🧬 The Felid Wiki — 3,000 research summaries

How cats drink became a notable physics question, and this overview reviews the mechanics of feline lapping and its place in water balance. Research showed that cats lap by darting the tongue tip onto…

Cats convey much of their emotional state through body posture, ear position and tail movements, and this overview surveys how these visual signals are described and interpreted. It covers the spectru…

A cat's ears reveal where its attention lies, swiveling toward sounds of interest even when the head and eyes are still. This overview surveys how ear orientation serves as a readout of auditory atten…

Beyond their auditory role, the highly mobile feline ears are an important channel of visual communication. This overview surveys how ear position signals emotional state, with upright forward ears in…

How much and how kittens are handled early in life affects their friendliness toward people, and this overview surveys the experimental evidence. It examines studies manipulating the amount of human h…

Touch is one of the earliest functional senses in kittens, and the whisker system is important from the beginning of life. This overview surveys early tactile and whisker development in kittens, which…

Fitting cats with a bell is a common, low-cost attempt to warn prey and reduce hunting success, and this overview surveys the evidence for its effectiveness. It examines studies comparing prey capture…

FeLV vaccines are non-core products recommended for cats at risk of exposure, especially kittens and outdoor cats, and their introduction contributed to declining FeLV prevalence. Studies have examine…

FIP classically presents in two overlapping forms. The effusive (wet) form features protein-rich fluid accumulation in the abdomen or chest from vasculitis and leaky vessels, while the non-effusive (d…

Electroretinography and single-cell recording have been used to probe how the cat retina responds to different wavelengths, providing physiological evidence about color processing. This overview surve…

Elimination behaviour, including digging, covering, and substrate choice, has both innate and learned components and is a frequent source of household problems when disrupted. This overview surveys re…

Freezing embryos preserves them for future transfer, allowing the genetics of valuable matings to be stored and used across time and space. This overview surveys methods for cryopreserving felid embry…

The African wildcat, closely related to the domestic cat, has been a key species for demonstrating embryo transfer and related technologies in a wild felid. This overview surveys work in which African…

Embryo transfer, in which embryos are moved to a recipient female to establish pregnancy, was developed in the domestic cat as a foundation for felid conservation applications. This overview surveys h…

Whether cats catch or respond to the emotions of others is an active research question. This overview surveys studies examining whether cats are affected by their owners' emotional states, respond to…

Beyond discriminating emotional expressions, cats may absorb or respond to their owners' emotional states, a phenomenon related to emotional contagion. This overview surveys research probing whether c…

The domestic cat genome carries endogenous retroviral sequences related to FeLV, remnants of ancient germline infections that are inherited rather than transmitted. These endogenous elements can recom…

Feline genomes carry endogenous retroviruses, the genomic remnants of ancient viral infections, and the related infectious feline leukemia virus, which together offer insights into host-virus coevolut…

The apparent emergence and rise of feline hyperthyroidism since around 1980 has prompted investigation of environmental risk factors, including flame-retardant chemicals such as polybrominated dipheny…

Cats are sensitive to environmental change, and chronic stress manifests in altered behaviour, from hiding and reduced activity to elimination problems and stress-related illness. This overview survey…

Epidemiologic studies describe feline hyperthyroidism as a disease of middle-aged and older cats whose recognized prevalence increased markedly through the late twentieth century, making it among the…

Beyond DNA sequence, epigenetic marks and regulatory elements control when and where feline genes are expressed, contributing to traits and potentially to age estimation. This overview surveys emergin…

The interval between successive estrous periods varies considerably among cat species and depends on whether ovulation has occurred. This overview surveys data on follicular phase duration, interestro…

Female cats in estrus display a recognizable suite of behaviors, including increased vocalization, rolling, treading, lordosis posture, and heightened receptivity to males. This overview describes the…

The management of free-roaming cats raises ethical questions about the welfare of cats, wildlife and the values at stake, and this overview surveys the normative debate surrounding trap-neuter-return.…

Synthetic analogues of feline facial pheromones are marketed to reduce stress, marking and conflict, and this overview surveys the evidence for their effectiveness. It examines controlled studies and…

Kittens are born with their eyes closed and acquire functional vision gradually over the first weeks of life. This overview surveys the timeline of feline visual development, beginning with the eyes o…

Cats have scent glands on the face, including around the cheeks, chin, and lips, that deposit pheromones when the cat rubs its head against objects, people, or other cats. This overview surveys these…

Cats are notoriously stoic, but research has shown that subtle facial changes carry information about pain and emotional state. This overview surveys the development of feline grimace scales that scor…

Cats have a blood group system with important clinical consequences, and this overview surveys feline blood types and their genetic and practical dimensions. It covers the main AB system types A, B an…