Cat

From Wiki 5A

There is a large amount of species of cats. There are tigers, leopards, lions, jaguars, lynx, pumas, bobcats, ocelots, cercal, cheetahs, and domestic cats.

Domestic Cats

There are 33 different breeds and more than 500 million domestic cats in the world. The nose pad of a cat is ridged in a pattern that is unique and different, just like fingerprints on a human. The American cat population reached nearly 68 million cats, in 1996. An estimates that about 200 million cats yawns per hour and takes 425 million catnaps each day! A cat's heart beats twice as fast as a human heart, at the rate of 110 to 140 beats per minute. Did you know that 25% of cat owners will blow dry their cats hair after a bath. The largest cat breed is the called the Ragdoll. Females weighing ten to fifteen pounds and males weigh twelve to twenty pounds. The smallest cat breed is called the Singapura. Females weigh about four pounds while males weigh about six pounds. If your cat is near you, and her/his tail is quivering, that means the cat is the greatest expression of love that your cat can give you. If her/his tail starts thrashing, her mood has changed that means its time to distance yourself from your cat. Cats wag their tails when the cat is in a stage of conflict. The cat wants to do two things at once, but each thing blocks the other. For example: If your cat is in the doorway wanting to go outside, and you open the door to find it raining, the cat's tail will wag because of a natural conflict. The cat wants to go outside, but doesn't want to go into the rain. Once the cat makes a decision and either returns to the house or leaves into the rain, the tail will immediately stop wagging. Don't pick up a cat by. Your cat loves you and can "read" your moods. If you're under stress or sad, you may notice a difference in your cat's behavior. All wild cats hold their tails horizontally or tucked between their legs while walking. The domestic cat is the only cat species able to hold its tail vertically while walking. An average cat has 2-3 litters per year, and 1-8 kittens per litter. One female cat could have more than 100 kittens. In 1952, a Texan Tabby cat named Dusty set the record for having the most kittens by having more than 420 kittens before having her last litter at age 18.

The largest known litter (with all surviving) was that of a Persian cat in South Africa named Bluebell. Bluebell gave birth to 14 kittens in one whole litter! More than 35,000 kittens are born in the United States of America each year. Cats have 517 muscles, and 290 bones in their bodies. Sir Isaac Newton, also invented the cat door. A cat will almost never "meow" at another cat. This sound is for humans. If your cat is three years, your cat would twenty-one years in human years. If your cat is eight years, your cat is forty years in human years. If your cat is fourteen years, your cat is seventy years in human years. The average age for an indoor cat is fifteen years, while the average age for an outdoor cat is only three to five years. The oldest cat on record was Puss, from England, who died in 1939 just one day after her 36th birthday. A cat's normal body temperature is 101.5 degrees. Cats love to chew on grass, catnip, parsley, or sage. There are two species of wild cats in Europe and Africa that still hunt. The behaviors shown by most house cats have a similar in the wild. A cat will kill it's prey based on movement, but may not automatically recognize that prey as food. Realizing that prey is food is a learned behavior. A falling cat will always right itself in a precise order. First the head will turn, then the spine will twist and the rear legs will align, then the cat will arch its back to lessen the impact of the landing. The most popular names for female cats in the United States of America are Misty, Missy, Muffin, Patches, Tabitha, Tigger, Fluffy, Pumpkin, and Samantha. Give your cat a quality scratching post to deter her from scratching your furniture. If the cat is still scratching. Try putting lemon scent or orange scent on the area. Cats hate these smells. In German, your cat is "katze." In French, cat is "Chat." The Spanish word for cat is "gato," The Italian word for cat is "gatto." Japanese prefer "neko" Arabic countries call a cat a "kitte." The giraffe, camel and the cat are the only animals that walk by moving both their right feet, then both their left feet, when walking. This method of walking ensures silence, agility and speed. Cats can see in color! However Cats are partially color blind. They have the equivalency of human green/red color blindness. Cats can’t see "detail" very well. To them, their person may appear hazy when standing in front of them. Cats need 1/6th the amount of light that humans do to see. That is why their night vision is so amazing. Cats can see up to 120 feet away. Cats eyes come in three different shapes: slanted, round, and almond shaped. At birth, kittens can't see or hear. Cats open their eyes after 5 days and begin to develop their eyesight and hearing at approximately two weeks. They begin to walk at 20 days. The color of a kitten's eyes will change as it grows older. Cats have 30 muscles in each ear, and use 12 or more muscles to control their ear movement. A group of grown cats is called a "chowder." A group of kittens is called a "kindle." Cats rub up against other cats, and/or people, in an attempt to "mark" them with their scent. By use their scent glands. They most often use the scent glands between their ear (near the temple area) and eye. Or by using their scent glands near the base of their tail. Most cats prefer their food at room temperature, and will boldly REFUSE any food that is too hot or too cold. Many experts report that cats will purr when feeling any intense emotion. Like if their happy or pain. Give your cat fresh clean water at least once a day. If your cat refuses your tap water, it may be sensing the chlorine or other minerals in your water. If your cat misses one meal, then a trip to the vet maybe necessary. Cats sleep the most out of all mammals. They spend 16 hours of each day sleeping! A seven-year-old cat has only been awake for two years of its whole lifetime! Cats are more active during the evening hours and at night. Cats spend 30% of their waking hours grooming and cleaning themselves. To make sure your cat's collar fits on properly, make sure you can slip two of your fingers under the collar. A collar and tag can help you find your cat if he/she should ever get lost. Cats love to hide. If your cat comes up "missing," be sure to check in your closet, in the dresser drawers, in the bathtub, under a blanket or rug...or anywhere else you can possibly think of where your cat would hide. Backward-pointing spikes on the cat's tongue help them in their grooming and cleaning. The average cat will weigh 12 pounds. Your cat is probably either a "lefty" or a "righty." Only 40% of cats are ambidextrous, while another 40% are either left-pawed or right-pawed. Cats love high places. Cats share this love with Leopards and Jaguars, who sleep in trees. If a cat begins to fall, his inner ear canal, which controls balance, will help him/her right themselves up and land on there feet. Cats are more aggressive if they aren’t neutered or spayed. 32% of those people who own their own house, will also own at least one cat. Pair bonds can develop between a cat and a person or between two cats that live together. You should choose your cat’s toys very carefully. Choose light toys for tossing, soft toys for teeth and claws, and toys large enough that cats can't swallow. In a regular year, American cat owners will spend 2.15 billion dollars on cat food and $295 million on kitty litter altogether! Each year Americans will spend some four billion dollars on cat food alone. That's one billion dollars more than Americans spend on baby food! A "PSI trailings" tried to explain a cat's ability to travel a long distance just to return to their home. It is said they use the earth's gravity to determine find there home, and to develop the ability to return there when necessary. Never leave your cat in a vehicle alone. On summer days, temperatures in an automobile can reach 160 degrees in just minutes, even if the windows are cracked. An adult cat will have 32 teeth in all. Source:

• www.catscans.com

Bobcat

The bobcat is the wildcat in America. It is about the size of the Europe wildcat. A bobcat will weigh around fifteen and twenty pounds. It is three feet long. In the length it includes the tail which is about six inches long. It is easy to tell the difference between a lynx and a bobcat. The tail of a lynx is longer and has a black tip, while the tail of a bobcat has a black bar on the upper side, fringed with white hairs.