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The Kitty Numbers Racket

Interesting Numerological Facts About Cats

By Franny Syufy, About.com

15

The human equivalent in years that a kitten will reach at the end of his first year.

0%

The chances of a human 'catching' AIDS from an FIV+ cat.

3%

The percentage of cats in the U.S. estimated to be FIV positive.

110 - 140

The average number of feline heartbeats per minute.

101.5 - 102.5

Normal temperature (Farenheit) of a cat.

244

The number of bones in a cat's body. (About 40 more than humans)

35,000

The approximate number of kittens born in the U.S. each day.

1895

The year of the first cat show in America.

32

The number of muscles in each ear of a cat.

34

The age of the oldest cat on record. (Owners of a cat in the U.S. now claim that it is 37, but that has not been officially verified.)

100

The number of vocalization sounds from an average cat. (My hard-of-hearing Shannon came up with a few new ones during his final year.)

19

Record for the largest number of kittens in a litter.

1871

The year of the first formal cat show in the world. (In London, England)

80

The estimated number of known cat breeds.

295 million

The approximate amount (in USD) spent annually in the U.S. for kitty litter.

65 mph

The speed at which Cheetahs can run, in short spurts.

100 to 400

The potential number of cats that can result from a single pair of cats and their kittens, over a seven-year period.

9,500

The number of years ago now believed to be the first domestication of the cat.

80

The percentage of chance at which an outdoor cat will be exposed to toxoplasmosis at some time during its life.

64

The equivalent in human years of a 12 year old cat.

4

The number of years it may take a Maine Coon to reach his full growth and development.

30

The number of permanent adult teeth in a cat's mouth.

2-3 The average life span (in years) of "unmanaged" feral cats.

63

The average number of days in a gestation period for felines.

26

The number of cycles per second in a cat's purr (about the same number as a diesel engine). (See "The Remarkable Purr of a Cat" for more.)

13 million

The estimated number of animals euthanized in shelters every year in the U.S.

1888

The year of birth of T.S. Eliot, author of "Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats," the source of Andrew Lloyd Weber's famous Broadway musical, "Cats."

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