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Are Cats Really Wild Animals? Experts clash over whether they count as a domesticated species.
Slate ^ | July 5, 2015 | David Grimm

Posted on 07/07/2015 7:14:45 AM PDT by C19fan

The other night, before my wife and I put our 2½-year-old twins to bed, she began reading them one of their favorite books, Where the Wild Things Are. Juliet, in Dalmatian pajamas, asked, “Mommy, where are the wild things?” My wife glanced over at our gray-and-white tabby curled up on a chair nearby. “Well,” she said, “Jasper’s a wild thing.” Juliet looked incredulous. “Jasper’s not a wild thing,” she said. “He’s a cat!”

The dispute is understandable. Though cats have lived with us for nearly 10,000 years and are the world’s most popular pet, experts disagree about whether they’re actually domestic animals. Our feline companions don’t really need us, after all: They can hunt for themselves, and they go feral without human contact. A scientific paper published last year uncovered some of the first genes responsible for domestication—all in the cat genome—yet still referred to cats as “semi-domesticated.” Other scientists vehemently disagree with that designation. “There’s no difference between a domesticated cat and a domesticated anything else,” says Greger Larson, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Oxford who has studied the domestication of pigs, dogs, and a variety of other animals. “Good luck trying to get a goat or a sheep to spend the night in your house.”

(Excerpt) Read more at slate.com ...


TOPICS: Pets/Animals
KEYWORDS: cats; domestication; kittyping
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To: Darksheare

That looks like me, at my age, trying to get into a corvette. Also, just so you know, cats have no bones.


41 posted on 07/07/2015 9:04:50 AM PDT by Conservative4Ever (Hey Hillary, ... liar, liar pants on fire.-)
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To: Conservative4Ever

Cats seems to belong to the “gelatinous solids” class.


42 posted on 07/07/2015 9:06:14 AM PDT by Darksheare (Those who support liberal "Republicans" summarily support every action by same.)
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To: ETL

Somewhat true, but not always. I have had two cats who showed considerable consternation and concern when I was ill.

I think they show it differently than dogs do, when they do care.


43 posted on 07/07/2015 9:07:17 AM PDT by rlmorel ("National success by the Democratic Party equals irretrievable ruin." Ulysses S. Grant.)
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To: ETL

Good kitties!


44 posted on 07/07/2015 9:09:07 AM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either satire or opinion. Or both.)
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To: ETL

Any time I wind up on the floor, for any reason, the cats come running. I’ve always found the myth of the aloof cat interesting. I’ve owned many a cat in my time, and they’ve all been downright clingy. I think it’s more about the owner than the animal. If you want your pets to be more ornamental than companions then you get aloof animals, if you’re looking for companions you get lap dwellers.


45 posted on 07/07/2015 9:13:33 AM PDT by discostu (In fact funk's as old as dirt)
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To: Darksheare

Tiny girl. But threatening:)
Andy is almost 13 pounds, not fat, tall, with long legs like a basketball player, he strides across my bed like he owns it. But I stay the heck off his climbing perch. Once, I reached in, got a deep scratch that sent me dripping blood to the doc. He was mortified, but made his point.


46 posted on 07/07/2015 9:26:40 AM PDT by Veto! (Opinions freely dispensed as advice)
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To: momtothree

Our formerly feral cat will be on anxiety meds soon....LOL...his main problem is he doesn’t like US! And, we feed him! But, he doesn’t bite, or snarl or anything...he just does not want to be picked up and held. Good luck with yours.


47 posted on 07/07/2015 9:28:42 AM PDT by goodnesswins (hey..Wussie Americans....ISIS is coming. Are you ready?)
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To: Veto!

Ceirdwyn’s brother Colton is largish, built like a tank, and stumps around like everything can move out of his way.
He’s easily three times her weight.
He also thinks he is a shoulder cat.
(Laughable at best. Dude is just too heavy and ground bound. Unlike his sister.)


48 posted on 07/07/2015 9:30:48 AM PDT by Darksheare (Those who support liberal "Republicans" summarily support every action by same.)
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To: central_va
So.. domestic and free range ?
49 posted on 07/07/2015 10:14:21 AM PDT by tophat9000 (SCOTUS=Newspeak)
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To: tophat9000

If it moved on its own at one time a Korean will eat it.


50 posted on 07/07/2015 10:17:49 AM PDT by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn.)
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To: central_va

So its wack it and wok it?


51 posted on 07/07/2015 11:31:02 AM PDT by tophat9000 (SCOTUS=Newspeak)
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To: Focault's Pendulum; martin_fierro; Slings and Arrows; Glenn; republicangel; Beaker; ...

52 posted on 07/07/2015 12:05:18 PM PDT by Slings and Arrows (My music: http://hopalongginsberg.com/ | Facebook: Hopalong X Ginsberg | Instagram: hopalonginsberg)
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To: ETL

Endangered?


53 posted on 07/07/2015 12:08:25 PM PDT by BunnySlippers (I Love Bull Markets!!!)
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To: BunnySlippers

If you mean the Galapagos Islands Marine Iguana, I don’t know. I can check. I just thought it a very non-typical catch for a cat.


54 posted on 07/07/2015 12:27:01 PM PDT by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: BunnySlippers
Endangered Species List

The Marine Iguana is currently labeled as vulnerable in its conservation status. The iguana is only known to be living in the Galapagos Islands and its population has been gradually decreasing throughout the years. Since the environment in which they live didn’t have many natural predators they never developed the defenses needed to help protect them against new enemies. This lack of development makes them more vulnerable to attack and becoming ill due to new bacteria as these islands attract more and more people and animals from different parts of the world.

Although it is unintentional, humans are one of the big threats to this species. The marine iguana has developed over time in a fairly safe environment and thus does not have a very strong immune system. This leads to a higher risk of the iguanas catching infections that they aren’t used to and that their bodies are equipped to protect against thus contributing to their endangerment.[19]

Other predators include animals such as pigs, dogs, and cats. These animals, though usually little threat to adult iguanas, impact their reproduction. These animals do not usually attack the iguana, but they go after the nesting areas to feed off of their eggs. This inhibits reproduction and the long term survival of the species.[20]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_iguana#Endangered_Species_List

55 posted on 07/07/2015 12:30:14 PM PDT by ETL (ALL (most?) of the Obama-commie connections at my FR Home page: http://www.freerepublic.com/~etl/)
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To: Let's Roll

The burro is the Mexican breed of donkey, somewhat smaller and even hardier.


56 posted on 07/07/2015 12:44:34 PM PDT by yefragetuwrabrumuy ("Don't compare me to the almighty, compare me to the alternative." -Obama, 09-24-11)
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To: ETL

I was just guessing ... :o)


57 posted on 07/07/2015 12:52:43 PM PDT by BunnySlippers (I Love Bull Markets!!!)
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To: C19fan
Such the cat! That video.

I just had a clean geriatric blood work come back on one of my 15 year olds. Totally normal.

We adoped two white cats in 2013 they are now 2.

Bacci throws up a few times a day. It usually has no solids in it just liquid. Any suggestions as to what maybe happening. Serious only....OK MAKE FUN IF YOU HAVE TO! LOL

58 posted on 07/07/2015 1:19:33 PM PDT by Uversabound (Our Military past and present: Our Highest example of Brotherhood of Man & Doing God's Will)
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To: Darksheare

When you trip and fall, the cat doesn’t rush over to see if you are hurt.
The cat is checking to see if you are hurt enough for them to take down.

*I am serious he is waiting for me to lose 50 pounds! OMG*
: >)


59 posted on 07/07/2015 1:23:52 PM PDT by Uversabound (Our Military past and present: Our Highest example of Brotherhood of Man & Doing God's Will)
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To: C19fan

Cat’s don’t have owners. Cats have staff.
If your car were as large as your dog, you would be food.


60 posted on 07/07/2015 1:24:25 PM PDT by AppyPappy
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