February 03, 2020

3: Mysterious Cats

35 minutes

Why do cats like boxes? Why do they wiggle their butts before they pounce and does cat nip really make cats high? All these questions (and a whole lot more) are answered by our intrepid science reporters, Jeanna and Mindy.

Below you can find links to further reading on the topics discussed in this episode.

Mystery #1: Why Do Cats Like Boxes?

A 2014 study in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science with shelter cats with and without hiding boxes to see if boxes could reduce stress

When cats are just lying around not expending energy, their ideal temperature is 86 to 100 degrees F (30 to 38 degrees C), according to a study published in 2016 in the Scientific World Journal

Mystery #2: Why Do Cats Wiggle Their Butts Before They Pounce?

Guest editor report with Laura Gegel: Inside Ancient Egyptian Cat Mummy, Archaeologists Find the Remains of 3 Cats

Mystery #3: Does Catnip Really Make Cats 'High'?

Its scientific name is Nepeta cataria. And it belongs to the mint family Lamiaceae

Most cats — or maybe even all — are affected by catnip to some degree

Don’t forget to subscribe! You can find more answers to life’s little mysteries at the Live Science website and you can follow us on Twitter and Facebook too. Tell us what your life’s little mysteries are at forums.livescience.com.

Music by Chad Crouch - Algorithms

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

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