Surely you have heard a million times that cats have 7 lives referring to the fact that they are so agile and fast that they escape dangers that other animals would not be able to avoid . It is as if they had a few extra lives, more specifically six (eight in other countries, including Anglo-Saxon ones), which is obviously false.
But where does it come from that cats have 7 lives? How was this myth created? Why are some places assigned two lives in addition to seven? The vast majority of existing theories give an ancient and esoteric explanation but, from a scientific point of view, much less fanciful, it has been concluded that these adorable creatures have surprising abilities , we could say almost incredible with the who manage to get out of really dangerous situations.
Cats have incredible abilities, they are very agile, fast, flexible, they have a high-tech sense of sight, they are able to survive falls from such a height that any other animal would be unable to save and they fall on their feet many times. thanks to its ability to straighten in flight , using its tail as a rudder and landing gracefully on all four legs.
In 1987 a study was carried out in New York City which showed that 90% of the cats that had rushed from a tall building had miraculously survived the fall. The study was conducted on more than 130 cats that entered an emergency veterinary clinic after having suffered a fall from a great height. The result was that 90% survived and 37% needed emergency treatment to survive . One of them fell from 32 stories to the ground and only broke a tooth and suffered a lung collapse. At 48 hours he was home.
These types of feats are what have given wings to the famous myth that cats always land on their feet and the one that concerns us, that they have seven lives or nine, if we are in England. That said, we must remember that falls are very dangerous for cats and that we must avoid them at all costs by placing protection devices on windows and balconies .
The number seven has long been considered a magical number, a number that brought good luck . And is there an animal that is so lucky to escape dangerous and even deadly situations than the cat? None. So this esoteric figure was awarded to him.
In our culture, seven maintains that aura of symbolism and is that if a mirror breaks, you will have seven years of bad luck, the days of the week are seven, the musical notes too, as well as the capital sins and the number of archangels. So we could be long and hard.
Although in these parts it is not heard that cats have nine lives, in many places, including Anglo-Saxon countries, it is what is usually said. But why nine? The answer must be found in Egyptian mythology . According to this, Ra (Atum), the solar god, formed together with the gods Shu, Tefnut, Nut, Geb, Isis, Osiris, Nephthys and Seth the Ennead , a group of nine united divinities. Ra traveled to the underworld in the form of a cat and endowed himself with nine lives, one for each deity. As the cat was considered a sacred animal in Ancient Egypt and taking into account its amazing abilities to cheat death, the myth was created that it had nine lives, as a clear reference to the god Ra.
At this point, we can only re-emphasize the importance that our cat is not a parachutist, that we can avoid falls that can be fatal to the animal or that by not ending its life, it causes damage to its organism .
If you have a balcony or terrace at home, you should put protective devices to avoid the danger. It doesn’t hurt to also protect the windows. In addition, for the animal, you will also be calmer and you will be able to disengage. Ask any pet store what options you have: frame with mosquito net, safety nets … and even make your own security system with wooden slats and plastic mesh.
