# Why are cats so fluid? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 29, 2013, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980 "2013-04-29T03:10:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/1 "2013-04-29T03:10:15Z")
Carrying a cat, they just feel so fluid, compared to a dog. Plus there’s that whole leaping and climbing thing. Why is that? is there something different about their bone/tendons/ligaments? ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/2 "2013-04-29T07:56:33Z")
[Cat Anatomy](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cat#Anatomy) - some extra thoracic vertebra and free-floating clavicles probably account for most of the flexibility. The rest is musculature and physical behavior. ---
**Author:** ![Si\_Amigo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/si_amigo/32/2877_2.png) [@Si\_Amigo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Si_Amigo)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/3 "2013-04-29T13:20:11Z")
If you are going to compare cats and dogs then we might as well talk of the differences between apples and oranges. It’s not like it’s six of one or half dozen of the other. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/4 "2013-04-29T15:04:45Z")
Picking up a cat is like picking up a bag of rice, while picking up a dog is like picking up a sack of potatoes. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/5 "2013-04-29T15:20:20Z")
[![](https://i.imgur.com/aGDHm.gif) ](https://i.imgur.com/aGDHm.gif) ---
**Author:** ![EdwardLost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bbe5ce/32.png) [@EdwardLost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EdwardLost)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/6 "2013-04-29T17:18:46Z")
Because cats hunt by sneaking up on prey and then attacking in a burst of speed and power. Dogs are more long-haul hunters; they wear down their prey over time. The loose-jointed anatomy of cats allows them distort their bodies to get extremely long bounds for great acceleration and high speed. But it’s a very energy-intensive way of moving - all muscle, with lots of up and down movement. The dog’s tighter wound body allows them to move on more of a level and use the springiness of their tendons to store energy. They are less powerful but have far more endurance. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/7 "2013-04-29T17:53:04Z")
As such: > [@Cartoon Laws](#): > > Corollary to Law VIII: A cat will assume the shape of its container. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/8 "2013-04-29T17:56:09Z")
> [@JKilez](#): > > Picking up a cat is like picking up a bag of rice, while picking up a dog is like picking up a sack of potatoes. But both are great boiled, with a little salt, pepper, and butter. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/9 "2013-04-29T17:56:32Z")
No Photoshop required: [http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V3ZgZDraliY/UBMr06QOKGI/AAAAAAAA8jQ/l3XqRkDBuYs/s1600/cat-stretching.jpg](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V3ZgZDraliY/UBMr06QOKGI/AAAAAAAA8jQ/l3XqRkDBuYs/s1600/cat-stretching.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/10 "2013-04-29T17:59:07Z")
> [@Darth\_Panda](#): > > But both are great boiled, with a little salt, pepper, and butter. \Why are cats so fluid? They’re already halfway to cat juice!\ ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2013, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/11 "2013-04-29T21:02:17Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > No Photoshop required: [http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V3ZgZDraliY/UBMr06QOKGI/AAAAAAAA8jQ/l3XqRkDBuYs/s1600/cat-stretching.jpg](http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-V3ZgZDraliY/UBMr06QOKGI/AAAAAAAA8jQ/l3XqRkDBuYs/s1600/cat-stretching.jpg) When my cats stretch, they stick out their rear ends towards me. I read somewhere that this is a sign of affection. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/12 "2013-04-30T01:52:19Z")
> [@barbitu8](#): > > When my cats stretch, they stick out their rear ends towards me. I read somewhere that this is a sign of affection. That’s a good source. A bunch of drunken frat boys (1972) and your mom (1985) also claimed this. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/13 "2013-04-30T02:37:16Z")
I didn’t say I heard it. I said I read it. Here’s one source:[Yahoo | Mail, Weather, Search, Politics, News, Finance, Sports & Videos](http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080309130149AAncF2E) Actually, I read it in a Yahoo Group, Cats Health and Behavior ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Bloom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leo_bloom/32/10377_2.png) [@Leo\_Bloom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Bloom)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/14 "2013-04-30T03:02:53Z")
Snakes are pretty fluid. ---
**Author:** ![thicksantorum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@thicksantorum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thicksantorum)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/15 "2013-04-30T03:08:41Z")
Jellyfish are almost entirely fluid. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/16 "2013-04-30T03:24:20Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Carrying a cat, they just feel so fluid, compared to a dog. Plus there’s that whole leaping and climbing thing. > > Why is that? is there something different about their bone/tendons/ligaments? The answer, in short, is “yes.” Cats are designed to be flexible. Their backs contain more vertebrae, more loosely attached, than most mammals. Their collarbones are unattached to any other bone, giving them exceptional flexibility there. They are, basically, built that way. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/17 "2013-04-30T06:47:06Z")
Now that we’ve had some factual answers… Cats are not subject to normal laws of physics, THAT’S why! ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/18 "2013-04-30T06:53:12Z")
Are they not, like, 75% water? ---
**Author:** ![Jake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f475e1/32.png) [@Jake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jake)\ **Post date:** [April 30, 2013, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-are-cats-so-fluid/656980/19 "2013-04-30T16:54:54Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Now that we’ve had some factual answers… > > Cats are not subject to normal laws of physics, THAT’S why! Cats are not normal. Period. 🙂