further slow down the action, though it is believed that they would land on their feet anyway.
Cat’s urine glows under a black light. Some types of Domestic Cats can survive in areas with salt content as high as that of seawater.
Domestic cats are the only animals who can taste sweetness without activating the substance with saliva.
The largest litter of kittens born together to one mother was 19, and they all survived. They were of Mexican descent, and were conceived after their mother had been kidnapped and taken to the U.S. illegally. She eventually gave birth after being kidnapped by a circus.
The world’s smallest cat weighed 1 pound and 6 ounces and is named Tinker Toy. He holds the record for the smallest adult cat ever.
The heaviest cat weighed 42 pounds and 3 ounces. She was an American Liger named Cincinnati.
The oldest cat ever, Creme Puff, lived to be 28 years and 3 months.
The oldest cat ever recorded lived to be 29 years and 4 months. She was a domestic shorthair tabby named Pinky.
The youngest mother was a cat named Gypsy, who had her kittens at the age of 5 years and 1 month.
The cat you most likely have in your house is the Common House Cat, which is not actually a cat, but rather a subspecies of the Wildcat.
You may own a Felis Catus, or a Felis Silvestris Catus, depending on the circumstances of your cat ownership.
When a cat is born, it is almost always blind. It can take up to a week for a newborn cat’s eyes to finally open up and be able to see.
Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds to communicate with, whereas Dogs only have about ten.
