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Dogs may be 'man's best friend', but cats are the preferred pet in North America. There are approximately 77 million owned cats in the U.S.
versus 65 million dogs. In Canada, the ratio is 4.5 million cats to 3.5 million dogs.
This has been a shift in the U.S. over the last five years, when there were roughly
the same number of cats and dogs (approximately 62 million of each).
More Amazing Facts
Ears
More than a dozen muscles in the ear are used to precisely control movement, including the ability to independently rotate each ear to listen for prey or danger.
Nose
A cat's sense of smell is their main way of identifying objects (or people). There are 200 million odor-sensitive cells in a cat nose, compared to 5 million in a human nose.
Eyes
Cat's can see in one-sixth of the amount of light a human requires. Cat pupils can dilate to 90 per cent of the eye area, and also close almost entirely in bright light. The eyes protrude to give a cat superior peripheral vision, but their overall sense of vision is 10 times less than a human's.
Whiskers
Whiskers act like a personal radar system for cats, and are extremely sensitive to air movement. Cat's use whiskers to measure the distance to an object or determine the size of an object or opening. From tip to tip, cat's whiskers determine the smallest gap he can comfortably get through. Since they are such a finely-tuned sensory system, whiskers should never be cut or trimmed.
Land on its Feet
Probably the most widely known feline attribute is the "righting reflex" - the ability of a cat to right itself during a fall so that it always lands on its feet. It's an automatic sequence of movements that take only a moment: first the cat adjusts its head to an upright position and its body follows by twisting or rotating to match the head. The cat's tail is the final 'rudder' to ensure balance and a perfect landing are attained.
Purring
We often associate purring with a happy, healthy cat, but cats also purr when they are in pain, distress or scared. According to ScientificAmerican.com, "Cats purr during both inhalation and exhalation with a consistent pattern and frequency between 25 and 150 Hertz. Various investigators have shown that sound frequencies in this range can improve bone density and promote healing." So perhaps a cat's purr is actually their secret weapon for health and healing.
Kneading
That back and forth motion of your cat's paws on your lap usually indicates a happy, content cat. This is likely a return to a kitten's comfort needs, kneading their mother while suckling to stimulate milk flow.
Eating off the floor
One unusual cat behavior is removing food from the bowl to eat off the floor. The most common explanation for this behavior is that cats don't like their whiskers to touch the sides of the bowl. A wider, shallower bowl may eliminate the behavior, unless your cat has gotten into a firmly established habit.
Head butts
It's not uncommon for a cat to head butt their human caregivers with a lot of force. This is a greeting that stems from the way cats greet each other (rubbing faces) and show affection. It's likely your cat is also marking you with the scent glands on his face when he greets you this way. Some people believe that when a cat stretches up your leg on its hind legs, it is simply trying to reach your face for their natural greeting.
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