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VideoMEDIASPOTLIGHT

CrazyCatsDomesticcatsarejustfollowingtheirnaturalinstincts

QUESTIONS

Domesticcatshavethesameinstinctsasbigcatsinthewild.Whatinstinctualbehaviorscandomesticcatsnotusuallypractice?DomesticcatscannotusuallyactonwhatSteve,thepetexpert,calls"thepreydrive"—stalkingandhunting.

Animalbehaviorexpertssaymost"crazycats"arejustbored.Whatdotheyrecommendtopetowners?Animalbehaviorexpertsrecommendthatcatownersgivetheirpetsplentytodo—toys,games,andhiddenfood.Thisgivesthecatsan"outletfortheirwildnature."

VOCABULARY

domesticanimal noun animalthathasbeentamedforworkortobeapet.

domesticate verb totameoradaptforhumanuse.

pet noun animalkeptasahelperorcompanion.

ForFurtherExploration

ImagesNationalGeographicKids:CatandKittenPictures

InteractivesNationalGeographicMagazine:Cats—PlansforPerfection

WebsitesNationalGeographicAnimals:DomesticCat

Forthecompletevideoswithmediaresources,visit:http://education.nationalgeographic.com/media/crazy-cats/

CatsarethemostpopularpetsinAmerica,butsomedomesticatedfelineshaveahardtimeadjustingtothegreatindoors.Yowling,pacingandrippingupthefurnituremightseemlikesymptomsofkittyhysteria,butWildChroniclesrevealsthatthesecatsaren’tcrazy—they'rejustmisunderstood.

Term PartofSpeech Definition

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