A purr-fect quiz

How well do you know your cat facts? Take this quiz to find out.

By Felice Prager

from the January 17, 2007 edition

Try your hand at this little quiz about cats. Each statement is either true or false.

1. Even though humans are about 15 times larger than the average cat, an adult human skeleton has only 206 bones, but house cats have about 230 bones.

2. The domestic cat is the only species able to hold its tail vertically while walking. Wild cats hold their tails horizontally or tucked between their legs while walking.

3. After cats eat, they immediately wash themselves. This is because their instinct tells them to remove the food scent, so predators will not smell the food and come after them.

4. A cat does not have the ability to taste sweet things.

5. Cheetahs cannot retract their claws.

6. A cat has 32 muscles in each ear.

7. A cat's jaw can move sideways. (Can you move yours sideways?)

8. Cats can make more than 100 vocal sounds. Dogs make only about 10.

9. Cats purr at 26 cycles per second, which is roughly the same frequency as an idling diesel engine.

10. If a cat is wagging its tail, it often means the cat is in the middle of making a decision about something.

Answers:

All of the statements above are true, except No. 7. Cats cannot move their jaws sideways.