Myth busting Monday: Do cats always land on their feet? NO!
- FOFF Founder B. Douglas
- Nov 9, 2021
- 4 min read
Last week: Cats & Mik
🐾Do They ALWAYS land on their feet?
For centuries we've all been told that these furry friends of ours are known to ALWAYS land on their feet. Turns out that's a big ole myth. Although cats are indeed some of the most agile, flexible and coordinated mammals on earth, they still can fall, trip or get hurt just like the rest of us. Even though much less common or likely of course.
A few different variants play a role in the outcome of if a cat will or won't land gracefully. The height from which they're falling, the specific cats physical build, genetic makeup or breed and even medical conditions. We've all seen a cats amazing ability to be tossed, or jump incredible distances and heights without missing a beat. Seemingly always sticking their landing like an Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics. But less frequently known, aside from cat owning enthusiast, there are clumsy or disoriented cats too.
My cats personally, are like average cats in nature with their reach, speed & agility as they leap from the couch to the top of a book shelf. i've watched them jump from my nightstand to dresser, then to my bed as if they're playing a game of "the floor is lava". The majority of the time, they land flawlessly. BUT, then there's a small fraction of leaps and bounds where they aren't so elegantly maneuvering around. I've witnessed them run into door frames and walls, come a centimeter from the landing and smack the floor. Surprisingly, seen my most coordinated cat take a scary roll down my stairs. Point being, the perfect landing isn't a guarantee at all times.
🐾Why are they so agile & vertically gifted? 🔹 The felines have a built in system that other mammals don't have called the "righting reflex". This reflex allows extreme precision and orientation making them capable of NEARLY* always landing on their paws. They develop the reflex at around a month old, younger kittens do not have it and should never be in position to fall, assuming they'll land safely.
🔹The righting reflex is able to be present in cats because of an extremely flexible back bone and having no collar bone (or clavicle) at all. Most believe their tails play a contribution to balance but in the case of safe landings it doesn't. Cats turn or twist their bodies or back & legs to balance while falling. The tail has no specific duty here. If you have ever witnessed a cat with no tail falling, you've seen they withhold this ability as well.
🔹During any fall, by any person, animal or thing a common factor is the terminal velocity. Cats are light, most have thick fur and are generally small In size so they have less terminal velocity. All of these attributes assist in this ability to elegantly land most falls.
📍WIKIPEDIA EXPLAINED TERMINAL VELOCITY IN CATS:
In addition to the righting reflex, cats have other features that reduce damage from a fall. Their small size, light bone structure, and thick fur decrease their terminal velocity. While falling, a cat spreads out its body to increase drag.[6] An average-sized cat with its limbs extended achieves a terminal velocity of about 60 mph (97 km/h), while an average-sized man reaches a terminal velocity of about 120 mph (190 km/h).[7] A 2003 study of feline high-rise syndrome found that cats 'orient [their] limbs horizontally after achieving maximum velocity so that the impact is more evenly distributed throughout the body'.[8]: 311📍
Photo: Shutterstock, edited by me
🐾 When might they not land so purrfectly?
🔹 Aside from that occasional, rather rare incident when they come short on a leap or hit a wall while distracted playing. There are times when your kitty can't safely land paws down. Like as mentioned before, under 1 month of age. As well as falling from too high of an altitude. Sure you see them and know they can well fall from 20 , 50 even 100 feet easy. Actually cats can fall from a staggering 200 feet or roughly 20 stories and walk away uninjured. But that's not the case when the height dramatically raises. They are living mammals, no super hero like powers, they too have limits. When reaching higher areas, a cat has been known to fall over 30 stories and survive (not uninjured). These heights haven't been thoroughly researched, for obvious reasons to the cats safety. Injured or not , to live through a 300 ft drop is definitely impressive. But they DO have limits, just unusually extreme limits like no other animals.
🔹📣 Knowing this it is NOT OKAY to test on your cat . By any means. Just because they have the ability to fall from such heights does not mean they should or that your cat will walk away safely necessarily. Cats can jump from the ground 8-10 feet into the air. The safety area for a fall is the same to guarantee no injury. Although they usually can fall from extreme heights, you may also end up with an injured Feline, having high rise syndrome. No one wants that.
Photos: Edited by me from Shutterstock
📍WIKIPEDIA EXPLAINS HIGH RISE SYNDROME IN CATS High-rise syndrome is a veterinary term for injuries sustained by a cat falling from a building,[1] typically higher than two stories (7–9 m (23–30 ft)).
Photos: Shutterstock^^
🔹For evident reason, medical conditions can also play a big part. If your cat has a neurological disorder, severe hip and joint issues, obesity or bone structure conditions and others effect functionality of their righting reflex. Inbreeding, in partial belief, the lack of intelligence and proper spine development caused by inbreeding can also cause a pretty clumsy cat.
🐾In Conclusion... 🔹Aside from those, if you have a generally average, healthy cat, they'll leap and fall and continue to amazingly land perfect 99.99% of the time. But it's not an ALWAYS type of circumstance. Do not test dropping your cat, assuming it's fine. Young kittens can not land safely and medical conditions are to be taken into consideration.
⬇️More useful links to Information ⬇️
Thanks for reading guys! Pop in next week! If you think your cat may have fallen or just wanted to know more about it, follow these links for signs, symptoms & common injuries. As well as more detail into fallen Felines.🔻
ASPCA:
VCA animal hospital:
https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/first-aid-for-falls-in-cats#:~:text=Serious%20injuries%20from
Author: Brittany Douglas, Founder of The Friends of Felines Foundation
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These myth busters are not only interesting, but valuable to cat owners. They provide only factual information that pertains to Felines and contain information you should know if owning a cat! To better equip you with the knowledge to keep your pet safe & healthy.