More interesting cat facts

• The proper name for a hairball is a bezoar
• The tufts of hair inside a cat’s ear are called ear furnishings
• Cats often like olives because they have a similar chemical compound to catnip
• Cats must have fat in their diet because they can’t produce it on their own.
• An unneutered male is called a tom, a neutered male is a gib, and a female cat can be a molly or a queen
• Marmalade (ginger) cats are usually male
• Domestic cats have vertical slit-shaped pupils, while big cats have round ones
• White cats with blue eyes are almost always hearing impaired
• The official name of head boops a.k.a headbutts is ‘bunting’
• Black cats are considered lucky in some cultures
• The biggest known cat litter was 19
• The colder the temperature, the rounder the cat

• Cat tongues are barbed to hold their prey and also to groom themselves
• Cats only unsheath their front claws when necessary because they have to contract their muscles to do so. The back claws do not retract.
• One pair of cats and their offspring can total well over 400,000 in seven years
• Most adult cats are lactose intolerant
• Cats prefer foods at body temperature (which is why they tend to turn their nose up at food from the fridge
• Cats like running water, hence enjoying drinking from taps
• Cats walk with two right and two left legs, like camel and giraffe
• Cat ears rotate 180°
• Cats have five toes on their front paws and four on their back paws
• Cats only meow to humans. Mother cats chirp at their kittens though.
• Cats are colour blind
• The purring frequency — 26 Hertz — apparently aides in tissue regeneration and can help stimulate the repair of weak and brittle bones
• A cat spends about 15% of its life in deep sleep, 50% in light sleep, and 30% in awake time.
• Cats attain full alertness faster than any other creature
• Whiskers can sense differences in air pressure, movement nearby, and also gauge whether a cat can fit into a particular space
• Cats ‘puff up’ in winter by trapping a layer of air in their coat to act as insulation. The tips of the hairs can sense temperature.
• Cats can move the front and rear parts of their bodies in different directions.
• The domestic cat is the only cat that can hold it’s tail vertically. All the others carry their tail between their legs.
• When cats drink water their tongue curls under and scoops water into their mouths
• Cats swallow their food whole and do not chew. They cannot move their jaw from side to side
• Cats can make 100 different sounds, dogs can make 10
• Cats respond best to names ending in the ‘ee’ sound (like my cats Bully, Paddy, Ziggy, Fluffy)
• Cats usually have 12 whiskers on each side of their face
• In 1963, the French send a cat (Félicette) into space. She survived
• Cats know about earthquakes about 15 minutes before humans
• Cats can run at speeds of 31 miles per hour/49km per hour for short distances

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