Domestic cats don’t chew food they shear it

Feline carnassials

When you watch the domestic cat eating food you might think that they use their incisor teeth to grab food and then push it back to their premolars to masticate it into a form where it can be swallowed. But you would be mistaken. The domestic cat’s wild cat ancestor evolved dentition which is …

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What kind of sounds did the sabretooth cats make?

Sabre-toothed cats endurance hunting in packs in ancient times

People are very familiar with the distinctive and iconic appearance of the sabretooth tiger and other species of sabertooths, which became extinct about 10,000 years ago. They were slightly smaller than today’s biggest lions and tigers and the question being discussed here is whether they roared like a lion. A study from North Carolina …

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How Siamese cats change their colours

Siamese cats should have vivid blue eyes as per the cat associations' breed standards

First a short introduction. Although the history of the Siamese cat in the West is somewhat vague, it would seem with some certainty that a certain Mrs Vyvyan of Dover, UK acquired some of the first Siamese cats in the West. Of course, they came from Siam (now Thailand) ostensibly from the King’s Palace …

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Commercially it is a mistake in the long-term to breed cats and dogs with baby-like faces

Baby-faced breeds are unhealthy as their anatomy is distorted

For me there is a welcome backlash from some outspoken veterinarians with social media accounts and cat owners against the flat-faced companion animals – both cats and dogs – molded over decades of selective breeding to look like human babies in the expectation that they’ll be more attractive to buyers. The flat-faced pet syndrome …

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Tomcats produce more sperm from July to December than at other times (Brisbane)

Tomcats produce more sperm in the breeding season

I’ve just bumped into a Google Scholar study which tells me that tomcats (male cats who’ve not been sterilised) produce more sperm during the months of July to December than at other times of the year “thus indicating increased accessory gland activity during the breeding season”. The breeding season is spring and summer. But …

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Domestic cats walk differently when they are pregnant

Waddling pregnant cat

Obviously, domestic cats continue to walk around the home when they are pregnant but as the pregnancy progresses and their body changes, they adapt their gait accordingly. The mother-to-be may adopt a wider stance, take smaller steps and waddle as you see in the video on this page. It’s always wise to consult with …

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White cats glow in the dark! But have you ever seen it?

Leopard skin glows under UV light as it is flourescent

News media are reporting on a study which says that cats are fluorescent and therefore they glow in the dark. But I don’t understand this report. It does not make sense to me at all. The study says that many animals emit fluorescent light. Fluorescence is the emission of light by a substance which …

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