If you spend enough time with your cat, you will ultimately begin to believe there is no way he or she doesn't own the intellectual upper hand. How else, can they manage to lounge all day like a rich "aristocat", pampered with all sorts of cat treats, grooming services, and a scented toilet?
Dating back to even the ancient Egyptians, cats and humans have shared a long and happy history of cohabitation. And though we may never know if past human generations got a kick out of watching their felines bat around balled toys, we do know however, that cats have made superb and well-loved pets for over the past millennium.
When considering Scientific America's article, the majority of domesticated and farm animals have a rich history of many uses. For example; cows gave us milk, sheep gave us wool, horses provided human and supply transport, dogs were great hunting companions, but cat domestication is much less obvious. Most likely and common sense should tell us, our feline friends were adopted to primarily control the rodent populations around the home and work place.
The real question is when did they actually become domesticated? There are many opinions out there, but one I would like to point out, is The Smithsonian Magazine's web article that gives evidence to the discovery of an ancient grace site on the Mediterranean isle of Cyprus. In this circumstance, the article states, "a cat had been deliberately buried with a human." To add to this, the source then points to a more recent genetic link relating our modern housecat to a Middle Eastern ancestor that once lived in what is believed to be where domestication began, thousands of years ago.
What is intriguing here is the data suggests that cat domestication could reach back to as old as 12,000 years ago. This amazing finding beats the Egyptians, well-know cat lovers (and worshippers), by over 8,000 years! This informative Smithsonian article continues and speaks about the reverence and deity worship by the Romans.
During the Middle Ages, when strife and darkness held a firm grasp on humanity, cats were actually scorned and killed off instead of loved and pampered. Instead of being worshipped or pampered, cats were believed to be inherently evil and in league with witches and dark magic. This, can lead one to think at least, it explains the crippling spread of the bubonic plague via unimpeded rat populations.
Another interesting theory worth noting is both Scientific America and The Smithsonian point out that cats may have just effective opportunists. Rather, cats saw that mice and rats tended to accumulate where there were people, recognized an opportunity, and used it to their advantage. Ever since then, our cats have been sitting pretty on a sweet deal. or for more on The Smithsonian article on A Brief History of House Cats
For more information on the Scietific American article follow this link to their great article on The Evolution of House Cats or for more on The Smithsonian article travel over to A Brief History of House Cats.
