The Wonder of Cats Read online

  A cat’s tail helps the feline’s balance when falling or jumping.

  The bones in a cat’s tail make up almost 10% of a cat’s total number of bones. They have between 14 – 28 vertebrae in their tails.

  Cats are expressive with their tails, conveying emotion and disposition.

  A relaxed and contented cat has a curved, S-shaped tail.

  Interest and curiosity is revealed with a straight up in the air and curved at the tip tail.

  Playfulness is shown with an erect tail with a slight sway.

  A swinging tail with a hanging appearance indicates anger and impatience.

  Annoyance causes a twitching tip on a curved tail.

  Submission is revealed with a low tail between the hind legs.

  Fear and terror are shown with a held down, bristly tail.

  Anger with possible aggression is indicated by an erect, fluffed out tail.

  A curved and puffed tail to twice its size warns of angry fear and the possibility of attack.

  A cat is thrilled to see you when his tail stiffly stands in the air.

  When a cat flicks his tail, he is hurling an insult, like giving the finger. Sam sez, “#%&*!!”

  There Is a Cat Afoot

  Claws

  Cats’ claws are their main weapon and are always sharp, ready, and suddenly released to scratch, climb, grip, and to hold prey.

  Each claw is held in by a protective sheath, hiding the weapon, and is attached by a ligament to the side of each toe. When extended, the claws are propelled out of the sheath by individual flexor muscles.

  A cat’s retractable claws reduce noise by not clicking on hard surfaces, and they stay protected and sharper longer by being sheathed.

  The eight hind claws are used with larger prey or when fighting with another cat, so they can inflict more damage when kicking. They can also injure larger prey by kicking with the hind feet and slicing into the soft underbelly.

  Cats keep their claws in top shape by scratching on rough surfaces.

  When a cat scratches his claws, he is not sharpening them rather he is shedding the entire outer layer of the claw revealing a new sharp, pointed surface beneath.

  When a cat scratches, he is not only exposing the sharp claw but spreading his scent as well. Cats have scent glands on the bottom of their feet and are used to mark their territory. These scents cannot be picked by people.

  Toes

  Some British Shorthairs develop a condition called polydactylism, meaning “many digits,” in other words they have extra toes.

  Siamese cats are more likely to have extra toes than some other breeds.

  Some cats have up to ten extra toes. These extra toes do not function as the regular toes. Their claws are non-retractable, and the extra toes are not directable. These extra toes usually appear above the paw near the fifth or dewclaw.

  In Boston, Massachusetts, polydactyl cats are most common with about 15% of cats born there have extra toes. It is believed the six-toed mutation started there and spread to surrounding states.

  Extra toes (more than five on forepaws and four on hind paws) are genetic.

  The extra toe on the side of the front paws is called the dewclaw. The dewclaw’s primary function appears to be gripping when climbing.

  Pads

  Some cats have a carpel pad on their front paws to prevent slipping when landing.

  The large pad on the paw is the metacarpal pad.

  A cat’s pads on the paws are sensitive and used to touch objects to determine size, texture, and shape, and whether the object should be investigated further, like more touching or with a few sniffs.

  Cats have eccrine, or sweat, glands only on the pads of their paws that release watery sweat when the feline is hot or frightened.

  Indoor cats tend to have waxy soft pads on their feet while the outdoor cat’s pads are hardened and usually cracked.

  Paws

  Cats can be left- or right-pawed. In one study by a British physiologist revealed that 58% of cats favor using one paw, with twice the amount using their left paw over their right paw. This may be why left-handed baseball pitchers are called “southpaws.”

  Ears, Eyes, Nose, Mouth & a Furry Body

  The average weight for cats is twelve pounds.

  A cat’s regular body temperature is between 101.5 and 102 degrees F.

  Cats have fast heartbeats compared to humans, beating 110 – 140 beats per minute. That can climb to 240 beats per minute when the cat is excited.

  Cats have 517 muscles in their bodies with 290 bones.

  A cat’s skeleton is made for agility and speed and is supple, flexible, and lightweight. The skeleton aids in hunting through a cat’s movements from the stealthy stalk to sprinting to the sudden finale of chasing and striking.

  The spine is highly flexible, allowing the feline to rotate its body by 180 degrees when falling. The vertebrae are flexible, allowing for sharp turns, direction changes, and righting herself when falling to land on her feet.

  The supple spine allows the cat to curl up when sleeping or just lying down.

  A cat’s flexible and extendable spine lengthens his stride when running.

  Cats’ shoulders are mostly muscle and the forelimbs are only attached by muscle, thereby increasing its flexibility and range of motion, as well as lengthening its stride. Cats do not have collarbones thereby letting the forelegs and shoulders to extend longer.

  The thickness of the cat’s skin ranges from 1/64 of an inch on the tummy to 1/12 of an inch about the neck. This thicker skin around the neck protects vital blood vessels and sensitive musculature and is where males usually bite and hold the female during mating.

  In a stressful moment of fight or flight, the adrenal gland situated above the kidneys releases adrenaline priming the cat for action, causing the heart to beat faster, muscles to get more oxygen, and preparing the body to dispel carbon dioxide.

  I Heard Something

  Cats hear five times better than humans.

  Cats have great hearing, one of the best in the animal kingdom, and are able to hear footsteps from hundreds of feet away. To hear sounds from different directions, cats just move their ears, not the head like humans.

  Cats have thin, flexible ears that stand upright. Their ears can twist and turn in the direction of an enticing sound by 180 degrees. Also, each ear has thirty muscles, used mainly for movement.

  Cats have superior hearing than dogs, because they are solitary hunters and have to rely on themselves rather than a pack, like a dog.

  Cats can hear at a far better range than people. In lower frequencies (about 200 hertz), cats hear about the same as humans and dogs, but in higher frequencies (about 65 Kilohertz), they are vastly superior. Some cats can even hear as highly as bats at 100 Kilohertz. This high frequency hearing has evolved to pick up the high frequency sounds made by rodents when communicating (i.e. squeaking) or rustling about.

  Cats have about 25% more nerve fibers in their auditory nerve than humans, thereby increasing their sound sensitivity. Cats have about 40,000 fibers in the aural nerve, allowing them to hear well. Cats have aural pain at lower levels than people.

  A cat’s inner ear is responsible for balance. In the inner ear, fluid in sealed canals goes past sensory hairs telling the cat how his movements and position are relative to the ground. This inner ear also aids the cat to right herself when falling.

  A few cats are deaf. These cats may be very sensitive to vibrations, especially through their feet.

  In blue-eyed white cats, if that cat has two whiteness genes, chances are high he will be deaf from a deformity in the inner ear.

  White cats with only one blue eye are much less likely to be deaf.

  The Cat’s Eyes Have It

  A cat’s highly developed sight gives them great judgments of depth and speed used when climbing, jumping, running, and stalking prey.

  Cats have eyesight that is five times better than humans.

  A cat’s pupils grow when
approaching food or his bowl. They can dilate up to four times their normal size.

  A kitten’s eye color changes as it gets older.

  Glowing In The Light

  Cat’s eyes flash light back in red, green, or yellow.

  Cats with different color eyes reflect different colors. For example, cats with green or blue eyes reflect red, and cats with copper or gold eyes have a greenish shine.

  Seeing In The Dark

  Although cats can see in dim light better than people, they cannot see in totally dark places.

  At night where people cannot see with their less sensitive eyes, the cat can hunt and make its way around with some help from sensitive whiskers.

  A cat’s pupil changes in size and shape depending on the amount of light the cat is in. In bright daytime, the pupil shrinks to a thin slit whereas at night it appears large and round to take in as much light as possible.

  Cats see excellently in the dark, six times better than humans. Sam sez, “We hardly ever stub our toes walking in the dark.”

  Emotional Eyes

  A cat’s pupils convey emotion. If a puss dilates her pupils, she is scared or angry. However, her pupils contract when feeling content and loving.

  Cats with half-closed eyes are content.

  When a cat blinks, she is relaxed and at peace.

  Cat’s eyes can indicate mood and feeling, for example half-open eyes show relaxation and trust, whereas wide-open eyes indicate interest, like when a new human is present.

  Biology Of The Cat’s Eye

  Cats have a special layer of mirror-like cells in their eyes behind the retina called tapetum lucidum that are made up of zinc and protein. These are located at the back of the eye and reflect light increasing its intensity, helping the cat to see in darker areas. These cells also make the cat’s eyes glow in the dark.

  Cats’ eyes are able to see in dim light compared to humans. Cats have more rods in their eyes, which are sensitive to light, and fewer cones, which aid resolution. So cats can see better in lower light, but it is not as clear.

  Cats’ eyes have a “haw” (a third eyelid) that helps protect the eyes.

  Feline Binoculars

  Cats have a wide angle of sight with great peripheral vision of 285 degrees thanks to their protruding eyes.

  Cats also have binocular vision, meaning their sight overlaps (i.e. they can see the same thing with both eyes). Their field of vision overlaps. This overlapping helps judge size, depth, and distance. Some cats’ binocular vision is not as pronounced, such as the Siamese, so they may have difficulty hunting.

  Cats’ eyes have good depth and can see up to 120 feet in the distance. Their field of sight is over 200 degrees in each eye, and their vision overlaps by 98%, giving them highly developed, stereoscopic sight.

  However, cats lack detailed vision.

  Hunting Vision

  Cats’ eyes react to movement, which helps in hunting.

  The superior vision helps a cat hunt when they are most active at dusk and dawn when there is low light.

  Cats detect their prey mostly by sight. With large eyes, cats can see maximum light in various levels of darkness. The large elliptical pupils alter their size from large – sometimes over a centimeter – in low light to thin slits in bright light. Additionally, the cat’s large, curved lens focuses images into the eyes, which helps in nighttime hunting.

  A cat cannot focus as well on prey that is closer then 30 inches, instead relies in his other senses up close. His best vision is between 6 – 20 feet, which is great for stalking and pouncing with accuracy.

  Colorblind?

  Cats can see colors although not very well. Cats can distinguish different colors but cannot see colors as people do.

  After much testing and research, it is believed cats can see some colors, like blue and green but not red, but don’t seem to care when they do or are thought to be colorblind.

  Sniff, Sniff

  At birth, kittens have a terrific sense of smell so they can locate mom, her nipples, and for positioning in the litter.

  Cats smell the air with every breath to detect friends, enemies, prey, or noxious substances so they can investigate if they like.

  A cat’s sense of smell lets the feline relate to mates, friends, enemies (both cat and non-cat), and humans.

  A cat’s sense of smell is not highly developed for hunting; in fact, dogs have almost double the amount of smell receptors in their noses than cats. However, cats have a much better sense of smell than humans and like to use it on smells of interest inside and out. Cats have double the smelling cells that people have.

  Much sniffing is used to check out concentrated smells or smells of particular interest.

  When rapidly sniffing the air, scent is not expelled but held in a shelf-like chamber in the nose to be smelled repeatedly.

  As the cat grows older, the sense of smell plays an important role in communication.

  Cats develop a communal smell in the home that comes from the cats themselves, their owners, other pets, and inanimate objects, like carpets and beds. Cats reinforce the communal scent on themselves by exchanging smells by rubbing with humans, other pets, and the furniture.

  Cats’ sense of smell is especially sensitive to nitrogen, which tells the feline to reject these rancid odors. They are quite sensitive to heavily chlorinated tap water, too.

  The smell of oranges and lemons is a big turnoff for cats. They hate it. Sam sez, “P-U!”

  Straight From The Cat’s Mouth

  Tasty

  Kittens have a great sense of taste when born, but it lessens with age. This loss of taste makes cats appear to be finicky.

  A cat’s taste and smell are closely linked as the nasal passage opens into the back of the mouth.

  Cats cannot taste sweet things but can taste salty, bitter, and sour flavors. And their tongues are sensitive to the amino acids found in meat.

  Cats can also taste proteins found in meats, which highly influences their food choices. Fats tend to be smelled rather than tasted, influencing a cat’s palate.

  Kitty Teeth

  Cats have shorter jaws than other predators, resulting in fewer teeth, usually 28 – 32.

  A cat’s teeth can shear meat off prey like scissors.

  A cat’s long canine teeth are used to break the skin and penetrate deep into the prey’s neck, dislocating the neck vertebrae in what is known as the nape bite.

  Further into the mouth are carnassial teeth. These blade-like teeth are used to slice through skin and muscle.

  Between the canines in the front of the mouth are smaller incisors used for ripping feathers and fur off the kill.

  Rough Tongue

  Cats’ tongues have many functions. The tongue is very sensitive and has a roughness caused by rasping, pointing backward papillae (sharp spines or hooks) in the middle of the tongue.

  Papillae are used to groom, absorb liquid, hold prey, and scrape meat and fat from a kill. The cat’s rough tongue helps to grip and break up food and push it back to be swallowed. The tongue spikes also function to pick up softer food.

  The cat tongue forms a ladle to bring water into the mouth.

  Cats’ taste buds are found on the front, the sides, and the back of the tongue, but do not exist on the rough part.

  Lots O’ Fur

  Cats’ coats vary but most reflect the tabby markings of their wild ancestors.

  Type

  Cats have varying fur types consisting of differing combinations of:

  1. Down

  2. Awn

  3. Guard Hairs.

  Down hairs are short, soft, and fine and insulate the body, conserving precious body heat. These hairs are crinkly and crimped and roughly the same width from the tip down to the skin, giving them great heat-retaining qualities. Some breeds have no down.

  Awn hairs are medium-length bristly, coarse hairs, forming the middle-coat. These hairs swell slightly toward the tip then taper off. With down hairs, awn hairs constitute th
e secondary hairs. They partially provide protection and insulation.

  Guard hairs or primary hairs are the longest and most visible hairs. Guard hairs are long and extend slightly above the rest of the other hairs. They are especially sensitive to the environment, telling the cat the direction of the wind when he needs to hunt downwind. These hairs also work in conjunction with skin nerves.