All About Cats

Cats have highly developed senses which, combined with an acute sense of body orientation, allow the average cat to balance on fences, jump from one improbable location to another, often at top speed, or sense prey from long distances.

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 the main way it identifies objects (or people). There are 200 million odor-sensitive cells in a cat's nose, compared to only 5 million in a human's nose.

Eyes

A cat 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 a cat's overall sense of vision is actually five to ten times less acute than a human's. Cats see less detail than humans.

Whiskers

A cat uses its whiskers almost like a personal radar system. Whiskers are extremely sensitive to air movement, so the cat can detect an object's presence from a distance. Cats also use whiskers to determine the size of objects or openings. From tip to tip, a 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.