Human/cat relationship =old

Rye · Post by **Rye** » 2004-04-08 02:56pm

Wasn't too sure where to put this, but hey, it says "news" so whatever....

a dressed link
By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - While ancient Egypt provides the first written record of cats, a burial discovered on Cyprus indicates that humans and felines may have become associated much earlier — extending 9,500 years or more into the past.

It's a relationship that has ranged from their being adored as gods in the Nile valley to their slinking into medieval witchhood and rising again to be revered in poet T.S. Eliot's verses and in the stage show "Cats." Today, more than 30 percent of American homes host a cat.

Jean-Denis Vigne of the National Museum of Natural History in Paris believes the relationship first blossomed with the development of agricultural societies 10,000 or so years ago.

"It seems that cats probably came more and more frequently into villages where grain stocks attracted numerous mice," said Vigne. "I think that human beings rapidly understood that they could use cats for reducing the number of mice."

It was Vigne's research team that uncovered the carefully buried cat on Cyprus, placed just inches from a human burial that also contained polished stones, shells, tools and jewelry. The graves are estimated to be 9,500 years old.

The cat belonged to the Felis silvestris species, a wild cat, which was significantly larger than modern domestic cats. The cat's bones were placed carefully, parallel to the human, and showed no signs of butchering, another indication that the animal may have been a pet, Vigne said in a paper in Friday's issue of the journal Science.

The finding seems to be evidence of cats being tamed earlier than previously thought, said Melinda Zeder of the Smithsonian Institution (news - web sites)'s National Museum of Natural History.

If the cat was intentionally buried with the human, which it seems to have been, Zeder said, "what they've got is pretty good evidence of a kind of relationship with humans."

It's hard to know whether it was a pet or a working mouser because "the bones aren't talking," said Zeder, president of the International Council for Archaeozoology.

What may be surprising is that there hasn't been evidence of an earlier relationship with cats, she added, noting that indications of human-dog relations go back 12,000 years.

Blaire Van Valkenburgh, a biology professor at the University of California, Los Angeles, agreed that the finding is "the first suggestion that there was a significant emotional attachment" between a human and a cat.

"They make a good case that they were buried at the same time and it shows that whoever buried it cleared a special spot for it," she said. "That makes it significant."

Vigne noted in his paper that there have been older remains of cats — specifically a jaw — found on Cyprus, but it was not associated with a human grave. Cat bones about 9,000 years old were also found near Jericho, but there was no indication of domestication, though that may have been under way in several places at about the same time.

Cats are not native to Cyprus, so their presence on the eastern Mediterranean island indicates they were brought there at some point.

"The first discovery of cat bones on Cyprus showed that human beings brought cats from the mainland to the islands, but we couldn't decide if these cats were wild or tame. With this discovery we can now decide that these cats were linked with humans," Vigne said.

The best known ancient evidence of cats comes from Egypt, where the animals were bred 4,000 or more years ago. Cats were often included in Egyptian art and worshipped as the cat goddess Bastet.

Stones engraved with images of wild cats and other animals have been discovered from Western Asia and dated back to the Early Neolithic — 4000 to 3000 B.C.

This may be evidence that cats had spiritual significance for humans, according to Vigne, though the real meaning of the representations is irreparably lost.

Sharp-kun · Post by **Sharp-kun** » 2004-04-08 03:05pm

I thought this was going to be on beastiality, am I fucked up?

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-04-08 03:15pm

Sharp-kun wrote:I thought this was going to be on beastiality, am I fucked up?

Someone needs to clean-up is dirty minds,not everyone here as a furrie obsession you damn sicko

theski · Post by **theski** » 2004-04-08 03:22pm

Cats ...... bad... Dogs........ Good.....

BoredShirtless · Post by **BoredShirtless** » 2004-04-08 03:27pm

theski wrote:Cats ...... bad... Dogs........ Good.....

Never thought I'd type this to you but here it is: I agree!

Icehawk · Post by **Icehawk** » 2004-04-08 03:33pm

Montcalm wrote:
Sharp-kun wrote:I thought this was going to be on beastiality, am I fucked up?
Someone needs to clean-up is dirty minds,not everyone here as a furrie obsession you damn sicko

Says the guy with the lil doggy avatar.

Montcalm · Post by **Montcalm** » 2004-04-08 03:56pm

Icehawk wrote:
Montcalm wrote:
Sharp-kun wrote:I thought this was going to be on beastiality, am I fucked up?
Someone needs to clean-up is dirty minds,not everyone here as a furrie obsession you damn sicko
Says the guy with the lil doggy avatar.

I chose a dog for my av cause dogs are loyal,rich or poor a dog will stay your friend forever we can't say the same for humans,also if you're an idiot and nobody likes you the dog will like you no matter what just look at GWB.

EmperorChrostas the Cruel · Post by **EmperorChrostas the Cruel** » 2004-04-08 04:05pm

I recall a saying from Churchill,(?) saying aproxamatly, "To a dog, his master is a beloved king, hence the popularity of dogs."

MKSheppard · Post by **MKSheppard** » 2004-04-08 05:26pm

Hah Stupid Cats...

Dogs have been with man since the neolithic period.

The Kernel · Post by **The Kernel** » 2004-04-08 06:07pm

theski wrote:Cats ...... bad... Dogs........ Good.....

...Beagles....Best....

darthdavid · Post by **darthdavid** » 2004-04-08 06:15pm

The Kernel wrote:
theski wrote:Cats ...... bad... Dogs........ Good.....
...Beagles....Best....

cats...and...dogs...equal...in...my...book...why...the...fuck...am...i...putting...all ...these...fucking...dots...in...my...goddamn...post...?

General Zod · Post by **General Zod** » 2004-04-08 06:41pm

darthdavid wrote:
The Kernel wrote:
theski wrote:Cats ...... bad... Dogs........ Good.....
...Beagles....Best....
cats...and...dogs...equal...in...my...book...why...the...fuck...am...i...putting...all ...these...fucking...dots...in...my...goddamn...post...?

because you touch yourself at night.

Psycho Smiley · Post by **Psycho Smiley** » 2004-04-08 06:57pm

Darth_Zod wrote:because you touch yourself at night.

Is there any way to set up the board software so this will be appended to each and every post? It would save a lot of time, it seems.

RedImperator · Post by **RedImperator** » 2004-04-08 06:57pm

Cats can be very affectionate, if they were socialized properly when they were kittens, but you'll never get fawning adoration out of them becuase it's just not wired into their brains to be part of a pack. Dogs are just more like us than cats are, which is why I think people like them more.

Post by **Darth Wong** » 2004-04-08 07:10pm

I'll be just as impressed with cats as I am with dogs on the day that somebody shows me a blind man being led by a seeing-eye cat. Until then, dogs rule.

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » 2004-04-08 07:43pm

Darth Wong wrote:I'll be just as impressed with cats as I am with dogs on the day that somebody shows me a blind man being led by a seeing-eye cat. Until then, dogs rule.

You're more likely to see a cat walking down the street with someone's eyes in its mouth, thus requiring the use of a seeing-eye dog.

KrauserKrauser · Post by **KrauserKrauser** » 2004-04-08 07:51pm

Darth Wong wrote:I'll be just as impressed with cats as I am with dogs on the day that somebody shows me a blind man being led by a seeing-eye cat. Until then, dogs rule.

/agree

Oni Koneko Damien · Post by **Oni Koneko Damien** » 2004-04-08 08:37pm

Okay, let's see, Dogs,
Pro: A number of vague benefits, the importance of which largely depends on someone's personal prejudices.
Cons: A number of vague annoyances, which also depend largely on someone's personal prejudices.

Cats,
Pros: Ditto
Cons: Well, they don't have any (Okay okay, I'll be fair, ditto.)

Hmm, the score's equal, both don't really care, as long as they get fed, watered, and treated in a way that makes them happy.

-Damien

Durandal · Post by **Durandal** » 2004-04-08 08:41pm

Cats have a very admirable trait: blamelessness. Whenever you see a cat do something stupid, it picks itself up and acts like nothing ever happened. The things have an infinite source of pride.

Rye · Post by **Rye** » 2004-04-08 08:47pm

Well, i've got both and i must say i prefer cats. They're nicer to cuddle up with, their fur's softer, they self clean, they're about baby-size, and can be as affectionate as any dogs i've had. They're also less clingy, and don't stink when wet.

In addition, they don't make lots of noise (usually) and walk themselves. They're the lazy man's pet.

MarkIX · Post by **MarkIX** » 2004-04-08 09:07pm

Durandal wrote:Cats have a very admirable trait: blamelessness. Whenever you see a cat do something stupid, it picks itself up and acts like nothing ever happened. The things have an infinite source of pride.

Denial isn't just a river in egypt

Is it good when a person does that ?

The Kernel · Post by **The Kernel** » 2004-04-08 09:11pm

Durandal wrote:Cats have a very admirable trait: blamelessness. Whenever you see a cat do something stupid, it picks itself up and acts like nothing ever happened. The things have an infinite source of pride.

Not just cats. My Beagle will sometimes try chewing on something that she shouldn't, or stick her nose through the trash and when I catch her doing it, she looks up at me with her big sad eyes as if to say "Was I doing something wrong?".

Durandal · Post by **Durandal** » 2004-04-08 09:13pm

The difference is that dogs admit guilt. Cats are completely infallible.

Andrew J. · Post by **Andrew J.** » 2004-04-08 09:27pm

Most cats are good at pest control, whereas only a few specific types of dog (ie, terriers) are.

theski · Post by **theski** » 2004-04-08 11:15pm

This is why dogs rule....

My Best Friend

The one absolutely unselfish friend that man can have in this selfish world,
the one that never deserts him,
the one that never proves ungrateful or treacherous, is his dog.
A man's dog stands by him in prosperity and poverty, in health and sickness -
He will sleep on the cold ground where the wintry winds blow and the snow drives fiercely, if only he may be near his master's side.
He will kiss the hand that has no food to offer,
He will lick the wounds and sores that come in encounter with the roughness of the world.
He guards the sleep of his pauper master as if he were a prince. --
When all other friends desert he remains. -
When riches take wings and reputation falls to pieces,
He is as constant in his love as the sun in its journey through the heavens.

It is so very true.....