The Cat Genome Project: What Scientists Have Actually Learned
It started with one Abyssinian named Cinnamon, and her sequenced DNA has quietly reshaped what we know about cat health and history.
How Cats Conquered the World by Ship
Cats spread across the globe not by walking, but by riding along on trading ships as rat control for thousands of years.
How Cat Food Went From Scraps to a Billion Dollar Industry
Cat food went from table scraps to a taurine crisis to a tens of billions of dollar global industry in less than a century.
How Cat Adoption Actually Replaced Buying a Cat in America
Getting a cat in America used to mean a free kitten from a neighbor, now shelter adoption is the normalized default.
Aortic Thromboembolism (Saddle Thrombus): Why Sudden Hind Leg Paralysis in Cats Is a Cardiac Emergency
A cat that suddenly can't use its back legs is almost always dealing with a blood clot, not a leg injury, and it traces straight back to the heart.
Radial Nerve Paralysis in Cats: Why a Fall or Accident Can Leave a Front Leg Dragging
A dragging or knuckling front leg after a fall often isn't a broken bone. It's nerve damage, and the severity of that damage decides the whole outlook.
Patellar Luxation in Cats: The "Dog" Knee Problem That Happens in Cats Too
Cats are so good at hiding a slipping kneecap that many cases are only found by accident, even though it's graded on the same scale used in dogs.
Hypokalemic Polymyopathy in Burmese Cats: The Genetic Leg Weakness Specific to One Breed
Episodes of sudden leg weakness and a drooping head in a young Burmese cat trace back to a single identified gene, and it responds well to treatment.
Nutritional Secondary Hyperparathyroidism: How an All-Meat Diet Can Bend a Kitten's Legs
Muscle meat alone is badly short on calcium, and a kitten's fast-growing skeleton pays the price first, sometimes with fractures from a routine jump.
Hypervitaminosis A in Cats: How Too Much Liver Can Fuse Joints and Cause Lameness
Liver is a fine occasional treat, but fed heavily for months or years it triggers a slow bone disease that can permanently fuse a cat's neck and joints.
Angular Limb Deformity in Kittens: How a Fall Can Bend a Growing Leg
A kitten fall that looks minor at the time can damage a growth plate, and the resulting bowed leg often doesn't show up until weeks later.
Swimmer Syndrome in Kittens: Why Some Kittens' Legs Splay Out Instead of Under Them
A flat, frog-like posture in a very young kitten looks alarming, but caught early it's one of the more treatable developmental problems out there.