Cats Over Kinking Their Spines

A cat's spine can rotate more than the spines of most other animals, and their vertebrae have a special, flexible, elastic cushioning on the disks, which gives it even more flexibility. A flexible spine also contributes to the speed and grace of cats.

Cats are known for their acrobatic skills when it comes to climbing, chasing stealthily after prey, and most importantly jumping down from tall heights and landing back on their feet. While their whole body is designed to give them amazing balancing abilities, their tail also plays a crucial role in it.

Cats arch their backs for three main reasons. Have you ever seen a picture of a cat with an arched back or seen your cat do it and wondered why? Cats have incredibly flexible spines (in fact, that's why, if given enough time, they can right themselves when falling and land on their feet).

Even for the same cat, that dynamic may change over time, she explains. If were inclined to try and fit our relationships with our cats into a parent-child model, it might be due to our hormones, Dr. Turano says. Oxytocin is a hormone that is linked to milk production and nursing.

Felines employ various tactics to maintain dominance over other cats, and may turn to violence as a last resort. Social Behavior. Cats assert themselves by threatening other cats with their posture and attitude.

Young children significantly prefer dogs over cats. And in the U.S., 60.2 million households have a dog, while about 47.1 million have cats.

Having Their Butt Scratched. Have you ever had a cat walk up to you, turn around, and present their tail end? The area just above the tail that we would call the butt is an area that a cat cannot use its paws to scratch, and sometimes using your tongue to scratch does not do the trick.