do-cats-have-9-lives

Is your cat immortal? Well, you will think when you first hear” a cat has 9 lives.” Humans have lived with cats since 7000 BC. Making them one of man’s oldest friends. Scientifically they are not really immortal despite having “9 lives” Every continent records a history of cat domestication making it the friend to every human race.

The saying that cats have 9 lives is to be as old and mysterious as the cat itself. The saying’s origin is unclear despite applying to every nature of a cat except its actual earth life.

The original basis of this saying is mostly social beliefs associated with cat and what they can do. Scientifically, no living species has more than one life, not even the resilient cat. However, the wonders of a cat’s fantastic nature will make you associate it with so many lives.

So why do people say your cat has 9 lives?

 

An old English saying The saying

“A cat has 9 lives, with three he plays, with three he strays and with three he stays” is the most famous source of the 9 lives myth origins. The saying was initially designed to reflect the diverse nature of a cat’s nature in different stages of life.

When young, a cat is very active and playful, hence the saying “playful as a kitten.” In the midlife, they spend most of their time moving around in search of food and chasing after mice and mates. This is the straying stage. When they grow old, cats sleep more, and they enjoy the more human company. The English called this staying. These are the 9 lives of the cat.

 

Ancient literature

This saying is embedded in almost every literature source you may associate with. William Shakespeare, the world’s most famous playwright, in 1954 used the 9 lives of a cat in act 3 of Romeo and Juliet. Shakespear is believed to have drawn it from the ancient English saying. The same reflected in Thomas Fuller’s early 1700 books and sayings of which claims a cat has 9 lives while a woman has 9 cat’s lives.

 

Ability to escape injury

A cat has more bones in its spine than human beings and dogs. Their spine is very flexible as well as their limb with quick and elaborate decision-making ability. The flexibility of its legs and quick reflexes give the cat some of the world’s most fantastic survival skills. The cat has a larger surface area as compared to its volume. They can rotate their bodies mid-air to an upright position. This is the main reason behind always landing on its feet.

Cats can survive a fall from a height of over 30 meters. In 1963, a cat jumped from a 32 storied building on fire and allegedly survived. Their tolerance to strong falls is associated with their strong muscles and quick reflexes (the famous righting reflex) that allow them to reach maximum velocity quickly and realign their bodies to reduce the impact of the fall.

 

Resistance to Disease and Life-Threatening Conditions

Imagine living with little or no kidney activity for over 5 years? A cat can also stay for a long with little or no oxygen than dogs and humans. A cat that hasn’t breathed for over an hour can be revived and live usually, many mammals can’t survive this long. You will hear of animal services rescuing a cat buried for over three days or trapped in a closed space for long, and they survive.

Cats are one of the most disease resistant species with documentation of surviving some plagues that eliminated entire species. Your dog will die faster from renal failure than a cat, one of the biggest pet killers. Research shows that their bodies have an almost perfect fail-safe system. It protects them from some of the worst injuries on vital organs.

Most research results associate cats with stronger resistance to head wounds than dogs. There are cases of cats shot in the skull and achieving full recovery. Their determination to live even under the worst life threats contribute heavily to the 9 lives myth.

 

The nine lives of Atum-Ra in ancient Egypt

This takes you back 6000 years into Ancient Egypt where the great god Atum Ra, believed to have restored the land to its completeness after the war, was believed to take the form of a cat when visiting the underworld. Atum Ra later gave birth to 8 children bringing his number of lives to 9.

 

Ancient religious beliefs

9 is believed to be a magical number reflecting in Greek ancient teachings. It is known as the trinity of the Trinities which is known as the strongest life force. Some worshipers in ancient Greece are believed to have worshiped cats as the symbol of this life force connected to the 9 muses. They were the 9 daughters of Zeus born after his 9-month affair with Mnemosyne.

The Chinese believe 9 to be a lucky number which could also be the source of the myth. Ancient turkey, on the other hand, agrees with only 6 lives for the cat. The Spanish associated it with eight lives, but they still agree on more than one natural life.

 

The Lifespan of Cats

Cats live longer than dogs. The oldest cats reach over 20 years of age. A cat once born has a higher chance of growing to maturity than most pets. The survival rate of kittens from birth is also above 80% across all breeds making them one of the greatest survivors on earth.

Ecological flexibility Cats can live in almost any climate zone in the world without survival threats. A cat also has excellent survival instincts, a domestic cat can survive in the wild as easily as the wildcat. Cats are also omnivorous as compared to members of the species such as leopards, tigers, and lions who are carnivores. The 9 lives could also be associated with this versatile survival kills that allow them to adapt to almost every direction of human lifestyle.

 

Conclusion

What next for the cat Science says no but you can choose your own type of 9 lives for the cat from any of these sources. Whatever the cause of the 9 lives myth, a cat is a fantastic pet. The cat is very loyal, and it enjoys human company as well as your personal enjoyment such as watching TV. Yes, cats love TV and playing with children. They are also easy to live with even in single person dwellings as they are small, friendly, intelligent, adaptable and very tidy.

 

You May Also Interested In:

Tags: