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Domestic
Cat
Domestic cats are pets to people
all around the world. They may be found throughout the world
in urban and rural areas.
PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS
The domestic cat is very strong
and muscular for its size. Their mass is between 2 and 9 kg.
The average height of an adult cat is about 8 to 10 inches
at the shoulders. All cats have long powerful bodies and rounded
heads with triangular ears. All but two breeds have a long
tail, approximately 3/4 the length of the body. The tail is
an extension of the backbone and is used for balance. Coat
length and colors vary depending on the breed. The domestic
cats are usually black, gray, yellow, white, or tabby, which
is dark stripes or swirls on a paler background.
Domestic cats have five toes
on each of their forepaws, but only four toes on each back
paw. They have claws that can be drawn back into their paws
when not in use. The cats have a well-developed sense of smell
and hearing. The ears of a cat can rotate rapidly to identify
the source of a particular sound and are able to respond to
frequencies up to 25,000 vibrations per second.
The eyes of cats are located
on the front of the head. Although this they have excellent
depth perception, a useful tool in hunting. But cats cannot
see directly under their noses. The range of colors seen by
cats is smaller than the human range.
The teeth in cats are very specialized.
The canines are excellent for stabbing and holding prey as
the upper ones point almost straight down and the lower ones
are curved. The molars are specialized for cutting. Since the
cats lack any teeth for crushing, they eat their food by slicing
it. The tongue is covered with tiny, curved projections called
papillae. These are used for grooming and licking meat off
bones.
Cat’s whiskers are special
hairs, which they use as highly sensitive touch organs, to
determine if their bodies can fit through small openings such
as small pipes, cans, and other various objects, and to detect
the movement of prey. Although cats have whiskers, they lack
eyelashes. They have a full inner eyelid, or nictitating membrane,
which serves as protection from dryness and damage to the eye.
FOOD HABITS
Cats are primarily carnivores.
They eat a variety of food, but usually they don't eat organisms
larger than a rat or pigeon. They tend to avoid organisms with
shells, spines or offensive smells.
Occasionally, cats eat grass
in order to clear their stomach of indigestible food, like
bones, fur, and feathers. In domestic cats, the large intestine
is bigger than it is in wild species. This allows the domestic
cat to eat more vegetation.
REPRODUCTION
Female cats may have 2-4 litters
per year. Typically, there are 1-6 young per litter. There
is no set-breeding season. The gestation period is approximately
63 days. The young weigh about 100 grams at birth. They are
born blind, deaf and with hair. Within 7-10 days, the eyes
open. Mothers give the kittens excellent care for about 8 weeks.
Then, they can be on their own.
The male cat becomes sexually
mature at about 10 months. The female cat matures between 7-12
months. Most domestic cats live 12-15 years.
BEHAVIOR
Although cats are mostly solitary
animals, they sometimes socialize with other cats. Domestic
cats in a given area seem to have a social organization or
hierarchy. For instance, a newly introduced male must undergo
a series of fights before it can establish its own territory
in a given area, but a male and female may form a bond that
exists far beyond the mating process.
To determine a cat's mood, one
can use their body language and tail movement. To invite playing
or petting, a cat will lay on one side and wave one paw in
the air or just begin to purr. If instead, a cat extends it
claws, arches its back, puffs up its fur, pulls back its ears
and/or flicks its tail from side to side, this is a sign of
aggression.
Cats can also communicate through
sounds such as growling or hissing. Cats may purr when they
are content or, even when angry. The exact mechanism used for
purring remains unknown. Two possibilities exist:
1.False vocal chords could cause the noise. These membranes are located above
the true vocal chords.
2. The hyoid apparatus, a series of small bones between the skull and larynx,
may cause the noise.
POSITIVE INFLUENCE OF
CATS OVER HUMANS
Cats are kept as pets and companions.
Domestic cats serve to decrease stress and lower blood pressure.
Often, they are also kept in order to control pest populations.
On farms, for instance, cats are kept to kill mice and other
rodents.
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Cat Sight
Cats have excellent night vision
and can see much better than us even in a badly lit environment,
though they cannot see in total darkness.
A cat sees about six times better
than a human at night because of the tapetum lucidum which
is a layer of extra reflecting cells that absorb light. It's
also why the cat's eyes seem to glow in the dark.
Seeing far better than humans
do at night time and tending to focus best at a distance of
eight to twenty feet makes cats excellent night time hunters.
As hunters, cats have a good ability to detect motion. They
can see movements that are too fast for our eyes, yet find
it hard to focus on very slow movement.
This special ability, so useful
for the nocturnal predator, comes at the expense of daytime
vision. In fact, cats are relatively short sighted and during
daytime tend to rely more than us on their senses of smell
and sound.
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3.GAMES AND FUN FOR CAT LOVERS
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