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Baby cats are known for their playful, energetic demeanor. They are adorable pets and are widely loved for their independent and sometimes mischievous behavior. But did you know that kittens feed on the same teat every time they eat or that they don’t all like catnip? Keep reading to learn five amazing facts about kittens and see some adorable pictures of baby cats.
#1: A wild monkey adopted a baby cat!
Chances are you’ve heard a few stories about unlikely duos in the animal Kingdom. When you think of a baby cat, you probably think of a domesticated pet. But a little cat ended up in an unlikely environment that he now calls home.
A wild long-tailed macaque in Ubud, Bali, adopted a tiny kitten when it was abandoned in the forest! The monkey carefully took care of the kitten and introduced it to other members of his family. He also cuddled, carried and protected the little cat.
#2: Siblings of Kittens Can Have Multiple Fathers
When adult cats are ready to mate, they go into something called a heat cycle. During a heat cycle, the female calls out a male to mate with her. Cats are induced ovulators. This means that when they mate, their bodies automatically release eggs.
However, most cats need to mate more than once to successfully ovulate. In some cases, it can take up to three or four attempts for an egg to be successfully released. This means that during the 1-4 days a cat is in heat, she will mate multiple times, possibly with several different males.
Cats can also ovulate multiple times in a heat cycle. Consequently, some eggs may be fertilized by different fathers. Ultimately, this means that a single litter of baby cats can be traced to more than one biological father. This is a phenomenon called superfertility.
#3: Kittens feed on the same teat every time
baby cats are mammals, meaning they survive the first six to eight weeks of life on their mother’s milk alone. They consume their mother’s milk by attaching to the teats on the adult female’s abdomen. Cats have eight teats to feed each of their kittens at the same time.
But did you know that kittens eat from the same teat every time they eat? It’s true! But how do they know the difference? The answer is amazing: they use their scent. More specifically, each of an adult cat’s teats has a specific smell.
Kittens remember the scent of their teat and return to the same teat every time they get hungry. When they start eating from their mother’s teat, kittens use their paws to knead her stomach, which stimulates the flow of milk. When the kittens grow up, they knead their owners when they are nurtured as it elicits the same response.
#4: Not all baby cats like catnip
Catnip is a plant in the mint family that some cats respond. However, not all cats react to catnip. The plant stimulates cats to smell or eat. When smelled, it causes cats to roll around in it, rubbing against the plant and drooling. When consumed, it has a calming effect.
Whether or not a baby cat responds to catnip depends on their genes. The autosomal gene for responding to catnip is passed on to kittens from their mother. However, newborn kittens don’t care about catnip.
If they are under three months of age, kittens do not react to catnip at all. In fact, they may even show an aversion to the plant. You can usually tell whether or not your little feline friend likes catnip when they are about four months old. About a third of cats don’t like catnip when they’re adults.
#5: All kittens are born with blue eyes
What could be sweeter than a little baby cat with blue eyes? For the first seven to 10 days of life outside the womb, kittens have their eyes closed. Once they open, beautiful blue eyes are revealed. However, this eye color only lasts for about the first month of a kitten’s life.
Even though each kitten’s eyes appear blue, it’s an optical illusion. In reality, kittens’ eyes have no pigment and it is only the light reflecting off them that makes them appear blue. When they are about a month old, their bodies begin to produce melanin, the pigment responsible for determining their eye color. baby lions are also born with “blue” eyes.
Here’s another fun fact: Kittens’ eye color is genetically linked to the color of their fur. Cats usually have blue, green, yellow or brown eyes. For the most part white cats generally have gold, blue, green, or copper eyes. On the other hand, cats with dark colored fur usually have green-yellow or golden eyes.
Some cats, such as the Tonkinese breed, always have blue eyes. Eye color is completely determined by a cat’s DNA.
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