Up to 95 percent of people are right-handed, while 20 percent of cats are right-handed.
- 38% of cats favour their left forepaw and
- 42% of cats are ambidextrous – they don’t favour either paw.
In short, most cats are left-pawed while most humans are right-handed. Why? We don’t know.
I think this is an interesting difference. I clearly remember my late Binnie being left-pawed. Charlie only has a right-paw so I can’t tell.
As no one knows why cats are generally left-pawed and humans are right-handed, It is fun trying to figure out why.
Before I have a go at that, apparently, male dogs tend to be left-pawed while female dogs favour their right paws. OK, dogs are evenly split between left and right while cats tend to favour their left.
Because both cats and humans have two forearms it probably makes sense for nature to decide that one arm is used more than the other so that it becomes more coordinated through practice than if both arms were used equally. It could be argued that If one arm is more adept then in general the creature is more likely to survive.
That might explain favouring one side over the other, but why should cats be left-pawed and humans right-handed?
It is generally agreed that humans evolved in Africa. African is described as “the cradle of humankind”.
If the most dangerous animals to early African humans were the lion and leopard, both of which were generally left-pawed, might it be the case that humans were better able to fend off an attack by a left-pawed large wild cats using their right right. In doing so, it would be the strongest side meeting the strongest side. Over time humans evolved to be right-handed because it aided raw survival at a physical level.
If that huge guess is correct it still leaves the question, why are cats generally left-pawed? The probable answer is that for the top predator in Africa, the lion, either paw would have been equally effective. Nature simply chose one side at random. The difference in favouring one side was not huge as a high percentage of cats are ambidextrous.
So, nature chose at random that cats should be left-pawed or ambidextrous and humans evolved to deal with that by favoring the right side.
The source for the percentages comes from the book “Play it Again, Tom” by Augustus Brown and the theories come from me while writing this. They are wild theories. Do you have a better one?
Incidentally, the Japanese Beckoning Cat is left-pawed.
Jozef has co-operated at last and he is RIGHT handed!
No result from Walter yet, if cats know you want them to do something they make you wait until they are good and ready lol
Lefthanded and ambidextrous humans. How many of us ailurophiles are both?
Gotta work on that question. There may be a link between left-handedness and ailurophilic people. Did I spell that damn word correctly?
Are You making fun? How did they fair, in Ponca City. I haven’t had the nerve to ask. Were they o.k.?
Michael, you are just too much fun for your own good!
“Because both cats and humans have two forearms it probably makes sense for nature to decide that one arm is used more than the other so that it becomes more coordinated through practice than if both arms were used equally.”
Leaving the poor dogs behind, this is what I want you to answer me: Are those of us human southpaws more sensitive, thus more ailurophilic?
That is a big question, Caroline. I’ll have to research that to answer it. My personal experience of people who are left-handed is that they do have a certain appearance. Attractiveness goes with left-handedness 😉 Pleased?
As for sensitivity. I have not noticed that left-handed people are more sensitive than right-handed people. If anything they seem to be more businesslike and ambitious.
Well. I guess that some are. Most, though, are creative. It is neither here nor there. my bad.
Michael, our lifespan is statistically shortened by seven percent over a right-hander’s. We sometimes fumble in life. [Do You?] Now, apply that to Cats? Tell me, I’m all ears. 😉 And worse yet, apply that to southpaws with right-pawed felines!
Those of you who live over here in the Midwestern States, have you noticed that the Junebugs only survived three days? [sorry, this has been bugging me.]