It seems like one of the typical features of the cat, the whiskers. It just belongs and doesn’t seem special, but nothing could be further from the truth. The cat’s whiskers mean more than humans often realize. The whiskers are extremely sensitive and very useful for the animal. How does that work with the cat’s whiskers?
Whiskers
In a general sense, whiskers, which we also call whiskers, occur in animals that either cannot see well or are mainly active at night (like the cat naturally). The whiskers serve to find the way in search of food, for example. The whiskers take over a kind of task from the senses, when there is a reason that they cannot be used properly.
One animal uses it in a different way than another, because this is how the house mouse can detect movements in the air with the whiskers. Prey animals use them to find the hunter and hunters, such as the cat, can find the prey with them.
The cat and her whiskers
Although the cat can see well, the whiskers are also important to the cat. They are one of the most important sensors for the animal. The sense of touch ensures that everything in the immediate vicinity is perceived ?? ?? and if applicable, it can also act as a warning. This allows the cat to walk effortlessly through a narrow dark corridor without touching anything. The cat measures the distance to the wall or other obstacles, as it were.
The cat can also use the whiskers to estimate the prey in totality and find the place to place that all-important deadly bite.
Location and application
The whiskers are in principle around the nose and are also limited on other parts of the body. They are thicker than other hairs and at the end of the hair is a hair follicle with blood, we call this blood sinus. The whiskers are directly linked to the brain because they are important and so the brain must be able to process the impulses from the whiskers directly. It is in the movement of the hair that makes the blood move. The movement is even enhanced by it. The nerves at the ends, we also call them receptor cells, are now “alarmed”.
It is important never to cut whiskers. However, once you find a whisker, that’s okay. A new whisker will grow on its own.
The whiskers or whiskers are mostly above the lip. They also occur, to a lesser extent, in the following places:
- on the chin
- above the eyelids
- at the back of the front legs
Especially above the lip, the whiskers are very prominent on the head of the cat. Nevertheless, the cat can also conveniently lay them back during a fight, because they must not be damaged. But also during dinner, because then they do not get dirty.
What do whiskers say?
If you look closely at the cat, you can tell how the cat is feeling from the position of the whiskers. The whiskers are brought forward during a greeting, as well as when she is playing. However, if the cat is scared, vulnerable or shy, the whiskers will contract and lie flat against the cheeks.
If the hair is perpendicular to the cat’s head, she is relaxed and content. Just notice if she is lying quietly on your lap or has found a pillow in which she can knead well ?? with the front legs. They can also do the latter when they are in pain, they reassure themselves with this. But then you see the whiskers clearly different.
Young cat with whiskers
A kitten is born deaf and blind, but the whiskers work from the very first moment after birth. A kitten will soon try to crawl and walk around the nest. After all, a kitten seeks not only a mother for drinking, warmth and safety, but also directly ?? the world ?? on. At least, a kitten will try and for that reason there are sometimes cat mothers who bite off parts of their kittens’ whiskers.
In this way the freedom of movement of the young kittens is temporarily limited and the mother cat does not have to continuously look for her kittens. This is good for the mood of the mother cat and safer for the kittens.
Finally
The cat’s whiskers say more than we often realize. It can say something about her state of mind, but she also navigates with it. Basically, the cat uses that apparently “tricky” one. hard hairs almost continuously and that makes them very important for the animal.