Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin (ISSN 0178 – 6288) . Number 116, August 2014, pp. 1-23. | Page 17

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Domestic Cat (Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758)
‫عن أبً قتادة - رضً هللا عنه - أن رسول هللا - صلى هللا علٌه وسلم - قال فً الهرة: إنها لٌست‬
. ‫بنجس ، إنما هً من الطوافٌن علٌكم . أخرجه األربعة ، وصححه الترمذي وابن خزٌمة‬
َّ
ُ َّ َ
. 65 ‫طوافونَ علَ ٌْكم بعضكم علَى بعض . سورة النور . آٌة‬
ٍ َْ َ ُْ ُ َْ ُْ َ

A Domestic Cat (Felis catus) lying outside the Sacred Mosque (Al-Masjid Al-Haram) in
Makkah Al-Mukarramah. Photo by the author. 03.01.2014.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/50022881@N00/12045133016/
.11.210.22 . ‫قطة منزلٌة مستلقٌة خارج الحرم المكً الشرٌف فً مكة المُكرمة . تصوٌر المإلف‬
The Domestic Cat (Felis catus or Felis silvestris catus Linnaeus, 1758)
is a small, usually furry, domesticated, and carnivorous mammal. It is often
called the housecat when kept as an indoor pet, or simply the cat when there is
no need to distinguish it from other felids and felines. Cats are often valued by
humans for companionship and their ability to hunt vermin and household pests
(Wikipedia).
Cats are similar in anatomy to the other felids, with strong, flexible bodies, quick
reflexes, sharp retractable claws, and teeth adapted to killing small prey. Cat
senses fit a crepuscular and predatory ecological niche. Cats can hear sounds too
Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin – Number 116 – August 2014