Tag Archives: cats

Sunday Story Time

Cat Watch 2014: What’s it like being a cat?

Cats are at a crucial point in their evolutionary journey as they transform from solitary hunters to domestic pets, a study by the BBC and the Royal Veterinary College has revealed.

Our felines are adapting quickly to life in densely-packed cities, changing their behaviour to fit in with our 21st Century lives. They are time-sharing territory with other cats, killing less prey and learning to communicate with each other and people, research for BBC Two’s Cat Watch 2014 found.

In the first of a three-part series on the lives of modern domestic cats, we look at how our pets experience the world.

Cats’ highly-developed senses, honed through millions of years of evolution, make them highly efficient predators. In fact, our pets interact with the world in a very different way to us.

Seeing like a cat

BBC video cap

BBC video cap

Cats see the world in muted colours, making it easier for them to see movement without distractions. They also have large eyes for their size, allowing them to see well in low-level light.

However, they can’t focus on anything less than a foot away, so use their whiskers for detecting objects closer to their bodies.

Diagram of a cat's eye
Moving like a cat…
Source: BBCNews Read and see more