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As with the cats of ancient Egypt, changes in the way we live have prompted the cat’s boom in popularity. Early humans found the pack instincts of dogs useful from the beginning — both for hunting and, later, for tending flocks — but the cat was of little use to humankind until our ancestors started cultivating and storing grain. The earliest evidence of domesticated cats dates from about 6,000 years ago — as opposed to 12,000 for dogs — but the most telling indications of the presence of domestic cats are about 4,000 years old.

The cat then became honored — even worshipped — for a skill we sometimes wish today had been lost along the way: hunting. Before the cat stepped in, rodents had a fine, fat time in the grain storage bins. The cat’s hunting prowess evened the score a great deal and opened the door for small cats from Africa to take over the entire world, carried as useful workers on grain-laden ships throughout the ancient world. Farmers everywhere were grateful for their aid. Interesting fact: Experts believe “Hemingway cats,” also known as polydactyls, or cats with extra toes, were spread around the world this way.

Although you still find cats plying their trade as rodent-killers on farms all around the world (see Figure 1-1), the cat’s greater role today is strictly as a companion. And in this, too, the cat excels.

As important as the cat’s hunting skills were to our ancestors, today the sight of a half-eaten mouse brought in as a gift is appreciated by few. In Chapter 19, we set the record straight regarding a popular myth about cats and hunting.

Ilario/Photo by Gina Spadafori

FIGURE 1-1: The cat chose to be domesticated, but the hint of the wild always remains.

Two things have changed in developed countries to make the cat’s rise in popularity inevitable.

First, more of us are living in smaller quarters — in apartments, in condominiums, in houses on smaller lots — than ever before. Although such conditions aren’t so conducive to the keeping of dogs — even though many people make it work anyway — such living conditions are in no way a deterrent to keeping a cat, especially an indoors-only one. Cats quite happily share the same environments people choose, living in city apartments and on farms, in cold climates and in warm ones, in small houses and in mansions. Marvelously adaptable, most cats handle being alone better than many dogs do.

Second, many of us have little time or money for a pet — but a greater need for companionship than ever before. As children, we need someone to listen to us. As young adults, we delay starting a family — or choose never to start one at all, choosing pets to be family instead. In our middle years, we’re nearly pulled apart by the demands of job and family. Our older years may be more active than ever before but can also be lonely, spent far from our children.

Nonjudgmental listener and ever-affectionate companion, the cat makes a difference in many lives — and with relatively little investment of time and money. Truly, the cat has found a niche again — this time, to stay.

Frances and Richard Lockridge knew how important cats can be to children when they observed in The Quotable Cat (Contemporary Books): “No cat has ever said, ‘I love you,’ except to the sensitive ears of children.” We think many cats have expressed their love — but sometimes adults aren’t listening well enough to hear them.