Cat

In the U. The Maine Coon is the largest, with males reaching an average of 3. The smallest breed is the Singapura , native to Singapore, with adult females weighing as little as four pounds. One of the most unusual-looking cats is the Sphynx, a mostly hairless cat known for being robust and intelligent. Like their big cat cousins, house cats are obligate carnivores , meaning they have to eat meat to stay healthy. Learn surprising things you never knew about your cat. As mostly nocturnal animals, cats have excellent vision and hearing, with ears that can turn like satellite dishes. Their reputation for having nine lives stems in part from their ability to navigate difficult environments, for example using their tail to balance and mostly land their lean, muscular bodies on all fours. Cushioning discs between vertebrae also give cat bodies exceptional flexibility and speed. People began to domesticate cats in the Fertile Crescent about 10, years ago , according to DNA research. Modern-day cats descended from a subspecies of African wildcat, Felis silvestris lybica , which today is the most common and widespread wildcat. Read more about little-known small wildcats. Thousands of years ago, these wildcats were likely drawn to human settlements and their plentiful mice and food scraps.

If something is the wrong way around, the part that should be at the front is at the back. Infinitive or -ing verb? Avoiding common mistakes with verb patterns 1. Add to word list Add to word list. A1 a small animal with fur , four legs , a tail , and claws , usually kept as a pet or for catching mice. See also big cat.

Cat. Cat - Wikipedia

The queen finds the safest place she can, Cat. Arctonyx Northern hog badger A. To aid with navigation and sensation, cats have dozens of movable whiskers vibrissae over their body, especially their faces. The Journal of Nutrition. Polar Biology. Retrieved 25 October Cat Mind, Body, Wonder Cat how death doulas help patients go with grace, Cat. Read More, Cat. The cat's tongue can act as a hairbrush and can clean and Cat a cat's fur. Example from the Hansard archive. The Ethology of Domestic Animals. Die antike Tierwelt in German. Archived from the original on 10 April

In Wilson, D.

• Retrieved 10 March
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The cat Felis catus , commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat , is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae. Recent advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the domestication of the cat occurred in the Near East around BC. It is commonly kept as a house pet and farm cat , but also ranges freely as a feral cat avoiding human contact. It is valued by humans for companionship and its ability to kill vermin. Because of its retractable claws , it is adapted to killing small prey like mice and rats. It has a strong, flexible body, quick reflexes , sharp teeth, and its night vision and sense of smell are well developed. It is a social species , but a solitary hunter and a crepuscular predator. Cat communication includes vocalizations like meowing , purring , trilling, hissing, growling , and grunting as well as cat body language. It can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears , such as those made by small mammals. It also secretes and perceives pheromones. Female domestic cats can have kittens from spring to late autumn in temperate zones and throughout the year in equatorial regions , with litter sizes often ranging from two to five kittens. Domestic cats are bred and shown at events as registered pedigreed cats , a hobby known as cat fancy. Animal population control of cats may be achieved by spaying and neutering , but their proliferation and the abandonment of pets has resulted in large numbers of feral cats worldwide, contributing to the extinction of bird , mammal and reptile species. As of , [update] the domestic cat was the second most popular pet in the United States , with The origin of the English word cat , Old English catt , is thought to be the Late Latin word cattus , which was first used at the beginning of the 6th century. The forms might also have derived from an ancient Germanic word that was imported into Latin and then into Greek, Syriac, and Arabic. The English puss , extended as pussy and pussycat , is attested from the 16th century and may have been introduced from Dutch poes or from Low German puuskatte , related to Swedish kattepus , or Norwegian pus , pusekatt. Similar forms exist in Lithuanian puižė and Irish puisín or puiscín. The etymology of this word is unknown, but it may have arisen from a sound used to attract a cat.

Bibcode : ConBi. Current Biology. This varies depending on breed. Smooth-coated otter L. Cats can be infected or infested with virusesbacteriafungusprotozoansarthropods or worms that can transmit diseases to Cat.

Word History

See more words from the same century, Cat. Smooth-coated otter L. A bit later, Cat best developed kit will totter out of the nest. This Cat is about the species commonly kept as a pet. Nonetheless, Cat, they are subject to occasional tooth loss and infection. Santa Fe: Sunstone Press. Journal of Molecular Evolution. S2CID La Crosse: University of Wisconsin Press. Husband, quoth sheye studie, be merrie now, And even Cat ye thinke now, so come to yow. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Sunda stink badger M. The Canadian Veterinary Journal. Red panda A. The exact mechanism by which cats purr has long been elusive, but it has been proposed that purring is generated via a series of sudden build-ups and releases of pressure as the glottis is opened and closed, which causes the vocal Cat to separate Cat. Biology of Reproduction, Cat. Family Canidae includes dogs.

Bibcode : NatCo As mentioned earlier, the role of dogs and cats in exposure of humans in regions of sylvatic transmission is not completely understood. Archived from the original on 19 October Cat The carpal pad is also Cat on other cats and on dogs. During a fall from a high place, a cat reflexively twists its body and rights itself to land on its feet using its acute sense of balance and flexibility. Suborder Feliformia, Cat. Retrieved 15 August Sign up for free and get Cat to exclusive content:. Word Cat. According to a myth in many cultures, Cat, cats have multiple lives. Cats have excellent night vision and can see at only one-sixth the light level required Cat human vision. Some cultures are superstitious about black cats, ascribing either good or bad luck to them, Cat. After about 20 to 30 minutes, once the female is finished grooming, the cycle will repeat, Cat. Domestic cat F. They are usually ready to mate between early February and August [] in northern temperate zones and throughout the year in equatorial regions.