Comparison human hand and arm to cat paw and foreleg
We know that cats are digitigrades and walk on their toes but how would it be if we walked like a cat? It can be difficult to work out exactly what part of the cat’s foot is making contact with the ground other than the toes.
So, having checked out the bone structure of both the cat and the human, I took this snapshot of my hand to show how a cat walks on her foreleg and paw. You can see that first contact with the ground is not at the wrist but the end of the palm of the hand where it joins with the fingers. The palm is the metacarpus. The fingers are the phalanges.
The same applies for our feet. If we go up onto our toes that is how a cat walks on her hind legs.
As for the bone structure of the cat’s leg and paw compared to a human’s arm/leg and hands/feet – they are the same. It is just the length of the bones that vary and the way they are used.
Associated: the anatomy of the cat’s claw for kids and cat anatomy tag.
Note: I have used a drawing from Pictorial Anatomy of the Cat – revised edition Stephen G Gilbert University of Washington Press ISBN 0-295-95454-X. I claim fair use for educational reasons and because I am promoting the book there is no financial loss to the publisher or author.
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