100 Fun Facts About Cats [Free Fact Cards]

Are you ready to pounce on some fun and furry facts about cats? Cats are amazing animals with soft fur, pointy ears, and big, beautiful eyes. They purr, play, and sometimes take the best naps in the sun. So, let’s curl up and get cozy with some purr-fectly interesting facts about cats, our feline friends!

Did you know that cats have been hanging out with humans for a really long time? Like, thousands of years! People love having cats around because they’re great at catching pesky mice. Plus, they’re super cute and cuddly, which makes them perfect pet pals.

Cats are known for being really graceful and agile. That means they can jump high and land on their feet almost every time. They have a special way their body twists in the air, and it’s called the “righting reflex.” It’s like they have their own built-in gymnastics talent!

And here’s something else that’s cool about cats—they can see really well in the dark! Their eyes have a special layer that reflects light, so they only need a little bit of light to see. That’s why they’re such good hunters, even at nighttime.

Are you ready to find out more about these whiskered wonders? There are so many awesome things to learn about cats, from their meow language to the way they always seem to find the comfiest spot in the house. Let’s jump in and explore the fantastic world of cats together with these fun facts about cats!

Don’t forget to grab your free cat fact cards below! 

Are you collecting all our fact cards? Be sure to grab our Facts About Pigs and our Facts about Turtles.

Best Facts About Cats

1. Even cats without a tail have a righting reflex. 
2. Cats have longer-term memory compared to dogs.
3. Cats spend up to 50% of their waking hours grooming themselves.
4. Kittens have 26 temporary teeth,
5. Kittens are baby cats typically born in litters of 1 to 9 kittens.

6. Cats are one of the most popular pets in the world
7. A kitten’s adult eye color begins to develop at around 6-7 weeks old
8. Cats have 32 muscles that control their outer ear. 
9. A cat’s heart beats nearly twice as fast as the human heart (110 – 140 beats a minute). 
10. A female cat that is pregnant with kittens is called a Queen.

11. Cats have a righting reflex, which helps them to land on their feet. 
12. The name for a group of wild cats is “a destruction of cats.”
13. A collection of regular house cats is called “a clowder of cats.”
14. A group of kittens is called “a litter of kittens.”
15. Petting a cat has been proven to lower stress levels.

16. Cats help humans from feeling lonely.
17. Grown cats have 30 teeth; kittens have about 26 temporary teeth. 
18. Cats are extremely sensitive to vibrations.  They can detect earthquake tremors 10 to 15 minutes before humans can. 
19. There are 60 million feral cats in the US. 
20. Rome has more homeless cats per square mile than any other city worldwide. 

21. Cats will only meow to their humans.  They do not meow to each other. 
22.  A cat’s spine has 53 loose bones in it. 
23.  Cats do not chew their food. They tear and swallow it. 
24.  A cat has built-in night vision. 
25.  Catnip is like heroin without the side effects of addiction.

26. Cats are crepuscular, which means they are active at dusk and dawn. 
27. Cats have a highly attuned sense of smell.  
28. Cats can turn their ears 180 degrees. 
29. Cats hearing is at least 5 times longer than an adult.
30. Domesticated cats spend about 70% of their day sleeping. 

31. A cat is unable to see directly under its nose. 
32. Cats can be allergic to humans.
33. Male cats are called a Tom
34. The female cat is a Molly.
35. Cats have whiskers on the back of their front legs. 

36. A female cat can become pregnant as young as 4 to 6 months. 
37. Cats make about 100 different sounds. 
38. You can make a coat with 24 cat skins. 
39. A cat cannot climb head-first down a tree because every claw on a cat’s paw points the same way. 
40. A group of cats is called a clowder.

41. A cat’s hairball is called a bezoar. 
42. The record for the most kittens born in the same litter is 19
43. The oldest cat known to give birth was 30 years old. 
44. Worldwide, there are about 60 different recognized breeds of cats. 
45. Cats sleep almost 15 hours per day. 

46. A cat’s claws on their back paws are not as sharp as the claws on their front claws. 
47. A cat’s pulse is between 130 to 240 beats per minute.
48. A cat’s gestation is between 61 – 70 days. 
49. Cats sweat through their paws. 
50. Cats have existed longer than humans. 

51. Cats walk in what is described as a “direct register,” which means their hind foot lands in the same spot as the front foot.
52. Kittens require more sleep than older cats. 
53. Cats are known to have more toes on their front paws than their back toes. 
54. Cats can have 18 toes, they have 5 on their front and 4 on their back paws. 
55. Cats are not able to detect sweet things.

56. When you neuter your cat, its life expectancy increases by 625. 
57. Cats use extraordinary night vision to hunt at night. 
58. A cat’s smell is their strongest sense.
59. Cats rely on smell to identify people and objects. 
60. Cats will work to avoid other cats in order to prevent a confrontation. 

61. When a cat grimaces, they are usually “taste-scenting.” they have an extra organ that allows the cats to tase-sense the air. 
62. Cats were associated with witchcraft during the middle ages. 
63. A cat’s purr can be a sign of nervousness and contentment. 
64. Cats recognize individual voices. 
65. It has been suggested that cats sometimes purr when they are injured and it helps their body heal faster. 

66. Cats are often lactose intolerant.
67. Cat brains are 90% similar to humans.
68.  Felicette is the first cat known to take a trip to space.
69. A cat’s brain is 90% similar to humans. 
70. Cats have a section of their brain, that controls emotion that nearly identical to humans.

71. Cat urine will glow when placed under the black light. . 
72. The ridged pattern on a cat’s nose pad is as individual as a human fingerprint. 
73. Cats can move each ear independently. 
74. Cats walk on their toes. 
75. Cats use their paws to hold their prey, they use their teeth to kill it. 

76. Male cats have a bone in their penis called baculum. 
77.  More cats are adopted than dogs. 
78.  Cats are amazing hunters who can see clearly in complete darkness. 
79.  Housecats share almost 96% of their DNA with wild tigers. 
80.  Cats live long lives; some live longer than 20 years. 

81. A cat ran for Mayor of Mexico City in 2013
82. Ginger tabby cats sometimes have freckles around their mouth and on their eyelids. 
83. Cats can jump up to 8 feet in a single bound.
84. Cats hate water because their fur does not insulate well when it’s wet. 
85. A cat usually has 12 whiskers on each side of its face.

86. Cats have the ability to find their way home, called “psi-traveling.”
87. Cats do not meow, but will spit, purr, and hiss at other cats.
88. Cats have about 130,000 hairs per square inch. 
89. A cat has 230 bones in its body.  
90. A cat does not have a collarbone; this helps it fit through any opening the size of its head. 

90. Cats can jump 5 times their own height. 
91. Cats are known to have 32 muscles in each of their ears. 
92. A cat’s whiskers help them get around at night.  They allow the cat to detect and respond to changes in their surroundings. 
93. House cats can run about 30 miles per hour. 
94. The hair inside a cats hear is called ear furnishings.

96. Cats have a dominant paw.  Female cats prefer to use their right paw while males use their left. 
97. Cats are known to have an extra eyelid, but not eyelashes. 
98. Cats are known to be extreme germaphobes. 
99. Cats can spend between 30 – 50 % of their day cleaning themselves. 
100. The oldest domestic cat breed is called the Egyptian Mau.

Do you have even more interesting facts about cats? Share them with us in the comments! Also, don’t forget to grab your free moon fact cards to add to your collection!