Interesting Cat Facts

Here are some interesting cat facts!

Did you know?

All cats are born blind. The ability to see comes during the first couple of weeks after birth!

Cats have rudimentary non-functional collar bones that allow them to squeeze themselves through tight spaces and help them in their balance and stride!

Cats often have a third eyelid that is not normally visible to us. If you are seeing it more often - the cat may be ill!

Feline vision is similar to that of humans in daylight. However, cats can see six times better than us in dim light - owing to larger pupils and the ability to gather light at the back of the eye due to a reflective retinal surface!

Field of vision in cats is slightly compromised for a more binocular vision. This grants cats greater depth perception and also allows them to judge their prey's position more precisely for making an attack in high speed pursuits!

Cats' sense of smell is fourteen times stronger than ours - this means they can smell the odour in the litter box much earlier than us!

Cats have an acute hearing ability as well. They are able to hear sounds of a quite high pitch. Thirty two individual muscles in their ears allow them to pinpoint the exact location of a source of sound!

The individual positioning of whiskers is unique to all cats. Whiskers are like finger prints. They allow cats to feel their way in extreme dark and since their span, when fully erect, is nearly equal to a cat's body width - it allows the felid to judge whether a space or passage is too narrow for it.

Whiskers are also usually indicative of a cat's temperament. Erect, forward pointing whiskers indicate that the cat is excited and animated. Whereas laid back whiskers are often seen in resting, defensive animals.

Cats have sharp pointed teeth that are built for killing prey by crushing of windpipe or severing of spine. A cat's teeth are its greatest assets in the wild. In proportion to body size, the elusive Clouded Leopard has the longest canines in the family felidae, whereas the Jaguar has the strongest jaws - it can bite through the shell of a turtle!

Cats have more spines than us since they also have spines in their tail. Next time you see a kid pulling a cat's tail - stop him - since it hurts. Their vertebrae are also more loosely connected to each other than ours, allowing them great flexibility!

Flexibility of the spine is highlighted in the Cheetah - the fastest land mammal. With big adrenals, flexible spine and a rudder-like tail, Cheetahs can outpace everything on the African savanna!

Tiger is the largest feline on earth. An adult Siberian tiger may weigh up to eight hundred pounds and is one of the top predators on earth.

Tigers are excellent swimmers and are in fact the only big cats who seem to enjoy stepping in water (the Jaguar in Americas frequently goes into water to hunt baby alligators and anacondas)!

Lion is the only cat that lives in groups, called prides. Family life gives lions edge over other felids as they cooperate in hunting and rearing of their young!


Leopards are highly secretive and are perhaps the best tree climbers and individual hunters amongst big cats. Black leopards are called black panthers!