Do cats have nine lives?
Of course they don’t. It’s just a saying based on the fact that cats are very good at surviving because of their sharp senses and agility. Cats are also good at getting into trouble because of their inquisitiveness so they need their skills to get out of it. They are resilient and tough which led to the idea that they had more than one life. The reason why the number 9 came into being is because “in ancient times nine was considered a particularly lucky number because it was a trinity of trinities and therefore ideally suited for the lucky cat” so writes Dr Desmond Morris in his excellent book Catwatching. This is the best book on cat behaviour anywhere. It is also the slimmest book and it was written a long time ago in 1986. Nothing since has surpassed it. I advise you to buy it.
Heartwarming photo of kitten and firefighter (Russian Emergency Situations Ministry)
P.S. The Trinity is 3 persons within the Godhead; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Therefore a trinity of trinities is 3×3=9.
P.P.S. In an ancient book it was said that a witch could take on the body of her cat nine times:
It was permitted to a witch to take on her catte’s body nine times. – from the book: Beware of the Cat.
I believe that this book was written by a printer’s assistant and a poet: William Baldwin.
Some more on cats’ survival skills – cats in emergencies
Wild cats never get stuck in trees but domestic cats do
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Kitten will cast a love spell over her new forever family
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Mischievous domestic cat floods home
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Dog saves cat from rubble of building brought down by earthquake in İzmir Province, Turkey
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Will driverless cars mean less cats killed on roads?
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Tabby cat survives for two months inside a shipping container
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Beirut explosion: reunions between cats, dogs and owners (video)
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