Cat Facts That You Should Know

Due to their independent nature, cats have the ability to entertain themselves for long hours, playing with curtain tassels and empty cartons. Yet, they still want the love and attention of humans. To know about their unusual behavior as well as how to care for them as pets and more, read about the interesting facts about cats for adults and kids.

Cats and kittens have soft fur. They are probably the most charming animals in the planet due to their innocent eyes and soft whispers. As a matter of fact, these creatures are one of the most favorite pets worldwide. Originally, cats were kept to chase rats and mice and to keep them away from homes. Certainly, history reveals several mysteries about these creatures.

Over the years, humans have shown all kinds of emotions towards cats like love, hatred, worship and persecution. However, in spite all these, cats continue to be man's best friend. According to history, the African Wildcat was the first feline to be domesticated 500 years ago. These cats were trained to keep rats from eating the huge amounts of grain, which were the produce of the Egyptians. They considered cats as the best solution to their problem and they began to bring out food for cats.

Amusing Facts about Cats

• There are above 500 million domesticated and trained cats in the whole world.
• People consider cats as among the most popular pets across the globe. In fact, more people have pet cats and kittens than dogs and puppies.
• There are 40 breeds of cats worldwide that are known to man.
• Cats have been closely associated with humans for about 10,000 years.
• They have flexible bodies and teeth designed to hunt rats, mice and smaller animals.
• To conserve energy, they sleep from 13 to 16 hours everyday, which is 70% of the time in average.
• A kitten is a young cat, a tom is a male cat and a molly or queen is a female cat. A clowder is a group of cats.
• Records show that the heaviest domestic cat weighs 46 pounds and 15. 2 ounces or 21.297 kilograms. Normally, domestic cats weigh 8 pounds and 13 ounces or 4 kilograms to 11 pounds or 5 kilograms.
• Cats have a strong sense of smell, which is fourteen times stronger than that of humans. Their vision is very powerful during nighttime since they can view light at levels which are six times less than what we need to be able to see.
• Since they cannot see directly underneath their nose, they cannot find tiny pieces of food on the floor.
• Majority of cats do not have eyelashes.
• Their pregnancy lasts from 58 to 65 days.
• Domesticated cats are fond of chasing toys and playing fights, which lets them learn not only about fighting, but hunting as well.
• To keep them clean, they make it a habit to lick their coats.
• Though all kittens are born with blue eyes, it is normal for the shade of color to change after 12 weeks.

Credit: Karina Popa