IT’S
International Cat Day – a chance to celebrate all those things we adore about moggies.
Around 25% of us own a cat, meaning there are more than 11.1million of them living in Britain. But what makes our furry friends such mew-vellous family pets? Jennifer Dunkerley paws over 15 fascinating pussycat facts...
● We spend £7.9billion each year on our feline friends. Half (46%) of UK owners admit to buying their pets gifts, with a fifth treating their cat to a monthly present.
● Wales, the south-west and the south-east of England are the most moggy-mad regions.
● Cats spend 70% of their day sleeping.
● They have their own purr-sonalities! A recent survey found the happiest cats are from East Anglia (81%), while the friendliest are in Scotland (44%) and the sleepiest are in Wales (25%).
● The top breeds in Britain are the British Shorthair (50%), followed by the Bengal (9%) and Siamese (8%).
● Cats are cleverer than dogs – fact! They have 300million neurons in their brain, whereas dogs have about 160m. In fact, cats have more nerve cells in the visual areas of their brain than humans and most mammals, which could explain why their night-time eyesight is so incredibly sharp.
● The longest-living cat was Creme Puff, from Austin, Texas, who died aged 38. But Poppy from Bournemouth is the current UK record holder at 24.
● When Brit owner Ben Rea died in May 1988 he left his £7m fortune to his moggy, Blackie.
● Famous celebrity cats include Olivia Benson and Meredith Grey, owned by Taylor Swift, Kitty Purry owned by Katy Perry, and Ed Sheeran’s Calippo & Dorito.
● The last two have over 286,000 followers on Instagram.
● Hearing is a cat’s most acute sense – they hear about four times as well as a human.
● Cats Protection rehomed 46,000 cats and kittens last year.
● Most cats could run faster than Usain Bolt if they wanted to.
● Black cats are seen as a sign of good luck in many countries around the world, especially in Japan where they are revered.
● They spend half their lives cleaning themselves – and licking their owner is a sign of deep affection.
● Animal charity PETA UK has offered a £10,000 reward for catching the Croydon Cat Killer who has slaughtered hundreds of pets across the UK.