Curious About Cats

In episode 128, we get curious about cats for Sophia of Erwin, Tennessee, Gracie of Seattle, Washington, and Ernie of Ojai, California.  We learn why people started keeping cats as pets, interesting facts about their amazing bodies, and why they meow and purr.

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Transcript

PODCAST 128: CURIOUS ABOUT CATS
RELEASE DATE:  MARCH 14TH, 2021

D:  HELLO, AND WELCOME BACK TO THE CURIOUS KID PODCAST.  WE’VE BEEN DOING THIS PODCAST FOR ABOUT TWO AND A HALF YEARS NOW, BUT THERE IS ONE THING WE HAVEN’T DONE JUST YET.

O:  TRIPLE MAILBAG!

D:  WHAT?  THAT’S A LOT OF MAIL.  TRIPLE MAILBAG!

“MY 6 YEAR OLD ASKED ME TO MESSAGE Y’ALL AND LET Y’ALL KNOW SHE IS CURIOUS ABOUT CATS.  SHE THINKS CATS WOULD BE A GREAT EPISODE.  SHE WANTS TO KNOW: WHY DO THEY MEOW AND WHY DO THEY HAVE TAILS?  THANKS Y’ALL.  KEEP EM COMING FROM SOPHIA OF ERWIN, TENNESSEE.”

“DEAR OLIVIA AND HER DAD, I LOVE YOUR PODCAST!  I HAVE LEARNED A LOT FROM LISTENING.  I AM INTERESTED IN CATS, CAN YOU DO AN EPISODE ON CATS AND ANSWER THE QUESTION HOW DO CATS PURR?  FROM GRACIE, AGE 8, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON.”

“HI CURIOUS KID!  I AM ERNIE, I AM FOUR AND LIVE IN OJAI, CALIFORNIA.  I LOVE LISTENING TO YOU, IT IS SUPER FUN.  I AM CURIOUS ABOUT CATS AND DOGS.  I AM GOING TO GET A DOG AND NAME HIM BASIL.  THANKS!”

O:  HOLY SMOKES.  THAT WAS AN INCREDIBLE TRIPLE MAILBAG.  WE ARE GETTING CURIOUS ABOUT CATS THIS WEEK FOR SOPHIA, GRACIE, AND ERNIE.

D:  AND, WE HAVE EVEN BETTER NEWS.  ERNIE IS CURIOUS ABOUT DOGS TOO, AND WE ARE GOING TO GET CURIOUS ABOUT DOGS NEXT WEEK.

O:  I LOVE CATS AND DOGS, AND I CAN’T WAIT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THEM.

D:  THIS IS GOING TO BE SUCH A GREAT WAY TO CAP OFF THE CURIOUS EPISODES IN SEASON 5.  CATS THIS WEEK, DOGS NEXT WEEK, THEN THE SEASON 5 FINALE TWO WEEKS FROM NOW.  WHAT’S THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK?

O:  THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK IS, ARE THERE MORE PET CATS OR PET DOGS IN THE UNITED STATES AND WORLDWIDE?

D:  THAT’S AN INTERESTING QUESTION.  WHILE YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT THE ANSWER, LET’S START LEARNING ABOUT CATS.

O:  THERE IS EVIDENCE THAT CATS HAVE BEEN KEPT AS PETS SINCE ABOUT 10,000 YEARS AGO.  

D:  IT IS BELIEVED THAT PEOPLE STARTED TO KEEP CATS AS PETS BECAUSE CATS ARE SO GOOD AT KEEPING RODENTS LIKE RATS AWAY FROM THEIR CROPS.  

O:  CATS ARRIVED IN THE UNITED STATES ON BOATS, INCLUDING THE BOAT THAT CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS SAILED ON IN 1492.  

D:  WHEN PEOPLE, LIKE CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, TOOK LONG JOURNEYS ACROSS THE OCEAN TO AMERICA, THEY OFTEN TRAVELLED WITH GRAINS AND OATS.  THAT’S BECAUSE GRAINS AND OATS ARE EASY TO PREPARE AND CAN STAY FRESH FOR A LONG TIME.  

O:  ONE PROBLEM THOUGH… RODENTS LIKE RATS LOVED EATING THOSE PRECIOUS GRAINS AND OATS.

D:  AND THAT’S WHY PEOPLE OFTEN TRAVELLED WITH CATS.  CATS DID A GREAT JOB OF KEEPING RODENTS AWAY FROM THE FOOD.

O:  EVERYBODY WINS.  THE CAT GETS A YUMMY RODENT TO EAT, AND THE PEOPLE CAN STILL ENJOY THEIR GRAINS AND OATS.
D:  THAT’S RIGHT.  KEEPING THE RODENTS AWAY ALSO SERVED ANOTHER IMPORTANT PURPOSE.  RODENTS OFTEN CARRY DISEASES.  THE MEDICINE AVAILABLE BACK THEN WAS NOT AS GOOD AS IT IS TODAY, SO THOSE DISEASES SPREAD BY THE RODENTS MADE THE SAILERS REALLY SICK.  SO, THE CATS REALLY HELPED KEEP THE SAILERS WELL FED AND HEALTHY.  

O:  CATS HAVE AMAZING BODIES THAT ALLOW THEM TO DO THINGS OTHER ANIMALS CAN’T DO.  THEY ACTUALLY HAVE MORE BONES THAN HUMANS.

D:  THAT’S RIGHT.  YOU WOULD THINK BECAUSE CATS ARE SO SMALL, THEY MUST HAVE LESS BONES THAN US.  IT TURNS OUT THAT CATS HAVE 230 BONES WHILE HUMANS HAVE ONLY 206.  

O:  27 OF THOSE BONES ARE LOCATED IN THE TAIL.  A CAT NEEDS ALL THOSE BONES TO HELP IT WITH BALANCE AND MOVEMENT.  

D:  THE CAT ALSO HAS A DETACHED COLLARBONE.  THAT MEANS THAT THEIR COLLARBONES AREN’T ATTACHED TO ANY OTHER BONES, WHICH IS DIFFERENT FROM HUMANS.  HAVING A DETACHED COLLARBONE ALLOWS CATS TO GET INTO AND OUT OF TIGHT SPACES.    

O:  CATS USE THEIR WHISKERS TO FIGURE OUT WHICH SMALL PLACES THEY CAN GET INTO.  

D:  A CAT’S WHISKERS ARE ABOUT THE SAME WIDTH AS IT’S BODY.  IN OTHER WORDS, IF THEY ARE ABLE TO STICK THEIR HEAD SOMEWHERE WITHOUT THE WHISKERS BEING TOUCHED, THEY KNOW THAT THEY CAN SQUEEZE THEIR WHOLE BODY INTO THE SAME PLACE.  

O:  FOR THAT REASON, IT IS VERY IMPORTANT NOT TO CUT A CAT’S WHISKERS.

D:  THEY REALLY RELY ON THEIR WHISKERS TO DISCOVER THEIR SURROUNDINGS, SO CUTTING THEIR WHISKERS IS A REALLY BAD IDEA.  

O:  CATS ARE MAMMALS LIKE US.

D:  THAT MEANS THAT, JUST LIKE HUMANS, THEY ARE WARM BLOODED, HAVE HAIR OR FUR, AND MAKE MILK FOR THEIR BABIES.   

O:  THEY ARE THE ONLY MAMMALS THAT CAN’T TASTE SWEET THINGS.

D:  ISN’T THAT TERRIBLE?  CAN YOU IMAGINE NOT BEING ABLE TO TASTE SWEET FOODS?

O:  THERE ARE ALSO SOME FOODS THAT ARE VERY HARMFUL TO CATS, LIKE GRAPES AND RAISINS.  

D:  JUST LIKE WITH DOGS, GRAPES AND RAISINS CAN ACTUALLY LEAD TO KIDNEY FAILURE IN CATS.  OTHER FOODS LIKE CHIVES, GARLIC, AND ONIONS ARE ALSO DANGEROUS FOR CATS.  

O:  CATS ALSO HAVE THE LARGEST EYES OF ANY MAMMAL RELATIVE TO THEIR HEAD SIZE.

D:  THAT MEANS THAT, CONSIDERING HOW SMALL THEIR HEADS ARE, THEIR EYES ARE HUGE.  

O:  THE WAY CATS WALK IS REALLY INTERESTING.

D:  I FOUND THIS FACT FASCINATING.  CHECK THIS OUT… CATS WALK BY MOVING BOTH FEET ON ONE SIDE FIRST, AND THEN BOTH FEET ON THE OTHER SIDE.  ALMOST ALL OTHER ANIMALS ALTERNATE ONE FOOT ON ONE SIDE AND THEN A FOOT ON THE OTHER SIDE.  BESIDES CATS, THE ONLY OTHER ANIMALS KNOWN TO WALK THE WAY THEY DO ARE CAMELS AND GIRAFFES.  

O:  CATS SLEEP MORE THAN 12 HOURS PER DAY.
D:  AND WHEN THEY’RE AWAKE, THEY SPEND ABOUT A THIRD OF THAT TIME GROOMING THEMSELVES.  THEY ARE VERY GOOD AT GROOMING, BECAUSE THEIR TONGUES ARE ROUGH.  THEY LICK THEMSELVES TO GET INSECTS, DUST, AND LOOSE HAIRS OFF THEIR FUR.    
 
O:  CATS EVEN ENJOY GROOMING EACH OTHER.  

D:  WHEN CATS DEVELOP CLOSE FRIENDSHIPS, THEY OFTEN LICK EACH OTHER TO HELP KEEP EACH OTHER CLEAN.  THIS BEHAVIOR OF GROOMING EACH OTHER IS CALLED ALLOGROOMING.  

O:  OUR CURIOUS LISTENERS WANTED TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WHY CATS PURR AND MEOW.  

D:  CATS LEARNED HOW TO MEOW JUST TO COMMUNICATE WITH PEOPLE.  THEY’VE LEARNED THAT MEOWS OFTEN GET ATTENTION, THE SAME WAY THAT BABIES KNOW THAT CRYING WILL LEAD TO ATTENTION FROM THEIR PARENTS.  USUALLY, WHEN CATS MEOW FOR A LONG TIME, THEY ARE OFTEN HUNGRY AND ARE SIGNALING THAT THEY WANT FOOD.  A SINGLE MEOW IS FREQUENTLY AN ATTEMPT FOR THE CAT TO ACTUALLY COMMUNICATE WITH THEIR OWNERS. 

O:  WE AREN’T EXACTLY SURE HOW CATS ARE ABLE TO PURR.

D:  WE THINK THEY MIGHT PURR BY VIBRATING MUSCLES IN THEIR VOICE BOX, WHICH OPENS AND CLOSES THE GAPS BETWEEN THE VOCAL CHORDS.  THIS ALLOWS AIR TO PASS OVER THE VOCAL CHORDS, LEADING TO THE PURR.  CATS USUALLY PURR WHEN THEY ARE HAPPY AND COMFORTABLE.  

O:  IT’S NOT A GOOD IDEA TO MAKE DIRECT EYE CONTACT WITH A CAT.

D:  IF YOU LOOK A CAT STRAIGHT IN THE EYES, THEY USUALLY FEEL THREATENED.  

O:  WHEN CATS ARE HAPPY TO SEE YOU, THEIR TAILS ARE STRAIGHT.

D:  THAT’S VERY DIFFERENT FROM DOGS.  OUR DOG KHLOE WAGS HER TAIL LIKE CRAZY WHEN SHE IS HAPPY TO SEE US.

O:  IF YOUR CAT IS WAGGING IT’S TAIL, YOU ARE MAKING HER ANGRY, SO KNOCK IT OFF.

D:  THERE HAVE BEEN SOME FAMOUS CATS, LIKE A CAT THAT WAS MAYOR FOR 20 YEARS.  HIS NAME WAS STUBBS, AND HE WAS THE MAYOR OF TALKEETNA, ALASKA FOR 20 YEARS… TRUE STORY.  

O:  PRESIDENT ABRAHAM LINCOLN LOVED CATS.  FOUR CATS LIVED IN THE WHITE HOUSE WITH HIM.

D:  WHEN HIS WIFE, MARY TODD LINCOLN, WAS ASKED IF ABE LINCOLN HAD A HOBBY, SHE ANSWERED “CATS”.  

O:  PRESIDENT BILL CLINTON HAD A POPULAR CAT NAMED SOCKS.  

D:  RUMOR IS THAT SOCKS, THE CAT, GOT MORE LETTERS IN THE MAIL THAN PRESIDENT CLINTON.      
    
O:  CATS ARE SO ADORABLE, ESPECIALLY YOUNG CATS, OR KITTENS.

D:  YOU LOVE CATS, WHICH MAKES YOU AN AILUROPHILE.  THAT’S THE NAME FOR SOMEONE WHO LOVES CATS, BECAUSE AILURO IN ANCIENT GREEK MEANS CAT.  MANY PEOPLE KNOW THAT YOUNG CATS ARE CALLED KITTENS, BUT DID YOU KNOW THAT MALE CATS ARE CALLED TOMS AND FEMALES ARE CALLED QUEENS, AND A GROUP OF CATS IS CALLED A CLOWDER.  OKAY OLIVIA, LET’S ANSWER THE QUESTION OF THE WEEK.  IN THE UNITED STATES, ARE THERE MORE PET CATS OR PET DOGS?

O:  THERE ARE MORE PET DOGS IN THE UNITED STATES.

D:  ACCORDING TO THE AMERICAN VETERINARY MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, THERE ARE 77 MILLION PET DOGS IN THE UNITED STATES AND 58 MILLION PET CATS.  THE AVERAGE HOUSE WITH DOGS HAS 1.6 DOGS AND THE AVERAGE HOUSE WITH CATS HAS 1.8 CATS.  THAT MEANS THAT 38% OF HOMES IN THE UNITED STATES HAVE AT LEAST ONE PET DOG AND 25% HAVE AT LEAST ONE PET CAT.  

O:  THERE ARE ALSO MORE PET DOGS IN THE WORLD THAN PET CATS.  

D:  CHECK OUT THESE NUMBERS… THERE ARE 471 MILLION PET DOGS AND 373 MILLION PET CATS IN THE WORLD.  CATS AND DOGS MAKE WONDERFUL PETS.  IF YOU HAVE A PET CAT, PLEASE SHARE A PICTURE OF YOUR FELINE FRIEND WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIA.  WELL, THAT’S A WRAP FOR THIS WEEK’S EPISODE.

O:  EPISODE 128 - CATS.

D:  GREAT JOB OLIVIA, AND GREAT JOB ERNIE, GRACIE, AND SOPHIA FOR SUGGESTING WE GET CURIOUS ABOUT CATS.  LET US KNOW WHAT YOU ARE CURIOUS ABOUT BY SENDING US AN E-MAIL TO CURIOUSKIDPODCAST@GMAIL.COM.  YOU CAN ALSO LEAVE US A VOICEMAIL TO TELL US WHAT YOU’RE CURIOUS ABOUT, AND WE WILL PLAY YOUR VOICEMAIL IN THE EPISODE WHEN WE GET CURIOUS ABOUT YOUR TOPIC.  CALL 856-425-2324 TO LEAVE A VOICEMAIL FOR US.  NEXT WEEK, WE WILL GET CURIOUS ABOUT DOGS FOR LISTENERS IN WARRANDYTE, AUSTRALIA, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA, AND HOUSTON, TEXAS.  AS ALWAYS, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING AND GETTING CURIOUS WITH US.