Cat

The domestic cat (Felis catus or Felis silvestris catus), elsewyes cried a ket or bawdrin, is a smaw, typically furry, domesticatit, an carnivorous mammal. Thay are aft cried hoose cats whan keppit as indoor pets or semply cats whan thare is nae need tae distinguish thaim frae ither felids an felines. Cats is aft valued bi humans fur companionship an thair huntin skills on vermin.

Cats are seemilar in anatomy tae the ither felids, wi strang, flexible bodies, quick reflexes, sharp retractable claws, an teeth adaptit tae killin smaw prey. Cat senses fit a crepuscular an predatory ecological niche. Cats can hear soonds owerly faint or owerly heich in frequency for human lugs, sic as thon makit bi mice an ither smaw ainimals. Thay can see in near daurkness. Lik maist ither mammals, cats hae puirer colour veesion an a better sense o smell nor humans.

Despite bein solitar hunters, cats are a social species an cat communication includes the uise o a variety o vocalisations (mewin, purrin, trillin, hissin, growlin, an gruntin), as well as cat pheromones an teeps o cat-speceefic body leid.

Cats hae a heich breedin rate. Unner controlled breedin, thay can be bred an shawn as registered pedigree pets, a hobby kent as cat fancy. Failyie tae control the breedin o pet cats bi neuterin an the abandonment o umwhile hoosehauld pets haes resultit in lairge nummers o feral cats warldwide, requirin population control. This haes contreibutit, alang wi habitat destruction an ither factors, tae extinction o mony bird species. Cats hae been kent tae extirpate a bird species within a speceefic region an mey hae contreibutit tae extinction o isolatit island populations.Impact of Feral Cats in Australia  Cats are thocht tae be primarily, thou nae solely, responsible for the extinction o 33 species o birds, an the presence o feral an free rangin cats maks some locations unsuitable for attemptit species reestablishment in itherwise suitable locations.Winters, L, Walter GE IMPACTS of FERAL and FREE-RANGING CATS on Bird Species of Conservation Concern American Bird Conservancy, 31 May 2005.

Syne cats war veneratit in auncient Egyp, thay war commonly believed tae hae been domesticatit thare, but thare mey hae been instances o domestication as early as the Neolithic frae aroond 9,500 year ago (7,500 BC). A genetic study in 2007 concludit that domestic cats are descendit frae African wildcats (Felis silvestris lybica), havin diverged aroond 8,000 BC in Wast Asie. Cats are the maist popular pet in the warld, an are nou foond in awmaist every place whaur humans live.

Thare are mair nor 70 cat breeds aroond the warld. Different associations proclaim different nummers accordin tae thair staundarts. The Internaitional Progressive Cat Breeders Alliance (IPCBA) recognises 73 cat breeds while TICA (The Internaitional Cat Association) recognises 58, CFA (The Cat Fanciers' Association) recognises 44 an  Federation Internaitional Feline (FIFE) recognises 43 cat breeds.

References

See an aa
 Wildcat

Cats
Category:Invasive mammal species
Category:Felis
Category:Taxa named bi Carl Linnaeus