35 Cat Facts For Kids

1. Cats are small, domesticated animals that are members of the Felius genus.
2. The binominal name for cats is Felis catus.
3. Cats are widely known and easy to recognize, they’re considered the second most popular household pets in the world.
4. Cats come in a wide variety of colors, including but not limited to white, grey, brown, black, and orange.
5. Cats are prized for their companionship and ability to hunt and kill rodents.
6. Cats are domesticated and depend on humans for their survival, but some feral cats can live without humans.
7. The cats that do live without human support are known as feral cats or farm cats.
8. Cats are believed to have been first domesticated in 7500 BCE in Western Asia.
9. There are 71 different cat breeds according to the International Cat Association.
10. Cat breeds are in one of three groups, short-haired cats, long-haired cats and hairless cats.
11. Cats can be found anywhere in the world that has been inhabited by humans.
12. A male cat is called a tom, a female cat is called a queen and a juvenile cat is called a kitten.
13. A group of cats is known as a clowder or a colony.
14. There is an estimated 200 to 600 million domesticated cats living worldwide.
15. The average head-to-body length of an adult domestic cat is 18 inches.
16. The average tail length of an adult domestic cat is 12 inches.
17. The average adult domestic cat height is between 9 and 10 inches.
18. The average adult domestic cat weighs between 9 and 11 pounds.
19. The largest domestic cat breed is the Maine Coon which can weigh up to 18 pounds.
20. The smallest domestic cat breed is the Singapure which only reaches up to 6 pounds
21. The average adult domestic cat sleeps between 12 and 16 hours a day.
22. The average adult domestic cat can jump between 5 and 6 feet.
23. The average adult domestic cat can run up to 30 miles per hour.
24. The average lifespan of a domestic cat is between 12 and 18 years.
25. Cats have sharp claws they can protract and retract, some cat owners opt to remove their cat’s nails, a process known as declawing (Onychectomy).
26. Cats are known for their wide range of vocalization, such as meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, and growling.
27. Cats have amazing eyesight and excellent night vision. Compared to humans, they only need one-sixth of the light humans need to see in the dark.
28. Cats have remarkable hearing and have one of the broadest hearing ranges of all living mammals.
29. Cats have a good sense of smell and depending on the breed can smell 9 to 16 times better than humans.
30. Those whiskers on a cat aren’t just to look cute, they can use them to judge the width of a space and tell if their bodies can fit through it.
31. Cats are attracted to catnip (Nepeta cataria) due to nepetalactone, a feline attractant found in catnip.
32. Cats are sometimes displayed in cat shows, which is an event where cats are judged on the standards for a specific breed.
33. Cats were worshipped in ancient Egypt, for example the goddess Bastet was often depicted in cat form.
34. A cat named Stubbs was the mayor of Talkeetna, Alaska, USA for 20 years.
35. In the United States, more than 3.2 million cats enter animal shelters each year and many of them are euthanized. This is due to the over production of cats by breeders. Consider adopting a cat from a shelter before you buy a kitten.

Cat Pictures

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the below images will be helpful for your research on cats. Below are six pictures of various cats. These pictures should help you better understand these amazing domestic pets.

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