felinethropology

spec bio but spec anthropology for cats.

[catciety]

PINNED POST 📯

about the blog - FAQ: is this warrior cats?

about the world - FAQ: Can I make Ocs?

some posts will be non sequiturs or fragments, this indicates it will be edited to be a full post later

[catciety]

i cant imagine a cats most common reaction to a lynx or other wildcat would be anything but balking or discomfort, which would quickly morph into terror the moment it doesnt communicate and is territorially violent. something that looks like you with exaggerated features and bigger than anyone youve ever seen who just starts growling in a voice you've never heard before. the infrequency of such a creature probably turns it into folklore akin to a troll or ogre.

irl, however, there does seem to be instances of captive lynxes and housecats bonding, either in adulthood or by the housecat becoming a foster mother, if the feelgood articles are to be trusted, which provides us great side by side comparisons for their comparative sizes

[haloheliac]

Robert Cannon Living Sculptures

[catciety]

You'll have to forgive the occasional errant reblog, I am unused to running a sideblog that I use with such frequency. Some things that slip through the cracks, however, I have a hard time deleting. You'll understand when you see the quality upon scrolling down

[mariaramosbravo]

[catciety]

On Music for Cats

the most notable real life claim regarding music for cats has to be David Teie's Music for cats

Teie posits that the reason for the 4/4 measure in human music is the result of hearing our mothers heartbeat in the womb, yet cats are deaf in the womb and for some time after being born

so, the music for cats is made in relation to what a cat first hears. purring, littermates suckling, maybe even birds chirping. a faster tempo is used along with a pitch that reflects the octave cats typically vocalize

David Teie's site affirms this as fact

however, the pet market is insanely profitable, Americans spent more than $60 billion on their pets in 2015. While more than $50 billion was spent on necessities like food and medicine, that number increased to $99 billion in 2020

creating music specifically for cats is an excitable venture, as im sure anyone in the demographic to be reading this blog will remember seeing posts about this when the first song was released. a kickstarter was made to finish the album after the teaser with a $20K goal

though any profit based incentive for a venture does not negate any real research done it does call into question the metric by which the statements are claimed, as it becomes incentivized to falsify data in favor of good marketing and it is easy to do in a field like this, that has very little research

the kickstarter ended up returning $220,000. this can muddy the waters. though, consulting experts, running studies, and making music isnt free and I understand that. I aim to be critical but I will not make unfounded statements.

One of the studies is actually described in a university of wisconsin post on the metric of approach vs. avoid behavior, with a human music control.

this article also describes other studies performed by David Teie with simians that were also successful in predicting and eliciting responses based off of animal music theory, giving more credit to claims, though primates and simians are more similar to us than cats

There is also a paper regarding the matter from University of Louisiana though notably, the measure of stress being reduced in both studies are the behavioral stress responses, but there is no physiological difference in stress that can be measured for cats listening to cat music (on the metric of measured neutrophil:lymphocytes, immune system blood cells) vs cats listening to nothing vs cats listening to classical music

the physiological stress metric, though, is interesting. is it comparable in humans that listening to music would change the ratio of neutrophil: lymphocytes; is this a known stress metric for cats? is it something that can change as fast as the study was performed? does a physiological reduction in stress actually indicate the music is being enjoyed? questions that may be answered with access to the full paper, which i do not have yet. More on this later. for now, look at this kitty go

[catciety]

its frustrating trying to find examples of cat tool usage that i can remember but no longer appears in searches because of the way domestic animal behavior is viral content churn out with lots of fake videos or edited photos.

I am trying to find a video of a cat using a fork that i remember but i can only find a clip from a show interviewing an older woman about her cat she has eat dinner with her, which is.... plausible ? from the grainy footage ive seen (the cat appears to hook the utensil near its head with one claw and braces the stem against her forearm and performs a swiping movement congruent with cats that use their paws to swipe food towards their mouths)

but more than that one video, the search is clogged with a close up video of a cat bracing itself on a fork that someone offscreen is using to feed to cat with multiple reposts, and its so blatantly impossible its insulting, but i have to accept the state of the internet and continue

[catciety]

TAUNTS

a community of cats capable of grasping concepts such as insincerity or mockery would not be immune to taunting one another, though unlike a human mocking a chicken to call another a coward, a cat may indicate that the one they're facing is akin to prey or some lesser creature

the fastest way to do so would be to chitter

in reality, cats, when faced with prey, often feel compelled to make small chittering or clicking noises, this is borderline universal for cats.

in squaring up with another cat, simply chittering at them to do a prey call is calling them prey, weak, cowardly, incapable of fighting, and so on. this is the fastest way to start a fight. the cat middle finger.

[catciety]

cat whisker sensitivity reading grooves

[catciety]

river cats and needle felting

one of the more realistic displays of crafting is the ability to needle felt. leftover fur from grooming and prey can be matted together by cats kneading the loose hairs together. this is possible by biting small notches in their claws to achieve the barbed form of needles used for this process

similar to the image above though, most mats are gray or brown unless otherwise intentionally felted in patterns or with specific colors in mind. loose fur can be used as bedding, but is messier and makes a morning grooming a mouthful

these mats are most often used as bedding or seat liners, which are interchangeable concepts to most cats

a more complicated craft using furs is spinning it into yarn. groomed fur is washed, sun dried, carded, and then spun by paw on a flat smooth stone. this yarn is possible due to the access river cats have to fresh water and saponifiers (putrefied fish oil + ash )

it has a variety of uses:

that thread is used to string decorative shells, beads, acorns, and other eclectica together

it is braided together for thicker fastenings

it is turned into nets for fishing, though more often than not most fishing is done by slatting wood to impede fish passing through the river at choke points. slats are removed 2-3 at a time to allow fish to live and populate the stream uninterrupted but in sessions will add them back in to trap them. nets are then used to corner trapped fish slowly by multiple cats

it is woven for hardier mats and textiles by multiple cats at once, usually as a duo or group effort and the process is time intensive. weaving is such a specific and skill based task that cats are trained for the role and consider themselves Weavers. its a respected position but a difficult one. This is a River Cat specific culture and the main desired export of the community

macrame style weaving/braiding

Weavers themselves are often joked of as only partnering with long haired cats, as the fur they shed is easier to work with, and as incredulous as they may be about the joke they will all fawn over a long hair the moment they enter a situation, especially if their coat is mono color

[catciety]

Can I make a catciety OC?

You can make OCs, absolutely, I ask that you tag me if you post them just because I would love to see what you make, you do not need to tag me though. You blog is your own 😊

However

You cannot claim that this is your own writing

but..

if you decide to use that OC in a similar feral cat society story you make, I actively encourage it. It's a good creative writing exercise.

I don't have copyright on feral cat colonies and neither does erin hunter

[catciety]

Is this Warriors?

No.

most of this blog comes from a love of cats and of anthropology, though I have read a good chunk of warriors books and part of this world is, intentionally or not, in reaction to the way warriors handled the world it created.

the warriors series was written by multiple UK based authors about groups of warring feral cats. the language used for these cats is sometimes racially charged (Clan, Tribe, the naming conventions for the Tribe cats, the word Warrior even) and sometimes serviceable but so unusual it becomes funny (Deputy)

More to the story itself though, it seems to have a message it does not want to tell. The clan system is senseless, kittens die freezing in the snow because they are born to two clans, cats die in childbirth on riverbeds due to falling in love with a neighbor, power imbalance allows leaders to terrorize and bully and endanger their people when they're having an episode, cats starve while others are well off, only one or two people in the community can know medicine.

This drives the story and is the basis of most conflict in the story, which creates an interesting story, yet challenging or trying to change the system in any meaningful way results in death or the challenger in question being framed as misguided or evil.

Sol, an outsider who tried to teach medicine to all and disband the clan system, is referred to by the authors as absolutely evil and sociopathic. Without unpacking the fact that sociopathy is a morally neutral diagnosis, this is a word of god confirmation that this system is correct, despite books and books of evidence otherwise.

The absolute judgement that the status quo is what must be and the suffering it causes is justified by the inherent rightness of the system, affirmed through an afterlife that directly mirrors heaven and hell that discerns inhabitants by this metric, is mortifying. These cats must uphold the clan rules or they may have no afterlife. they must die in border disputes because it will let them go to heaven.

strange message, right?

But even aside from the ineffable suffering machine that god made and that cannot be challenged, the story cannot evolve and characters are never allowed to develop. Clans, cannot develop.

Any new information or developments result in no meaningful change to their system because it is not allowed to change. Jayfeather can read claw marks on a stick but nothing is generated from that, cats play hockey on a frozen lake and then are punished by falling in and freezing to death, a deaf kitten is born and learns a form of sign language that her mother is developing and then she is killed by a hawk in the middle of camp... with no such precedent event, river clan decorates with shells but this is mentioned in passing, cinderpelt becomes disabled and leads a full life as a medicine cat and yet she gets reincarnated because her disability was viewed as a half life, Sol was able to learn of astronomical events and the second arc cats could navigate by the sunset and the clans are able to observe and denote time by the moon but there is little curiosity around that, some walls for dens are canonically woven by the cats and yet this is never given the time of day because it is a fact that was made in service to the story rather as part of it.

it is reductive, and bare minimum unimaginative. It was not why these stories were written, but when the message seems to be so... desolate.. why not create any form of joy.

I loved those books to pieces, but I've spent so much time on them already that I would rather create something for myself, ground up, rather than band-aid and plaster those works into something unrecognizable. Warriors fans themselves are so wonderfully creative and prolific so me making something over here isn't gonna rob them of anything

[catciety]

Quarry cats and clay firing

initially, I had hoped to stay away from fire or firemaking for these spec cats as it seems highly improbable to me that a cat would utilize fire within the timeline ive established, though if i want any form or long term liquid or water storage, fired clay seems to be it.

firing clay removes all moisture from the clay and makes it resistant to degradation when wet

i am uncertain if clay has to be fired to retain the needed qualities for food preservation that was developed in necessity due to surplus food post-deercat. originally they were burying the dried meat in clay and digging it up when necessary

long term food preservation is still unmatched when using dried clay, as seen below.

The Ancient Method That Keeps Afghanistan's Grapes Fresh All Winter

Kangina is simple but effective.

Watch: This Is How Grapes Are Preserved In Clay Pots In Afghanistan

The now-viral video, shared by Twitter user Saud Faisal Malik, shows the traditional method of preserving grapes. The post's caption explain

as for access to fire, the cats are already in a human made quarry and there is repeated precedence for long burning underground fires due to mishaps, and while unlikely, it becomes more interesting with the inclusion of such a situation

[catciety]

Bite, a wanderer, is a cat with genetic hormonal/endocrine issues that cause him to have an unusual and insatiable appetite. He was jokingly named Bite, as he always asks for one if you have anything resembling food. He's irritable, unpredictable, and always in search of something that can sate him.

His desperation has led him to eat all sorts of plants, mushrooms, bark, and otherwise considered inedible animals to curb the pain. Because of this, he can tell you just about what any plant does to a cat and can identify them easily. While Quarry and River cats have experts among themselves, if something is truly unusual, they may resort to tracking down Bite to find out. Though, he may eat the sample or otherwise demand payment in food.

Bite is similar to the polyphage Tarrare, a frenchman who is suspected to have had endocrine issues that caused him to eat unspeakable things. Similar to Tarrare, Bite runs hot, and has an unspeakable odour to him.

Bite is also similar to Atchoum (pictured at top of post) and is a cat with hypertrichosis, a disorder that causes fast and thick hair growth as well as fast growing, thick claws. Atchoum is a faceclaim for Bite, though Atchoum is much more mild mannered and sweet

[catciety]

GIVEN NAMES AND their nature lend to a youth culture among cats who are coming of age. In order to ensure they dont get stuck with a lame name, often take to daring or excessive exploits to earn a name they may have in mind. Climbing the highest tree they can find, killing a strange or powerful animal, racing across a frozen lake as it breaks, trying to solve a community problem to be a hero and earn a name they can take pride in.. though adults understand they dont necessarily encourage this as it usually ends up being dangerous, deadly, obstructive, or embarrassing. but usually do not intervene unless it could be deadly. not every adolescent cares, but enough do to have cats understand "oh well, you know theyre of that age" when they see aberrant behavior of cats that just stopped being kittens.

The behavior is rarely rewarding, though, as its based off of what people know or think or see of you.

One prime example is of a Quarry cat that wanted to climb the highest tree they could and kill a bird mid flight, but they simply fell out of the tree. this exploit was remembered, and they earned the name Acorn... as it was an Oak tree they fell from.

most names that come from exciting or significant events are unpredictable, as you can never know when these events happen, and are often earned in adulthood due to statistical probability (see Hawkrider or Lakebreaker) (a cat that lives to 20 will only have 5% of their life spent under 1 year old)

[catciety]

River Cats (needlefelters, weavers, cultivate in riverbed for nutrient not found in meat, make various dyes, have access to crawdads, fish, fish oil (not by reduction but by purification) often plagued by variety of other animals as any freshwater source draws life + megafauna, have easy access to clay and shells )

Quarry Cats (have access to fire from coal mine that caught fire and burns low for decades (similar to centralia, pennsylvania; Brennender Berg, germany; or mount wingen, Australia) cure deerhides, fire clay, and have subsect Deer Cats that are part of commune

subsect Deer Cats (historically important, shifting point where cats at point of desperation + starvation in winter many years ago learned to hunt deer a la intensive coordinated effort similar to humans trying to hunt a mammoth. still difficult but involves separating deer from herd and driving into a chokepoint where it may injure/trap itself. excess of food from being able to hunt deer allowed for downtime and diversification of occupations, discovery and prosperity afterwards celebrated every winter in remembrance. current Deer Cats are not familial line but composed of cats who are willing/desire to learn, will leave camp for extended periods of time in tight knit hunting parties and have no obligations on return as this is a dangerous and incredibly important job)

Tree Cats (ropemakers, nest makers, "commune" with ravens, seasonal and independent, composed of ex quarry cats and river cats most often who did not care for social closeness, incredible balance, have many human trinkets due to birds bringing it back. have eggs, poultry, feathers, talons to offer. amateur cartographers, often winter in river outpost or quarry, regarded as irresponsible, incompetent by some)

Wanderers (any other form of cat. from housecats to families who live on their own to wandering toms to Bite)

[catciety]

a cat needs no name as a conversation between two cats can be held with no names of participants and with relation descriptors (my child, my partner, my parent, my littermate) but as locations are filled with more distantly related cats the descriptors became a little wordy- my parents littermates partners littermates ex partner- "who?" oh you know — The Tabby Tom

and that takes the place of what we think of as names, descriptors of appearance or notable things theyve done or what "job" they typically do

these names are descriptive and can change but don't do so quickly or without reason, no one gets to pick this name and it's incidentally assigned to them by public opinion (see Lakebreaker becoming Mama Duck and her opinions on that)

this is the second name that a cat typically has. the only other time they have to be differentiated is at birth, as most cats are born in litters with more than one caretaker who need to communicate regarding the kitten. this is their baby name picked by the parent or caretaker and not shared with anyone besides those immediately involved in taking care of the kitten

baby names are not known by most but as they are only used by those close to you, typically a cat will share their baby name as an adult only with their partner for a term of endearment, though your child calling you your babyname is not normal, or borderline disrespectful.

Baby names are usually simple or monosyllabic: Leaf, Rain, Deer, Puff, little orange,

Given names are jokes, phrases, simple, stories, or physical descriptors: Old Tally Tom, Lakebreaker, Earpiece, Bite, Halftail, Hawkrider, Acorn (because she fell out of a tree,) Yowler, Sevensneeze (will always sneeze seven times in a row)