What is the origin of domestic cats?

People are confused about the origin of domestic cats. The researchers also argue about where and when cats were domesticated. Some of them also say that the felines domesticated themselves. Take a look at the different theories about it.

The first domesticated cats

About 40 centuries ago, the Egyptians were believed to have domesticated cats. This belief is geographically sound as it is based on DNA evidence; Today’s domestic cats have the same ancestors as the African wild cats. However, in 2004, when a 9,500-year-old Neolithic tomb was excavated in Cyprus, the remains of a cat next to a human hint that people cared for cats even before the age of 4,000.

On the other hand, some studies show that the domestication of cats could have started 12,000 years ago during the boom of the agricultural industry in the Fertile Crescent (crescent-shaped fertile land surrounding Egypt and Syria) of the Middle East.

It is thought that more farming brings more vermin which spawns more cats. This is a sensible theory considering the fact that even today’s feral cats continue to herd together to go live in places with ample food supply, no matter if it’s a restaurant with plenty of leftovers or a farm where they might hunt vermin.

Greek and Phoenician traders are believed to have brought domestic cats to Europe around 3,000 years ago. The Romans have great respect for cats when it comes to pest control, which is why the Roman legions carry them whenever they travel to Gaul (modern France) as well as Britain.

Cats were brought to Britain

When the Romans left Britain around 1,600 years ago, most of their cats were left behind. About 1,000 years ago, when the Vikings invaded Britain, they took with them several house cats left behind by the Romans when they returned to Norway.

witchcraft

Something unfortunate happened to cats about 700 years ago in Britain. During this middle age, news has become widespread that cats were suddenly suspected of being involved in witchcraft. That is why a cat massacre was carried out in Europe and hundreds of thousands of cats were euthanized. Most people hypothesized that this killing of cats has led to the increase in the rat population in Europe, which in turn caused the increased spread of bubonic plague between 1346 and 1353.

Cats were introduced to the new world

In the 16th century, cats not only regained their popularity, they made another big leap. During the 17th and 18th centuries, New World explorers and traders left Britain and Spain to introduce domestic cats to the United States.

the current cat

Cats have become very popular and there are now around 8.5 million pet cats in the UK. They are considered the most popular pet in the whole world.

Many households have one dog, but many cat owners show their love by having multi-cat households. Today, there are more than 100 breeds of domestic cats, and people continue to develop new breeds.