Pet Cats and Kittens
Cats, were domesticated early in times as pets for
killing rats and mice. Although individual cat breeds
vary significantly, two broad category types exist:
large and small. With some exceptions, big felines
exhibit round pupils, eat lying down, and have
elastic segment to hyoid bone, thus a roar. Small felines
show a slit pupil, eat standing, and hard hyoid
bone allowing them to purr.
The cat (Felis catus), also known as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from other felines,
is a small carnivorous species of crepuscular mammal that is often valued by humans for its
companionship and its ability to hunt vermin. It has been associated with humans for at least
9,500 years.
A skilled predator, the cat is known to hunt over 1,000 species for food. It is intelligent and can be trained
to obey simple commands. Individual cats have also been known to learn on their own to manipulate
simple mechanisms, such as doorknobs. Cats use a variety of vocalizations and types of body language
for communication, including meowing, purring, hissing, growling, squeaking, chirping, clicking, and
grunting. Cats are popular pets and are also bred and shown as registered pedigree pets. This hobby
is known as the "Cat Fancy".
Until recently the cat was commonly believed to have been domesticated in ancient Egypt, where it was
a cult animal. However a study by the National Cancer Institute published in the journal Science found
that all house cats are probably descended from a group of as few as five self-domesticating desert
wildcats Felis silvestris lybica circa 8000 BC, in the Near East.
Physiology
Cats typically weigh between 2.5 and 7 kg (5.5-16 pounds); however, some breeds, such as the Maine
Coon, can exceed 11.3 kg (25 pounds). Some have been known to reach up to 23 kg (50 pounds) due
to overfeeding. Conversely, very small cats (less than 1.8 kg / 4.0 lb) have been reported.
Cat senses are attuned for hunting. Cats have highly advanced hearing, eyesight, taste, and touch
receptors, making the cat extremely sensitive among mammals. Cats' night vision is superior to humans although their vision in daylight is inferior. Humans and cats have a similar range of hearing on the low
end of the scale, but cats can hear much higher-pitched sounds, up to 64 kHz, which is 1.6 octaves above
the range of a human, and even one octave above the range of a dog. A domestic cat's sense of smell
is about fourteen times as strong as a human's. To aid with navigation and sensation, cats have dozens
of movable vibrissae (whiskers) over their body, especially their face. Due to a mutation in an early cat ancestor, one of two genes necessary to taste sweetness may have been lost by the cat family.
Cats conserve energy by sleeping more than most animals, especially as they grow older. The daily
duration of sleep varies, usually 12-16 hours, with 13-14 being the average. Some cats can sleep as
much as 20 hours in a 24-hour period. The term cat nap refers to the cat's ability to fall asleep (lightly)
for a brief period and has entered the English lexicon - someone who nods off for a few minutes is said
to be "taking a cat nap".
Due to their crepuscular nature, cats are often known to enter a period of increased activity and playfulness during the evening and early morning, dubbed the "evening crazies", "night crazies", "elevenses" or "mad
half-hour" by some.
more information from wikipedia.org
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Online Information
Cat Box Diseases
You are more likely to contract a disease from another human than from your cat.
However, if you are pregnant or have a suppressed immune system, we want you to know that a
parasite sometimes found in cat feces can cause toxoplasmosis.
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