Skip to comments.
A Brief History of House Cats
Smithsonian ^
| july 26h, 2007
| DancesWithCats
Posted on 07/26/2007 6:36:16 PM PDT by DancesWithCats
On any of the surprising number of Web sites dedicated entirely to wisdom about cats, one will find quotations like these: "As every cat owner knows, nobody owns a cat" (attributed to Ellen Perry Berkeley); "The phrase 'domestic cat' is an oxymoron" (attributed to George F. Will); and "A dog is a man's best friend. A cat is a cat's best friend" (attributed to Robet J. Vogel). Of course, there is such a thing as the domestic cat, and cats and humans have enjoyed a mostly symbiotic relationship for thousands of years. But the quips do illuminate a very real ambivalence in the long relationship between cats and humans, as this history of the house cat shows.
The Mystery of the Ancient House Cat
It has taken a while for scientists to piece together the riddle of just when and where cats first became domesticated. One would think that the archaeological record might answer the question easily, but wild cats and domesticated cats have remarkably similar skeletons, complicating the matter. Some clues first came from the island of Cyprus in 1983, when archaeologists found a cat's jawbone dating back 8,000 years. Since it seemed highly unlikely that humans would have brought wild cats over to the island (a "spitting, scratching, panic-stricken wild feline would have been the last kind of boat companion they would have wanted," writes Desmond Morris in Catworld: A Feline Encyclopedia), the finding suggested that domestication occurred before 8,000 years ago.
(Excerpt) Read more at smithsonianmagazine.com ...
TOPICS: Chit/Chat; Miscellaneous; Pets/Animals; Science
KEYWORDS: cats; housecats; pets
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61 next last
To: DancesWithCats
This article is Balderdash.
People did not domesticate cats.
Cats domesticated people.
41
posted on
07/27/2007 2:48:50 PM PDT
by
JohnCliftn
(In War: Resolution. In Defeat: Defiance. In Victory: Magnanimity. In Peace: Good Will. - Churchill)
To: windcliff
42
posted on
07/27/2007 2:52:23 PM PDT
by
stylecouncilor
(I'm a loner Dottie; a rebel.)
To: DancesWithCats
My Killer Katt would disagree with any who dared call her "domesticated". Her father being a feral bobcat might have something to do with it.
43
posted on
07/27/2007 2:57:27 PM PDT
by
R. Scott
(Humanity i love you because when you're hard up you pawn your Intelligence to buy a drink)
To: rintense
44
posted on
07/27/2007 4:28:14 PM PDT
by
lowbridge
(A Gun A Day Keeps The Government Away)
To: JohnCliftn
This article is Balderdash. People did not domesticate cats. Cats domesticated people. Domesticated,
Masticated,
Folded, spindled, mutilated.
Agitated, Aggravated, and ... relegated to the subservient role of obedient drone.
I, cat owner, thus live my life.
To: DancesWithCats
Cats are great in many ways already recorded and these ways too:
- taught people agriculture
- Spent centuries saying "MRI", "MRI" so we'd invent these life-saving devices
- sit serenely on top computer monitors where it is nice and warm
- teleport when they hear the can opener
46
posted on
07/28/2007 7:14:02 AM PDT
by
JohnCliftn
(In War: Resolution. In Defeat: Defiance. In Victory: Magnanimity. In Peace: Good Will. - Churchill)
To: Duke Nukum; DancesWithCats; PetroniDE; 4catsinmaryland; 4mycountry; 7.62 x 51mm; abner; Aeronaut; ..
Cats are not domesticated.
They choose to live with us and then become lazy. They may get along with humans, but they can still survive in the wild and that’s the key. Domesticated animals can't survive without human management.
Cats are the only mammal on earth that have survived and increased in numbers throughout known history, which to correlates with their apparent conscious lifestyle choices.
47
posted on
07/29/2007 10:48:32 AM PDT
by
Lady Jag
(I dreamed I surfed all day in my monthly donor wonder bra - https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate)
To: Lady Jag; TASMANIANRED; MS.BEHAVIN; MEG33; LUV W; STARWISE; EsmeraldaA; Kitty Mittens; ...
Hi, Lady Jag:
House Cats Haiku
(In LolCat!)
Gawntlett beez throawnd daown
Cheezburgr an fryz awaytz
Deth by non, nom nom
Hewminz bakk iz turnd
Himz woant noatiss if Kittehz
attakk az a teem
Himz maykeeng misstayk
Wantz a Koke 2 go wiff snakk
Kittehz purrfurr Milk
T3h Sillee Beeg Gye
finks Cheezburge iz 4 himz
Kuddnt beez moar rong!
Jack
48
posted on
07/29/2007 12:23:52 PM PDT
by
Jack Deth
(Knight Errant and Resident FReeper Kitty Poem /Haiku Guy)
To: Jack Deth
Okay, that one made me want to roar!
49
posted on
07/29/2007 12:27:02 PM PDT
by
NicknamedBob
(Thanks to the royalties from my book sales, I now have wealth beyond my dreams of licorice.)
To: JohnCliftn
To: Jack Deth
Lol, that's a Cute Poem, Jack! Thank you for the Ping!
51
posted on
07/29/2007 12:55:30 PM PDT
by
Kitty Mittens
(To God Be All Excellent Praise!!)
To: Lady Jag
52
posted on
07/29/2007 12:57:13 PM PDT
by
Pyro7480
("Jesu, Jesu, Jesu, esto mihi Jesus" -St. Ralph Sherwin's last words at Tyburn)
To: xcamel
But I like rocket surgery, it’s messy and loud.
53
posted on
07/29/2007 1:05:38 PM PDT
by
Darksheare
("Bah weep graaagnah wheep ni ni bong.")
To: DancesWithCats
My cats aways adopted me!
54
posted on
07/29/2007 1:21:37 PM PDT
by
Biggirl
(A biggirl with a big heart for God's animal creation.)
To: Pyro7480
55
posted on
07/29/2007 1:29:05 PM PDT
by
Lady Jag
(I dreamed I surfed all day in my monthly donor wonder bra - https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate)
To: Daffynition
56
posted on
07/29/2007 2:39:31 PM PDT
by
sweetliberty
(Stupidity should make you sterile!)
To: Jack Deth
What a cute writing....the cats look mighty humble!
57
posted on
07/29/2007 2:59:11 PM PDT
by
jaycee
(Just looking for a tagline)
To: Jack Deth
58
posted on
07/29/2007 3:33:04 PM PDT
by
Lady Jag
(I dreamed I surfed all day in my monthly donor wonder bra - https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate)
To: Jack Deth
LOL!
Thanks for the cute haiku, Jack!
To: Jack Deth
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20, 21-40, 41-60, 61 next last
Disclaimer:
Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual
posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its
management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the
exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson