# Whence the notion that cats are "she" by default? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 13, 2007, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005 "2007-02-13T12:51:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/1 "2007-02-13T12:51:27Z")
Have we done this already? Where and how did the concept originate that cats are female by default? Is it just by feminine cultural associations, e.g. cat ladies, men:dogs::women cats, or that cats sometimes seem vaguely female in their behavior? Or is it a grammatical gender holdover, the noun “cat” being feminine in Germanic languages that still have three way grammatical gender. Or is it their high voices? I’ve just been noticing a recent spate of cat food commercials where they advertise that the food is as good as human restaurant food, and at the end they say “Surprise her with \…” ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/2 "2007-02-13T13:08:13Z")
[Well…](http://pintday.org/funny/littlefurcoats) 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/3 "2007-02-13T15:02:03Z")
When I was a kid I always assumed that cats were female and dogs were male. I have no idea where that notion came from. Maybe it is because nobody has ever heard the term ‘crazy old cat guy’. ---
**Author:** ![groman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@groman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/groman)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/4 "2007-02-13T15:43:48Z")
Cause boy cats are practically metrosexuals when compared to boy dogs. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Antinor01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecae2f/32.png) [@Antinor01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antinor01)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/5 "2007-02-13T16:03:35Z")
It could partially come from Egypt. Cats were worshipped and the goddess Bast was patron of all animals but particularly cats. She is also depicted as having the head of a cat. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/6 "2007-02-13T16:04:54Z")
I just checked, and my cat is definitely male. ---
**Author:** ![Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c4cdca/32.png) [@Quiddity\_Glomfuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quiddity_Glomfuster)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/7 "2007-02-13T16:05:02Z")
Probably because they’re small and dainty and even when they roughhouse, it’s not the all-hell-breaking-loose way that dogs do. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/8 "2007-02-13T17:43:09Z")
[QUOTE=Malacandra] [Well…](http://pintday.org/funny/littlefurcoats) 😃 [/QUOTE] LOL! 🆒 Seriously, I think it’s mostly cultural associations. Stereotypically, women get cats and men get dogs. It’s a sweeping generalization, but it’s there. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/9 "2007-02-13T18:03:21Z")
[QUOTE=Quiddity Glomfuster] Probably because they’re small and dainty and even when they roughhouse, it’s not the all-hell-breaking-loose way that dogs do. [/QUOTE] It’s odd, though, because unfixed male cats will do all the “manly” things you would expect, like fighting over females, patrolling their territory, and so on. Our four neutered males, while obviously not fighting over females, still seem to exhibit a “pushiness” that I don’t associate with females, although my experience with female cats is admittedly limited. Then again, gerbils and hamsters are even smaller and daintier and they don’t have the feminine connontation. ---
**Author:** ![Muffin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muffin/32/4341_2.png) [@Muffin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Muffin)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/10 "2007-02-13T19:22:04Z")
Put [Julie Newmar](http://www.comicon.com/thebeat/Julie-Newmar---Catwoman--C10101540.jpeg), [Lee Meriwether](http://www.womensctr.org/images/auction/LEE%20MERIWETHER.jpg), [Eartha Kitt](http://www.henrythornton.com/content/upload/images/AAA-Fionas_Images/kitt3.jpg), [Michelle Pfeiffer](http://webfantasy.info/Michelle_Pfeiffer/Images/Michelle_Pfeiffer_01.jpg), or [Halle Berry](http://www.superchicos.net/images/catwoman85.jpg) in a cat suit. What do you get? Put [Bert Lahr](http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/oz/images/vc50.jpg) in a cat suit. What do you get? Based on the above, I am glad that cats are female. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/11 "2007-02-13T19:30:25Z")
[QUOTE=Spectre of Pithecanthropus] Our four neutered males, while obviously not fighting over females, still seem to exhibit a “pushiness” that I don’t associate with females, although my experience with female cats is admittedly limited. [/QUOTE] I’ve had the opposite experience. For some reason, I had mainly female cats growing up, and I tended toward females even later. But we ended up with a couple of neutered males as well, and they are the biggest marshmallows on the planet. Currently, we have 8 cats and only 2 males. We had another male a couple of years ago. All 3 were incredibly snuggly and friendly. Only 1 of our females is that attached. So I think that cats just have a wide range, independent of their sexes. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/12 "2007-02-13T19:44:10Z")
I recently mentioned, in another thread, that I have a cousin who really believes all cats are female and dogs are male. She thinks dogs get cats pregnant, and the cat has a litter of mixed puppies and kittens. My cousin, by the way, is in her 50s. BTW, does anyone have any real statistics of the gender of pet owners? I’ve known plenty of female dog owners and male cat owners. And many of us like both. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/13 "2007-02-13T19:46:09Z")
Seems not to be a new phenomenon: [Bastet](http://www.pantheon.org/articles/b/bastet.html) is female. The dieties associated with [dogs](http://asiapacificuniverse.com/pkm/dogstory.htm), Wepwawet, Cerebos and Xolotl are all male. ---
**Author:** ![NJ\_Kef\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b487fb/32.png) [@NJ\_Kef\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NJ_Kef_1)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/14 "2007-02-13T22:39:41Z")
[QUOTE=Muffin] Put [Bert Lahr](http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/oz/images/vc50.jpg) in a cat suit. What do you get? [/QUOTE] A dandy lion! ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/15 "2007-02-13T22:56:15Z")
I never heard of it except for cats that have both orange and black color (tortie or calico), since these colors are on the x chromosome, the only way to have both of these colors is to have 2 (or more) X’s. OTOH orange cats are usually assumed to be male, as a X orange- X orange pairing is sort of rare, but a single X-orange, Y has a much greater chance. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/16 "2007-02-13T23:07:25Z")
Usage in my family has always made cats (and indeed any other pets), \*\*it \*\* by default. ---
**Author:** ![Will\_Repair](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a698b9/32.png) [@Will\_Repair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Will_Repair)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/17 "2007-02-13T23:25:23Z")
Aren’t most cats female? What is the ratio of males to females (for cats?) I ask since a male’s territory will encompass several females’ territories. Don’t prides (of lions) consist of one male and all the rest females? ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/18 "2007-02-13T23:28:45Z")
Here’s a weird idea. The FE in feline seems to be connected to the FE in female? When we hear fe_line,_ we think subconsciously, fe_male_? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/19 "2007-02-13T23:35:04Z")
Dogs being considered “male” is easy. The first domesticated dogs were used for hunting, a male-dominated activity, and even the non-hunting jobs dogs get tend to be male-associated activities. Cats, on the other hand, have as their primary job controlling rodents around where grains are stored. Has stockpiling of grain traditionally been considered a female task? I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 13, 2007, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005/20 "2007-02-13T23:53:59Z")
If I remember my high school German, the word for cat is feminine (“die Katze”). Is this the case in other languages in which the nouns have genders? (Which wouldn’t answer the question; it would only push it back a level.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whence-the-notion-that-cats-are-she-by-default/392005.md?page=2)