Cat as Scavenger

Apart from a decrease in body size, the most notable anatomical contrast between domesticated and wild cats is the increased intestinal length in the former. This may correlated with the domesticated cat’s turning from chiefly predatory to chiefly scavenging habits, and the resulting reliance on a low-protein diet; theoretically, increased small-intestinal length would maximize absorption of amino acids. One study of the stomach contents of stray city cats revealed that only 3 percent of their comprised rodents; the balance was garbage. Many studies have been devoted to the question of the depredations of cats on birds. Cats would seem to have only a modest effect, and generalizations are risky.

Breeding Habits

The breeding cycle is controlled by sensitivity to light. At equatorial latitudes, cats may breed throughout the year and have three or four litters. In temperate latitudes, they normally have one litter in the early spring and another in late summer. Domestic cats living under artificial light may breed at any time. Reproductive life begins at 7.5 months and continues until an advanced age, 15 years or more. The gestation period is usually 63 days, and the average litter is four kittens.

Health
A cat’s normally temperature is about 38.6oC (101.5oF). The critical environmental temperature is about 36oC (97oF), at which point a cat begins to pant to cool itself. Sweat glands exist in the pads of the feet and scattered over the body, but sweating is not a temperature regulating mechanism in cats.