It’s said that these beautiful feline hair filaments are a sign of good luck if you find one. “Made it by a whisker.” Whiskers are extremely sensitive for cats; like human fingertips, they let cats perceive the world by transmitting environmental information to cats’ sensory cells. This powerful detection system offers protection from potential threats.
“Cats touch the world with their whiskers”
Science says that each individual whisker can be traced back to a specific spot in the cat brain; they occupy a valuable neurological real state in the feline body.
Through receptors, there is communication with the somatosensory cortex of the cat brain, sending information about the ambient, temperature, balance, and space size.
They also can detect movements and airflow, how strong, the direction, and how quickly the air around is moving or even detect the immediate particles to protect the eyes.
There are twelve whiskers on each side of a cat’s nose, and they can be present on the upper lip, cheeks, over the eyes, chin, inner wrist, or back of the legs, but most cats have their whiskers arranged in four rows on each cheek.
They are thicker than regular hair, and roots are three times deeper; in general, the exact pattern and location of whiskers variate depending on the breed. Maine Coons tend to have longer whiskers.
In kittens, whiskers are shorter but grow up over time, but the size is related to the width of the cat’s body. They can know whether or not their fluffy bodies can fit through narrow spaces, so the chubbier a cat, the wider its whiskers.
Also, cats shed their whiskers (they come back again). Have you ever found one? I have plenty and collect them.
When a cat is resting, the whiskers take a break, but when a cat is active and curious, they are elevated. If he feels threatened, he pulls the whiskers out, flairs, and directs them forward the threat.
Science says that each individual whisker can be traced back to a specific spot in the cat brain; they occupy a valuable neurological real state in the feline body. Through receptors, there is communication with the somatosensory cortex of the cat brain, sending information about the ambient, temperature, balance, and space size.
They also can detect movements and airflow, how strong, the direction, and how quickly the air around is moving or even detect the immediate particles to protect the eyes. There are twelve whiskers on each side of a cat’s nose, and they can be present on the upper lip, cheeks, over the eyes, chin, inner wrist, or back of the legs, but most cats have their whiskers arranged in four rows on each cheek.
Cat’s Whiskers Rules
- Always touch them gently
- Don’t push/pull out them (it’s painful!!)
- Never, but never cut them
- Excessive whisker loss or breakage can be due to stress, high fever, an endocrine disorder, or ringworm; please always check with your veterinary.
Whisker Stress/Fatigue
This new concept does not have much research yet, but several reported cases exist. If you constantly touch a highly sensitive body spot, eventually, this part will suffer from fatigue and stress. This happens when a cat puts his face to eat in a bowl where the border touches its whiskers.
How to tell if my cat may be suffering from Whisker stress? Well, if you see your kitty pacing in from of the food or water bows, acting hungry but not eating, or pawing food out of the bowl to eat on the floor, this could be a sign of it.
After ruling out any health issues, you can always try to change your kitty’s bowls for one wider, shallow or flat. There are several brands you can check like:
Cat Guru
Another amazing brand that I have bought in the past. My cats love these bowls with colors in melamine but I will probably will get again the ones in stainless steel. You can check this product here.
Our Pets DuraPet
We have been using these ones for a while and they are really great. There is no food licking over the edge, very easy to clean and they are big enough for even cats with long whiskers. You can buy the on Amazon here.
If you find a whisker on the floor, it could be an omen of good fortune!
