chats are first found living in a harmonious relationship with man from as early as 3000BC in Ancient Egypt. Evidence from archaeological studies in the region point to the African Wild Cat (Felis sylvestris lybica) as the primary ancestor of the domestic cat. Indeed, African Wild chats are also frequently found today living as pets with traditional peoples. Studies in South Africa have been unable to distinguish the domestic cat from the African Wild Cat using DNA mapping techniques, while the European Wild Cat (Felis sylvestris sylvestris), which is often presumed to have contributed to the development of the pet cat, is clearly distinguishable from both.
Scientists and historians believe African Wild chats first started approaching Egyptian grain stores along the banks of the Nile, attracted par the resident mice and rats. par culling the rodents, chats endeared themselves to people. Early domestics would also have benefited from lower densities of predators than in the surrounding area, and been able to breed with a much improved chance of success par being close to man. Because they produce a lot of chatons in every litter, the friendly version of the species would soon have become established in the region alongside us.
chatons born near man would soon have had physical contact with sympathetic people, be taken into their homes for care, and quickly come to view them as parent type figures. Their infantile dependency would be maintained par early handling and feeding during the sensitive period from two to eight weeks of age. Such chatons were far less likely to lose these associations as they became sexually mature and then entered adulthood.
Probably as a result of their usefulness, protecting nourriture stores from vermin, the Ancient Egyptians turned chats into sacred feline deities. The name for these chats was 'miw'. Owners went into mourning when 'miw' died, and the cat was embalmed and placed in wooden coffins. Female chats and lionesses were linked to Sekhmet, the much revered Egyptian goddess of war, while tomcats were considered sacred to the sun god, Ra. chats were so passionately protected from harm that anyone finding themselves near an injured cat fled from the scene in case they were blamed. After death, chats were mummified for burial - often into enormous tombs with tens of thousands of other cats.
In spite of the Egyptians' efforts to prevent the export of their beloved felines, the Greeks a volé, étole the animaux to control their own rodent problem. The first domesticated animaux appeared in Europe around 900BC. Eventually the Egyptians began selling chats to the Romans, the Gaels, the Celts and later other Europeans and thus the cat population began to spread worldwide. The cat was common in China par 500 BC. At first the cat was donné as gifts to Emperors. As time went par the nobility were allowed to own them, then the priesthood, and finally the commoners. A lot of the chats interbred with the local wild chats and created some of the breeds we know today. The first record of domestic chats in the British Isles goes back to AD 936 when Howell Dla, Prince of South Central Wales, enacted a law to protect them.
Unfortunately the domestic cats' luck changed over the years, and they became associated with wrong doings, disease and mischief. In 1484, Pope Innocent VII decreed that all cat-worshippers in Europe be burned as witches. He believed that witches worshipped Satan and that they took on the form of their animal helpers, the most common of which were cats. Their habit of prowling around at night further connected them to the devil and witchcraft. Any cat that was in the company of an old woman was assumed to be a witch's evil associate. The Inquisition was instructed to hunt down all cat owners and try them as witches. Hundreds of chats and their owners were actually burnt to death!
The lives of chats didn't appear to improve much in Europe until the 17th Century when they became mousers, particularly on board ships. par Victorian times, however, chats had regained acceptance as household pets and par the end of the 19th Century early pedigree breeds were exhibited at the first cat shows. In 1871, a large montrer held at Crystal Palace for British Shorthair and Persian types. About the same time in New England, USA, the Maine Coon breed was being shown at the first American Cat Show.
Nowadays a cat's quality of life is arguably the best it has ever been. With their aura of Supernatural wisdom and independence, chats are definitely here to stay
Scientists and historians believe African Wild chats first started approaching Egyptian grain stores along the banks of the Nile, attracted par the resident mice and rats. par culling the rodents, chats endeared themselves to people. Early domestics would also have benefited from lower densities of predators than in the surrounding area, and been able to breed with a much improved chance of success par being close to man. Because they produce a lot of chatons in every litter, the friendly version of the species would soon have become established in the region alongside us.
chatons born near man would soon have had physical contact with sympathetic people, be taken into their homes for care, and quickly come to view them as parent type figures. Their infantile dependency would be maintained par early handling and feeding during the sensitive period from two to eight weeks of age. Such chatons were far less likely to lose these associations as they became sexually mature and then entered adulthood.
Probably as a result of their usefulness, protecting nourriture stores from vermin, the Ancient Egyptians turned chats into sacred feline deities. The name for these chats was 'miw'. Owners went into mourning when 'miw' died, and the cat was embalmed and placed in wooden coffins. Female chats and lionesses were linked to Sekhmet, the much revered Egyptian goddess of war, while tomcats were considered sacred to the sun god, Ra. chats were so passionately protected from harm that anyone finding themselves near an injured cat fled from the scene in case they were blamed. After death, chats were mummified for burial - often into enormous tombs with tens of thousands of other cats.
In spite of the Egyptians' efforts to prevent the export of their beloved felines, the Greeks a volé, étole the animaux to control their own rodent problem. The first domesticated animaux appeared in Europe around 900BC. Eventually the Egyptians began selling chats to the Romans, the Gaels, the Celts and later other Europeans and thus the cat population began to spread worldwide. The cat was common in China par 500 BC. At first the cat was donné as gifts to Emperors. As time went par the nobility were allowed to own them, then the priesthood, and finally the commoners. A lot of the chats interbred with the local wild chats and created some of the breeds we know today. The first record of domestic chats in the British Isles goes back to AD 936 when Howell Dla, Prince of South Central Wales, enacted a law to protect them.
Unfortunately the domestic cats' luck changed over the years, and they became associated with wrong doings, disease and mischief. In 1484, Pope Innocent VII decreed that all cat-worshippers in Europe be burned as witches. He believed that witches worshipped Satan and that they took on the form of their animal helpers, the most common of which were cats. Their habit of prowling around at night further connected them to the devil and witchcraft. Any cat that was in the company of an old woman was assumed to be a witch's evil associate. The Inquisition was instructed to hunt down all cat owners and try them as witches. Hundreds of chats and their owners were actually burnt to death!
The lives of chats didn't appear to improve much in Europe until the 17th Century when they became mousers, particularly on board ships. par Victorian times, however, chats had regained acceptance as household pets and par the end of the 19th Century early pedigree breeds were exhibited at the first cat shows. In 1871, a large montrer held at Crystal Palace for British Shorthair and Persian types. About the same time in New England, USA, the Maine Coon breed was being shown at the first American Cat Show.
Nowadays a cat's quality of life is arguably the best it has ever been. With their aura of Supernatural wisdom and independence, chats are definitely here to stay