Cats 😺from Predators to Domesticated Companions

Watch an Animated History of How Cats went From

😺Predators to Domesticated Companions🐈

Eva-Maria Geigl - TED-Ed

In ancient times, wildcats were fierce carnivorous hunters. And unlike dogs, who have undergone centuries of selective breeding, modern cats are genetically very similar to ancient cats. 

How did these solitary, fierce predators become our sofa sidekicks? Eva-Maria Geigl traces the domestication of the modern house cat. 

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Remember to Scroll DOWN to the BOTTOM of Page 😺

 

The role of cats in human’s lives has undergone a drastic change over centuries.

While a lot is written and spoken about the friendship between dogs and humans, cats – who are the winners of the internet – have a different history with people.
They were not always the domesticated animals they are today. As the video above by TED-Ed shows, the eventually mutually beneficial relationship between cats and humans is one that has evolved only over the centuries.

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Oh ... Wait... Balloon...

Directed by Chintis Lundgren, The History of the World According to Cats plays like a history lesson – taught by Eva-Maria Geigland – shows how cats were considered gods in some ancient civilizations until they proved to be valuable to human population in terms of controlling rodents and pests.

Comments:

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Well done! The title was misleading but this was a humorous, educational and well done animation. Thanks!
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"Sometime 10.000 years ago we domesticated humans." 😹
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That cat is the perfect spy. Sunk 3 ships, & not only did the people not realize he was the culprit, they heralded him as a national hero!😅Hail unsinkable Sam 😼😹!
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"As the cats learned to tolerate the presence of humans" Sounds pretty accurate😅
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The most amazing part about cats is that humans are literally the only other species that they fully acknowledge and communicate with. Cats speak to us. They look us in the eye. They speak to no other species except for the occasional bird and mouse chatter or meowing at a familiar dog, and hissing at strangers. The friendly chatter and meow, meowing back at us while looking at us, everything that we hear from our cats is directed at us, no one else. Not to the other cats, not to the dog, but only for us, and that’s pretty amazing if you think about it.
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Where's your source of information? Is this really factual ???😼
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I have a very talkative cat.  He often meows for no discernible reason.  If I meow at him, he'll meow back at me and we can have some sort of conversation.  However, he doesn't meow at my other cat or my dog.  He's either meowing at nothing or at me/my bf.  By contrast, my dog barks at us, other dogs, the cats, squirrels, etc.
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Have you ever tried to communicate back to them... in their manner? I listen and observe what sound they make in a situation, and how they respond to that sound... and try to imitate it in the same circumstance. I'm sure my accent and pronunciation is not perfect to their ears, but... we communicate!
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An Egyptian prince, I believe he was Thutmose II, had a cat that he loved dearly. He apparently gave her the name Ta-miut; from what we can decipher of the ancient Egyptian language, "ta" denotes a feminine noun and "miut" is a sort of onomatopoeic word for cat. So he essentially named her Miss Kitty. And when she died, the prince entombed Miss Kitty in her own sarcophagus, complete with a relief carved on the side depicting her seated in front of a table loaded with food offerings.
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I personally hate when people call cats mean, it's just in their nature to be fierce and mighty. I respect how cats don't allow humans to restrain them, that they are not less of a creature than a human is. That’s why I’m never really angry at my cat for trying to bite or scratch me, because they have feelings and moods too, what we can't control.
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Plus, cats speak volumes with their body language. If a cat is "mean" to you, you've definitely ignored what they've been trying to tell you.
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I would like to add that the modern house cat sleeps where it likes, does what it likes and has no expectations placed upon it. In exchange, we feel chosen if they decide to make us another one of their sleeping spots, let us touch their fur and pander to them in any way they demand.
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It's almost incorrect to say that house cats are domesticated.  The best explanation I've ever heard was "they like us, and we like them."
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"Cats are not domesticated. They are wild animals that have consented to live with us." - My Mom 😊
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True. Cats are not domesticated, they are just tamed.
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The weird little details in the animation are bloody brilliant! The Farmer waking up from his nap has a little bit of drool down his chin! 😄Hilarious!
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My favorite thing is how all cats are born feral. Any kitten you will ever meet is initially a hissy, angry baby... and humans have to actively work to make them love us.  It just sets in stone that cat's are with humans by choice. They like us XD. They invented a whole new language/sound just to communicate with us that we find pleasant!
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The truth is that even supposedly wild cats are affable and easy to tame and live with. This is because they are very intelligent and adaptable. There's a big difference between a buffalo or bison and a cow, but the only difference other than size between a house-cat or a lynx or a mountain lion is really socialization from when they are little. When the animal "experts" say they don't make good pets, they're actually lying; the truth is they just don't want you to keep things that are the endangered species list as pets. Rather than saying that house-cats are still wild, it's more like the entire cat family is naturally domesticated and the only difference between any of them is training.
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Actually, cheetahs make pretty good pets, and often were pets of Egyptian royalty. One of the problems that wild animal rescuers and rehabilitators have in Africa is that cheetahs get so used to human company so readily, that by the time an injured cheetah is well enough to be released back into the wild; it can't because it's too tame.
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".....They are wild animals that have consented to live with us." Actually, they have consented to let us live with them. 😺😊

This Cat Is So Smart It's Scary 😨

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https://youtube.com/shorts/VABH5nbChSg?si=0lUdbt_4TuD0NFrM

Frank Zappa

 😻😽😿😺😼😹😾🙀🐱😸😽😻

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https://youtu.be/Jsj-hDW9bS8?si=m10Otz8gxaVQljtD

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Full lesson: https://ed.ted.com/lessons/the-history-of-the-world-according-to-cats

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Why do cats act so weird? - Tony Buffington -by TED-Ed

Is there a disease that makes us love cats? - Jaap de Roode by TED-Ed

In Praise of Cats

Cats are not our whole life, 

but they make our lives whole
“If man could be crossed with the cat, it would
improve man but deteriorate the cat.”
Mark Twain
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https://naturetails.blog/2023/08/03/in-praise-of-cats-cats-are-not-our-whole-life-but-they-make-our-lives-whole/

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Sleep😴2 Little or 2 Much Risk😔Depression

Too Little  & Too Much Sleep

😴 Sleep Raises Depression Risk 😔

Posted: 02/04/2014

The amount of shut-eye you get each night could affect your risk for depression, new research suggests.

Two studies, both published in the journal Sleep, show links between depression and getting too much and too little sleep in adults, as well as a link between depression and too little sleep in adolescents.

While there is no blanket recommendation for the amount of sleep adults should get each night, most adults need seven to nine hours to feel rested, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Meanwhile, teens generally need between 8.5 and 9.25 hours of sleep a night.

The first study, conducted by researchers at the University of Washington, University of Pennsylvania and the University of Texas at Austin, was conducted in 1,788 same-sex adult twin pairs, who were part of the University of Washington Twin Registry. All of the participants reported their typical sleep duration, as well as any symptoms of depression.

Generally, researchers found that people in the study who slept a "normal" amount each night - between seven and 8.9 hours a night - had a 27 percent heritability of depressive symptoms. But people who slept fewer than seven hours a night or nine or more hours a night had an increased heritability of depressive symptoms: 53 percent for the short sleepers and 49 percent for the long sleepers.

"As sleep duration moved away from the extremes and toward the 'normal' range, the effect of the non-shared environment was more strongly associated with depressive symptoms, while genetic factors became less important," the researchers wrote in the study. "These findings show a gene-environment interaction between sleep duration and depressive symptoms."

The researchers noted that while the study did not explain specifically how genetic factors explained the link, "recent findings suggest candidate genes and pathways."

The other study, conducted by researchers from the University of Texas Health Science Center and the Centers for Disease Control in Vietnam, examined sleep duration and depression risk for adolescents. For the study, 4,175 Houston-area 11-to-17-year-olds had their sleep and depression symptoms measured.

Researchers found that sleep deprivation was predictive of depression. Specifically, getting six or fewer hours of sleep a night (including weekends) was associated with increased risk of depression. They did not, however, find that depressive symptoms predicted the sleep deprivation.

"These results, particularly for major depression, suggest that quantity of sleep, following DSM-IV guidelines increases risk for major depression, which in turn increases risk for decreased sleep," the researchers wrote in the study. "This is not surprising, given the phenomenology of both sleep disturbances and major depression." 

Do You Talk In Your Sleep?
By Shelby Freedman Harris, Psy.D.
Posted: 02/02/2014

Sleep talking (also know as "somniloquy") is a sleep disorder that involves unconscious talking when you're asleep. The presentation can vary greatly between people, with some spontaneously talking while others notice it happens when someone talks to them in their sleep. Sleep talking can range from gibberish, nonsensical mumbles and rants, to complicated and totally coherent statements.

Sleep talking can happen to anyone, though it does appear to be somewhat inherited and affect males and children more often than women. The most common triggers are sleep deprivation, alcohol and drug use, fever, increased stress, anxiety and depression. It is also seen as a symptom in the context of other sleep disorders: night terrors, confusional arousals (waking up in a confused state), sleepwalking, sleep apnea and REM behavior disorder.

Sleep talking can happen at any time during the night and during any stage of sleep. In the earlier part of the night, people tend to be more in the deeper stages of sleep (stage 3/4), and their brain is essentially turned off and repairing from the day's events. During this stage, sleep talking tends to sound more like mumbling or gibberish. Sleep becomes lighter as the night progresses, with our brain becoming very active, processing emotions and memories (REM sleep and sleep stages 1 and 2). During these sleep stages, sleep talking tends to be more understandable to a bed partner and can become a narrative. 

 

Though it isn't physically harmful, sleep talking can be extremely embarrassing for people. It can also be a major annoyance to anyone nearby who is trying to sleep, even leading to insomnia in those who share the room. Patients who sleep talk may avoid sleeping around others for concern that it might disrupt someone else's sleep, and sleep talkers often worry about saying something while asleep that might be embarrassing or problematic.

Many people try to decode their sleep talking experiences, but the reality is that the content can either be completely random or vaguely linked to past or present experiences. As a result, trying to decode it may be impossible. Interesting fact: Since sleep talking happens outside of conscious awareness, it isn't even admissible in a court of law.

For most people, sleep talking is typically short-lived and doesn't require any treatment. If it is happening multiple times per week, disrupts a bed partner's sleep, or if you have fears of sleeping around others, talk with a sleep specialist to rule out any other underlying medical or psychiatric disorder that might cause or worsen the problem. If sleep talking starts after the age of 25, it can typically be seen along with other medical or psychiatric issues. In severe cases, sleep talking may be associated with nocturnal seizures.

Proper sleep hygiene (e.g. keeping a regular bed and wake time, avoiding alcohol and tobacco at night, avoiding caffeine from the afternoon onwards), obtaining a full night's sleep each and every night, and minimizing stress and anxiety are all helpful and can reduce sleep talking events. Although it usually doesn't require treatment beyond proper sleep hygiene, more severe cases of sleep talking can be helped by medications and/or psychotherapy.

Bed partners often report that silicone earplugs, a fan or a white noise machine can help reduce noise from the sleep talker. If the sleep talking is especially loud or frequent and disrupts a bed partner's sleep, it might be best to sleep in separate rooms until the sleep talking is under control. Sound sleep at night will lead to less friction between couples and boost everyone's mood.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/02/sleep-talking_n_4617216.html?utm_hp_ref=healthy-living

Rosh Hashanah 🍯Jewish New Year🍎Begins

The Jewish New Year Begins
 September 15 2023 at sundown (1st of Tishrei, 5784)

While Gregorian calendar days begin at midnight, in the Hebrew calendar, days begin at sunset of the previous day. The Jewish New Year begins at nightfall of Friday 15 September this year, as the Hebrew date turns to the 1st of the month of Tishrei. Happy 5784! 

Though Rosh Hashanah literally means "head of the year," the holiday actually takes place on the first two days of the Hebrew month of Tishrei, which is the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar. This is because Rosh Hashanah, one of four new years in the Jewish year, is considered the new year of people, animals and legal contracts. In the Jewish oral tradition, Rosh Hashanah marks the completion of the creation of the world.

Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the Jewish High Holy Days, or Yamim Noraim (the "Days of Awe"), and is followed 10 days later by Yom Kippur, the "day of atonement." The Mishnah refers to Rosh Hashanah as the "day of judgment," and it is believed that God opens the Book of Life on this day and begins to decide who shall live and who shall die. The days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are viewed as an opportunity for Jews to repent (teshuvah, in Hebrew) and ensure a good fate.

Jews traditionally gather in synagogues on Rosh Hashanah for extended services that follow the liturgy of a special prayerbook, called a mahzor, that is used during the Days of Awe. At specific times throughout the service, a shofar, or ram's horn, is blown. The mitzvah (commandment) to hear the shofar, a literal and spiritual wake-up call, is special to this time of year.

The new year is the only Jewish holiday that is observed for two days by all Jews (other holidays are observed for just one day within the Land of Israel) as it is also the only major holiday that falls on a new moon. 

A common greeting on Rosh Hashanah is shana tovah u'metukah, Hebrew for "a good and sweet new year." 

Many traditional Rosh Hashanah foods - apples and honey, raisin challah, honey cake and pomegranate - are eaten, in part, for this reason. 

Crostini Di Fegatini

Get the Crostini di Fegatini recipe
 Pretty close to your usual chopped liver, just gussied up a bit.
Roasted Radish Flatbread With Ricotta And Honey 
Get the Roasted Radish Flatbread with Ricotta and Honey recipe from Bev Cooks

Joan Nathan's Chosen Matzo Ball Soup

Get  Joan Nathan's Chosen Matzo Ball Soup recipe from Food52

Rosh Hashanah Recipes

http://allrecipes.com/recipes/holidays-and-events/rosh-hashanah
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List of Dates
Rosh Hashana begins on:

• Fri, 15 September 2023 at sundown (1st of Tishrei, 5784)
• Wed, 02 October 2024 at sundown (1st of Tishrei, 5785)
• Mon, 22 September 2025 at sundown (1st of Tishrei, 5786)
• Fri, 11 September 2026 at sundown (1st of Tishrei, 5787)
• Fri, 01 October 2027 at sundown (1st of Tishrei, 5788)

Wilbur 🐈 the Wackjob Cat

😺 Wilbur the Wackjob Cat 😽

David Pogue *  Jun 17, 2023

A retrospective about the Pogues' hilarious goofball cat.
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https://youtu.be/U9B_DxTH4uU?si=h6iLLaDx4S2KH7f8

David Welch Pogue is an American technology and science writer and TV presenter, and correspondent for CBS News Sunday Morning. He has hosted 18 Nova specials on PBS, including Nova ScienceNow, the Making Stuff series in 2011 and 2013, and Hunting the Elements in 2012

This is a video about our whack job Cat:  Wilbur

He was one weird cat and hilarious.
Wilbur was the runt of his litter his brother Otis died a few years ago. They were polydactyl cats meaning six toes on each foot.
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Wilbur the Wackjob Cat
When I say Wilbur was a nut job, I mean it he had the weirdest habits.

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He did what he wanted no matter how bizarre.
Never explained. Like he had this weird thing about shower stalls. He just goes in there and sit wet or dry didn't matter. He also had this compulsion to lie on top of any scrap of fabric you could find. It didn't matter if that actually made things softer.
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Wilbur Loves Pianos.
And he loved pianos. Whenever anyone played the piano - Oh man he just come running over to sit next to you.
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Clown Noses.
At one point we had a bunch of red foam clown noses.  Wilbur made it his mission to find them and bring them to us as an offering.  One time a cameraman left a fuzzy Microphone cover at our house it became Wilbur's new offering. Multiple times a day he'd bring it to us and drop it at our feet thank you will.
The Internet says he was trying to teach us how to hunt... but we never did find out what that weird yowling was about.
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Wilbur the Parrot.
If Wilbur weren’t a Cat, he probably would have been a parrot.
He loved riding on our shoulders or maybe he'd have been a person. I think he secretly wanted to be everything he saw us doing he wanted to do.  I mean he drank from people water glasses or why even bother with the glass. Obviously that water tasted much better than the same water we put into his bowl.
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Wilbur Sleep
Wilbur spent a lot of time sleeping in the weirdest positions. Sometimes he got himself knotted up. I mean did these positions look comfortable?

His favorite way to Sleep though was on our Legs.

Wow did he Love legs.

Legs were his Hammock, his Stretcher. His Happy Place.

If cats are famous for being aloof 😽Wilbur never got the memo.
If it were up to him he'd be in constant body contact with us 24 7.

He just wanted to hold your Hand all the Time. 

You weren't giving him the attention he needed when he needed it
he'd find a way to demand it...  especially at night 💤

Would not relent until you finally gave him a scratch.

Wilbur & the Computer.

But during the day his favorite thing of all was inserting himself between us and our computer screens. 

It was maddening.

 We had to find awkward new positions to use our laptops
Because you know...😾 Couldn’t ask Wilbur to move.

It was his world…  We just lived in it.
Wilbur's tweeting

Wilbur on Camera
You couldn't do a zoom call without Wilbur on camera.
Couldn’t shoot a TV story without him either -- he actually got kind of famous for his cameos.

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Wilbur got really old and he and he had a couple of medical problems but he didn't seem to notice.
Does this look like a cat who's about to turn 23?
The vet was amazed. 

 

Wilbur did everything on his terms, 

on his timeline and without explanation
and that includes Leaving us.

One Night in late spring he Slipped Away to a dark protected place and Closed his Eyes.

Nobody could miss a Cat more than we miss our fuzzy little screwball

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And nobody could remember a Cat more fondly than We'll Remember Him.