Whether you’ve had cats since birth or just welcomed a cat or kitten into your family, you’ll learn something new about them every day! Read on to learn interesting Cat Facts about cats that may surprise you.
- The first year of a cat’s life is roughly equivalent to the first 15 years of a human’s life.
The second year of a cat’s life is roughly equivalent to the first 25 years of human life. After that, your cat will tend to grow more slowly, about 4-5 person-years of aging every 12 months.
- The cat’s ears can be rotated 180 degrees.
Humans have 6 muscles in both outer ears, while cats have 32 in each outer ear! These muscles allow cats to pinpoint the exact source of noise by turning their ears.
- The hearing of the average cat is at least five times that of an adult.
Cats have very sensitive hearing and can perceive higher pitches than humans. This gives them an advantage in the wild, as most of their prey, including rodents and birds, screech.
- Among the largest domestic cat breeds, the average male weight is about 9 kg (20 lb).
Among these large domestic cats are Siberians, Ragdolls, Maine Coons, and British Shorthairs. These big cats are known for their fluffy coats and affectionate nature.
- Domestic cats spend 70% of their time sleeping and 15% spending their time sleeping.
Cats are developed to sleep often, they do not spend their time hunting and saving energy for dinner. Even if you do not hunt at home, these features are taken for granted. A large cat can sleep 16 to 20 hours a day. Kittens and large cats can sleep about 24 hours a day.
- The cat does not see directly under its nose.
While cats are known for their sharp eyes, they also have blind spots! Because their prey is not used to ending up directly under the cat’s nose. And when a cat goes hunting, the latter relies more on smell than on sight.
- Most cats do not have scars.
- Five cats have toes on their front legs and only four toes are on their backs.
However, it is not uncommon for cats to have excessive fingers. As far as we know, the cat with the most toes has 32 – 8 on each foot!
- Some people think that seeing a white cat in your dream will bring happiness.
In many countries, there are many myths and stories that white cats are symbols of goodness, they represent purity and happiness.
- Cats are not raised by meowing – they are raised to communicate with humans.
Big cats who do not socialize can communicate clearly with each other. Cats communicate with each other by smell, facial expressions, complex body language, and touch. Domestic cats often talk about their needs with humans. To learn more, read our article on why cat meow.
Things you do not know about cats
A cat sleeps 70% of its life.
- It’s not uncommon to see your cat jump into Morpheus’ arms on the couch, chair, or bed when he’s not asking for food.
- And for good reason! A cat sleeps two-thirds of its life or an average of 16 hours a day in a year. Kittens can even sleep 22 hours a day.
- If cats sleep so much, it’s because they dedicate their energy to hunting. Domesticated or non-domesticated cats will always maintain their feline instincts.
- Even if he comes to treat you to a meal, he will definitely want to play to keep his hunting skills intact and stimulate his muscles.
Cat purring is therapeutic
- Cat’s “purring” is therapeutic!
- When a cat purrs, we perceive its vibrations at low frequencies (20 to 50 Hz) through nerve endings located at the skin level.
- These sound vibrations are good for the body because they cause our body to produce serotonin (the hormone of happiness).
- But that’s not all, cats purr when injured so they can recover faster thanks to the vibrations they emit!
Cats meow to communicate with humans
- It would be more accurate to say that adult domestic cats only meow to communicate with their owners.
- Have you ever wondered why your cat meows so often in your company?
- Wild cats don’t meow to each other, they reserve this language for humans. If we speak the language, it really is an attempt at communication between your cat and you.
- If your cat is meowing, it has something to tell you! Whether it’s eating, welcoming you, asking for a hug, or just “talking” to you.
- So, if you talk to your cat, tell yourself he doesn’t understand anything. It’s wrong, he’ll try to answer you, he just doesn’t know-how.
Cat on head
- The famous sandwich theory, “What would happen if I put a sandwich on the cat’s back and let it go?”. Rest assured, nothing happened, no paranormal phenomena or other fantasies!
- But how to explain that cats always land on their paws?
- The cat has “sensors” in its whiskers (often called whiskers) that initially allowed it to obtain the necessary information about the distance separating it from the fall. Second, he uses his inner ear to differentiate between upper and lower.
- Therefore, due to its flexible anatomy, the cat turns the head first, then the body, and finally the paws.
