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138 free Cat trivia questions with answers — nature quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
50 free Cat trivia questions with answers. Cat trivia lives in two places on BrainPickle. This page is the shorter set; the main quiz is Cats trivia, with our deepest question pool on the topic and a source behind every answer.
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Q 01What is the primary function of a cat's whiskers, also known as vibrissae?
Sensing and navigation
Sensing and navigation: a cat's whiskers are touch sensors rooted in nerve-rich follicles, and when prey is too close to see the whiskers swing forward to locate it by touch.
Q 02Besides contentment, in which of these situations have cats been recorded purring?
While ill or giving birth
Purring may have begun as a reassurance signal between mothers and nursing kittens, and some chronically ill cats purr continuously; a soothing, possibly healing role has been proposed but the mechanism is still uncertain.
Q 03The earliest known evidence of a tamed cat, from about 7500 BCE, was found on which island?
Cyprus
Cyprus: at Shillourokambos a cat was buried beside a human about 7500 BCE, thousands of years before Egypt's cat cult. Cats are not native to the island, so settlers must have brought them by boat.
Q 04When a cat rubs its face or body against an object or person, what is it primarily doing?
Depositing scent from facial glands
Depositing scent from facial glands: cheek rubbing leaves a pheromone on the object, and rubbing on people is thought to be a form of social bonding; cats also carry scent glands on the paws and flanks.
Q 05Approximately how long does a cat's gestation period last?
Two months
Gestation averages 65 days, within a 64-to-67-day window. Kittens are weaned at six to seven weeks and reach puberty at nine or ten months.
Q 06Which of these breeds is widely cited as provoking a milder reaction in people with cat allergies?
Russian Blue
No cat is truly hypoallergenic, but Russian Blues, Balinese, and several rex breeds are often reported to bother sufferers less, apparently because they shed less of the main allergen protein.
Q 07Which of these cat breeds almost always has blue eyes?
Siamese
Siamese cats get their blue eyes from the same gene that paints their points dark; many other blue-eyed breeds descend from them.
Q 08Which cat breed was developed by crossing Siamese and Burmese cats?
Tonkinese
The Tonkinese was developed by crossing Siamese and Burmese cats; its 'mink' coat blends Siamese points with Burmese sepia, and aqua eyes are a hallmark of the breed.
Q 09How many major blood groups are generally recognized in domestic cats?
Three
Cats are typed A, B, or AB. Type A and B cats carry natural antibodies against the other type, and a B cat given A blood reacts severely, so a typing test is recommended before any transfusion or breeding.
Q 10What genetic factor is primarily responsible for tortoiseshell and calico coats in female cats?
A gene on the X chromosome
The orange locus sits on the X chromosome, so a female with one orange and one non-orange allele shows patches of both. Only about 1 in 3,000 tortoiseshells is male, and most of those carry an extra X.
Q 11Cats see well in dim light, but which aspect of their eyesight is far weaker than a human's?
Sharpness of detail
Sharpness of detail: a cat's acuity is roughly 20/100 to 20/200, so it must be about six metres from an object to see what a person sees from 20 to 30 metres; its low-light adaptations cost it resolution.
Q 12On average, roughly how many hours a day does an adult cat sleep?
13 to 14
Adult cats average 13 to 14 hours of sleep a day, and some manage as much as 20; their brief muscle twitches during REM sleep suggest they dream.
Q 13Adult cats direct which vocalization almost entirely at humans rather than at other cats?
Meow
The meow is for us: adult cats rarely meow at each other, so it is thought to extend the mewing kittens aim at their mothers, and pets meow far more than ferals.
Q 21Which of these cat breeds is known for its distinctive 'smushed' or 'flat' face?
Persian
The Persian's flat 'peke-face' arose from a spontaneous mutation in 1950s red tabby Persians and was exaggerated by selective breeding; it causes breathing trouble, and the older doll-face type is bred as the Traditional Persian.
Q 22A cat's normal body temperature runs from about 100.9 to what upper figure in Fahrenheit?
102.2 F
Normal is 38.3 to 39.0 C, or 100.9 to 102.2 F; a cat is considered feverish at 39.5 C (103.1 F) or above and hypothermic below 37.5 C (99.5 F).
Q 23Roughly how many taste buds does a cat have, compared with more than 9,000 on a human tongue?
About 470
Q 14How many toes do most domestic cats have on each of their front paws?
Five
Most cats have five toes on each front paw and four on each rear paw, 18 in total; the extra front digit is a dewclaw set higher up the leg that does not touch the ground.
Q 15What does a cat signal when it approaches with its tail held straight up?
A friendly greeting
A raised tail is a friendly greeting, and tail-raising also tracks rank: dominant cats raise their tails less often than subordinate ones. Flattened ears, by contrast, signal hostility.
Q 16What type of dietary classification describes cats, meaning they must eat meat to survive?
Obligate carnivore
Cats are obligate carnivores: they depend on nutrients found only in animal tissue, such as arachidonic acid and preformed vitamin A, which they cannot make from the plant precursors that sustain omnivores.
Q 17What is it called when a cat rhythmically pushes its paws into a soft surface, often while purring?
Kneading
This behavior is known as 'kneading' or 'making biscuits.' It's a remnant of kittenhood when they kneaded their mother to stimulate milk flow and is often a sign of contentment and relaxation in adult cats.
Q 18Which protein in cat saliva and skin is the primary allergen behind most human cat allergies?
Fel d 1
Fel d 1 comes mainly from saliva and the sebaceous glands of the skin and triggers about 90 percent of cat allergies. Females and neutered males make less of it, but still enough to set off sensitive people.
Q 19What is the scientific name for the domestic cat?
Felis catus
Linnaeus named the domestic cat Felis catus in 1758 in the tenth edition of Systema Naturae; of the distractors, Panthera pardus is the leopard and Canis familiaris the dog.
Q 20What is the innate reflex called that lets a falling cat twist in mid-air to land on its feet?
Righting reflex
The righting reflex lets a falling cat rotate to land on its feet given enough time to complete the turn; it appears at three to four weeks of age.
Cats have only about 470 taste buds, against more than 9,000 on a human tongue, so smell guides their appetite far more than taste; umami receptors tuned to meat may explain the tuna obsession.
Q 24What common household plant is highly toxic to cats and can cause kidney failure?
Lily
Even licking lily pollen off its coat can put a cat in danger, and vets treat any suspected exposure as an emergency. Tulips and philodendrons are also on the toxic list.
Q 25What is the collective term for a group of adult cats?
A clowder
A clowder; glaring and colony are also accepted terms for a group of cats, while a pride is a group of lions. An unspayed female is a queen and an intact male a tom.
Q 26Which of the five basic tastes can no cat, wild or domestic, detect at all?
Sweet
Sweet is lost on cats: a shared mutation in a taste-receptor gene stops the receptor binding sugar, so they detect acids, bitterness and umami but never sugar.
Q 27What distinctive physical trait is characteristic of the Manx cat breed?
A stub or missing tail
On the Isle of Man the stub-tailed cats are called stubbin and the tailless ones rumpy. The dominant mutation spread on the island through the founder effect of a small, isolated population.
Q 28Which internet-famous cat's real name was Tardar Sauce?
Grumpy Cat
Grumpy Cat, whose real name was Tardar Sauce, became a worldwide internet sensation due to her distinctive underbite and feline dwarfism that gave her a permanently 'grumpy' facial expression.
Q 29What was unusual about Prune, the 1966 Toronto kitten who founded the Sphynx breed?
Almost no fur at all
Prune was a hairless male born to an ordinary black-and-white shorthair. Sphynx skin feels like chamois leather and may carry fine down; the breed can have full, short, or no whiskers.
Q 30What is the term for a cat with a coat pattern featuring distinct stripes, spots, or swirls?
Tabby
A tabby cat is characterized by its distinctive coat patterns, which can include stripes (mackerel), spots (spotted), or swirls (classic/blotched). These patterns are very common in domestic cats.