Cats Domestic

Domestic cats (Felis catus) were first domesticated approximately 10,000 years ago in the Near East — probably self-domesticating as wildcats were attracted to grain stores (and the rodents they attracted) in early farming settlements. Unlike dogs, cats were never selectively bred for specific traits by humans — they domesticated themselves to a largely self-sufficient degree. They are the world's most popular pet — approximately 600 million domestic cats globally. Cats retain most of their wildcat behaviors despite domestication — they hunt even when well-fed (killing 1-4 billion birds and 6-22 billion mammals annually in the US alone); they communicate with meows almost exclusively with humans (adult cats rarely meow at each other); they have a flexible skeletal structure allowing them to right themselves during falls (the 'righting reflex'). Internet cat culture (YouTube, 4chan's cat posts, Instagram) has made cats the dominant internet animal.