﻿8 Myths and false beliefs about Cats (Part 2) | Clanimal

8 Myths and false beliefs about Cats (Part 2)

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There are a lot of false beliefs about the cat,
so here’s the second part of a short test allowing
you to assess your knowledge…

So, “True” or “False”?

6- Cat Always Fall Back on Their Feet

Absolutely false! However, it’s true that the cat possesses
a specific reflex called the “cat righting reflex”, an innate
ability it has to orient itself as it falls in order to land
on its feet quickly most of the time.

During a fall of more than a meter and a half (approx. five feet),
a cat can flip itself and land on its feet to break its fall.
It rotates its head first towards the ground, flipping its front
legs first then its back legs. The cat then has its belly facing
the ground and assume a position similar to that of a flying squirrel.
All it has to do after is bend its back to clamp its legs towards
each other to obtain an upright position.


However, this doesn’t necessarily save it. When it falls from
a very place, the landing doesn’t go smoothly, the cat can
injure itself badly. The wounds vary from a small fracture to death.


7- Most White Cats Are Deaf

True. Sixty to 80% of white cats with blue eyes are deaf.
Deafness in cats is related to the “W” gene, responsible for
the lack of pigment in their hair, which seems white. It has
been proven that the W allele is directly responsible for
inner ear degeneration causing hear loss.

Hear loss doesn’t occur automatically in all cats, it can be
bilateral hearing loss, unilateral hearing loss, or an
absence of hearing. The kitten is born with normal hearing,
but at one week old, there is a sudden progressive impairment
in its inner ear, instead of a development.
The degeneration is usually complete at three weeks old.


8- To Know a Cat’s “Human” Age, You Have to Multiply
Its Real Age by 7.

In fact, not really. Cat, at the beginning of their lives,
age faster than a human baby. For example, at 3 months old,
a kitten has the same age as a human 6-year old.
And at 6 months old, it’s 10 years old in human age, at
12 months it’s a 16-yearold teenager. At 2 years old, it’s
already 24-four in human age. To know it’s “human age” after
that, you will have to add 4 years at each birthday.
Therefore, at 16 years old, your cat would be approximately
80 years old in human age!

So there you go, if you didn’t the cat very well,
I hope this helped you know a little bit more.
And if you already had plenty of knowledge, were you more
on the “Myths” side than the “Truths” side? Send me your
comments at the email address below. Thank you!

Annie Cloutier


Animal behaviour professional

Specialised in feline behaviour

PhD in Biology


The Guy

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