List of Cat Breeds Types of Cats

It is for this reason that calico and tortoiseshell cats are mostly female. These cats are called "feral cats" or "stray cats". The oldest evidence of cats kept as pets is from the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, around 7500 BC.

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There are also farm cats, which keep mice and rats away; and feral cats, which are domestic cats that live away from humans. Understanding cats’ place in history and human evolution reveals how very recently domestic cats came indoors and how millions of this species—who we call community cats—continue to live healthy lives outdoors today, as all domestic cats are biologically adapted to do. There are also domestic cats which live without being cared for by people. As domestic cats spread around the world along trade routes, the species became well adapted to life with humans.

Cat Rescues

Community cats deserve to live their lives outside just as they have for thousands of years. Until spaying and neutering pets became available and accessible around the 1930s, keeping intact cats indoors was messy business during mating season. With the invention of cat litter, cats rocketed to popularity as indoor pets, but their outdoor survival skills remain.9

Find out more about the dietary needs of cats. Advice on what to do if you've found a stray or feral cat or kitten that needs help, whether they are pregnant, injured or lost. Find out more about the health and welfare needs of cats. And if you've ever wondered what it's like to be a cat in a rehoming pod, here's your chance to experience a 360-degree view with some inquisitive kittens!

Impact on wildlife

Throughout all this time, cats were allowed to come and go freely from human householdseven President Calvin Coolidge’s cat had free rein to wander to and from the White House during the 1920s. In 2023, pet cats lived for around 13 years. In 2021, there were about 220 million pet cats and 480 million feral cats in the world. However, many cats live well into their golden years, with an average lifespan of years old. If we think like a cat, here’s how a cat’s age compares to a human’s.

• Gestation lasts about 64 days, with an average litter size of four kittens.
• Your pet should have her own clean, dry place in your home to sleep and rest.
• If so, the function of this cleanliness may be to decrease the chance a prey animal will notice the cat’s presence.
• The average weight of a household cat varies from 2.7 to 4.5 kg (6 to 10 pounds), although among non-pedigreed cats weights up to 12.7 kg (28 pounds) are not uncommon.
• Pantherinae includes five Panthera and two Neofelis species, while Felinae includes the other 34 species in 12 genera.
• Outdoor cats are prone to infections from other animals, can get into fights, may be attacked by predators, or may get run over by vehicles.

Dominant and recessive genes

Our sole goal with this program is to provide pet parents with the information they need to make the best cat decision for their pets. Cats with certain health conditions might benefit from a therapeutic veterinary diet, which is specially formulated to prevent, manage, and in some cases treat certain medical conditions. Our veterinary experts also look for specific ingredients when addressing needs at different life stages.