World Cat Day (08/08)

There are holidays dedicated to these furry pets in many countries. For example, in Russia, Cat Day is celebrated on March 1, in Poland – on February 17, in Japan – on February 22, and in the USA they are celebrated on October 29. These days appeared at different times and on the basis of different events (or without them). But at the international level, such a holiday appeared in 2002 and today unites millions of owners of these animals around the world.

World Cat Day is celebrated annually on August 8 at the initiative of the International Animal Welfare Foundation, not only to honor furry homebodies, but to draw attention to the problem of stray cats.

There are few people on the planet who remain indifferent to these furry, agile, affectionate and very smart animals. There is even the science of cats – felinology (from Latin felinus – cat and Greek logos – science), emphasizing that cats – are smart and useful. The domestic cat (Felis catus) is part of the cat family, in which there are 2 subfamilies, 4 genera and about 36 species. It is known that representatives of both subfamilies, 3 genera and 12 species live in Russia.

From time immemorial, cats have been and remain the most common pets in the whole world: about 80% of all inhabitants of the Earth keep a pet, and more than half of them have given their preference to cats, with dogs in second place.

From time immemorial, cats have been and remain the most common pets in the whole world (Photo: Tony Campbell, licensed from Shutterstock.com)

In addition to «aesthetic pleasure» (after all, what could be more pleasant than a purring warm friend who is groping on your lap), cats also perform a number of functions useful for humans. They exterminate rodents perfectly, treat some diseases and even prolong the life of their owner. Thus, American doctors found that cat owners are 40% less likely to suffer from heart disease, and they are also less likely to have heart attacks and strokes. And English doctors have developed an entire «cotherapy», with the help of which they propose to treat a number of diseases, in particular – joint inflammation and gynecological diseases.

Cats often become heroes of fairy tales, epics, cartoons, etc. Many peoples in the world have many beliefs and signs associated with cats. The most common – are that cats live several lives, and can also intuitively determine the intentions of people who come to the house and feel unkind guests.

Therefore, it is not surprising that in some countries these animals are in a special state position, for example, in Austria, every cat that guarded food warehouses is paid a lifelong pension in the form of meat and milk, and in China cats are protected at the legislative level. By the way, in Japan there is even a Cat Temple, built in honor of 7 cats, which in the 17th century served Japanese warriors faithfully, and in Germany there is a – Cat Museum, where many exhibits related to cats and selected around the world are collected. Russia – does not lag behind in their veneration; there are cat museums in both Moscow and St. Petersburg.

Today is their holiday! (Photo: Ground Picture, licensed from Shutterstock.com)

On the holiday itself – Cat Day –, the heroes of the occasion are especially honored and pampered in every possible way – buy various delicacies, new houses and toys for their pets. In a number of countries, the opening of special parks for walking cats and cat shops, cafes and hotels was even timed to coincide with this day, where you can temporarily accommodate your pet with great comfort.

Of course, you can talk and talk endlessly about these wonderful and graceful animals, relatives of the tigers and leopards themselves. Therefore, on the holiday, I would like to wish all cats to have their own home, caring owners and delicious food. Well, we humans must remember that we are responsible for those we have tamed and thank the animals again.



Infographics – postcard «8 August — World Cat Day» Story «Working days of the cat Primus»

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