15 Little Known Facts about Cats


All cats, big and small, have common characteristics. Most cats purr, they don’t particularly like water and they love to run after their prey.

Find out the not so common things known about the cat, which will give you a greater insight into the "mysterious" cat.

Cats have endeared themselves to many cultures for their helpful mouse-hunting skills, cleanliness, attitude and beauty.

Female cats have also recently been recognized for their strong mothering instinct. One high profile cat ran back into a burning house exactly enough times to save each of her kittens from the blaze.

Listed below are some of the not so common things known about the cat, which will give you a greater insight into the cat.

1. A large majority of white cats with blue eyes are deaf 

White cats with only one blue eye are deaf only in the ear closest to the blue eye. White cats with orange eyes do not have this disability.

2. Cats with white fur are very prone to sunburn
 Frequent sunburns can lead to skin cancer. To prevent this, just keep your cat indoors, they'll live longer, more healthy lives.

3. Kittens who are taken along on short, trouble free car trips to town tend to make good passengers when they get older. They get used to the sounds and motions of traveling and make less connection between the car and the visits to the vet.

4. The catnip plant does for cats what marijuana does to some people. 
Not all cats react to it, those that do, appear to enter a trance like state. A positive reaction takes the form of the cat sniffing the catnip, then licking, biting, chewing it, rubbing and rolling on it repeatedly, purring, meowing and even leaping in the air.

5. Cats have three shapes of eyes -
 Round, Oval and Almond. In relation to their body size, cats have the largest eyes of any mammal.

6. Cats sleep 16 to 18 hours a day

Cats conserve energy by sleeping more than most animals, especially as they grow older. The term cat nap refers to the cat's ability to fall asleep (lightly) for a brief period. Someone who nods off for a few minutes is said to be "taking a cat nap".

7.  At 4 weeks, it is important to play with kittens

This is so that they do not develop a fear of people. Cats are social animals - the more you talk to them the more they will respond with a meow as cats enjoy interaction with people.

8. The longer they're with their mother, the better it is for the kitten and the mother
Kittens should remain with their mother till the age of at least 8 weeks, preferably 12 weeks.

9. You will learn a lot from your cat's wide vocabulary of chirps and meows


A pet cat will respond and answer to speech , and seems to enjoy human companionship. Some cats, when spoken to, will respond with a meow or movement of the cats mouth - and some cats can actually mouth words.

*I had a cat that would say "mama" and "hello". Another cat answered your questions with a distinctive "yes" or "no".

10. Both humans and cats have identical regions in the brain responsible for emotion.

11. A cat loses as much fluid in cleaning herself as she does in urine.

12. A cat spends 30% of the time they are awake grooming themselves.

13. Normal body temperature for a cat is 101 degrees F.

14. A cat's urine will glow under a black light.

15. The way you treat kittens in the early stages of it's life will render it's personality traits later in life.

You might like: