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Date of Domestication
Some sources claim that the history of the domestic cat starts approximately 4000 years ago in Egypt, while others cite the Near East or China 9000 year ago. -
Domestic cat predecessors
The ancestor of the domestic cat is thought to be the African wild cat, which the Egyptians used to kill the rats that damaged crops and spread diseases. Their efficacy led to their worship by the Egyptians, representing good luck and companionship. -
Location of Domestication
Egypt is believed to be the country in which cats were first domesticated. -
Cat Adaptations
"Evening crazies" are when cats race around the house crazily, which stems from their hunting rhythm during dawn and dusk. Cats' genes historically connected to fear encountered evoluntionary pressure, gradually turning them less shy and more reward- driven. Domestic cats cats compared to wild cats have more pheromone- detecting receptor genes, aiding in mate finding. -
Mummified cats (fact 1)
Thousands of mummified cats were found in Egypt, some with mummified mice included to provide them with food in the afterlife. -
Guanine in cat eyes (fact 2)
Cats are enabled to see in the dark by their extra sensitive retinas which have a layer of guanine, which causes the reflective glow in the dark. -
Cats affection (fact 3)
Cats sometimes suck on their humans' fingers or earlobes as if they were nursing, or rub their faces (glands) on them. -
Past uses
Limiting vermin populations and protecting crops and decreasing the spread of diseases; human companionship -
Present uses
Companionship, decompression, occasionally food in Asia, hunting mice, being cute, snuggle buddies -
Event: Middle Ages and cats
Cats were considered Satanic in the Middle Ages, around 1300 they were ordered to be killed when the Plague struck (which only exacerbated the spread otf the disease as rats went unchecked)
