Why Do Cats Have Whiskers?

Ever wondered why does your fluff ball have extremely long, mesmerizing and uniquely designed, dainty whiskers? What makes whiskers a part of the feline’s anatomy? Also while certain supremely adorable felines have moustache as magnificent as the great Victorian gentleman, there are several more who have sweet and short whiskers, but the baffling question that yet remains unanswered is that why do cats even have whiskers?

Well here we bring to you a thoroughly detailed article that is a must read for cat parents and all the ailurophiles out there, as it would help you understand the uniquely structured bodies of your feline companions, and would greatly assist you solve the mystery behind your cat’s pristine, white long whiskers.

Following are the mind- boggling reasons why your cat has whiskers –

• A cat’s whiskers are absolutely multifunctional, and are an indispensable part of a cat’s anatomy. The most cardinal function of a cat’s whiskers is as a sensory tool. The very word ‘whiskers’ has its primary genesis from a Latin word, that is ‘vibrio’, which means to vibrate, and you would be surprised to know that the minuscule tip of a cat’s whiskers has a sensory organ that is known as a proprioceptor, and also the invisible nerves are abundantly loaded in a cat’s hair follicle. Cats hence use their whiskers as a primary, vital sense organ to scan and thereby understand their surrounding This also makes a cat an incredibly sensitive animal, who solely via her whiskers can fathom all the unfelt vibrations or any unnoticeable changes in her surroundings.

Furthermore, it is pertinent to mention that unlike a cat’s normal hair fur, her whiskers are extremely deep rooted in the inner layers of the skin, that thereby intricately links the nervous and the muscular system. Whiskers are hence used for sending across any sensory message to the tiny, albeit smartly designed brain of your feline companion, and she hence uses her whiskers to not only tickle you whilst you are asleep, but as also mentioned above, your feline friend uses her whiskers as a major sensory organ to gauge and evaluate her immediate surroundings.

• It is also rightly said that an animal has six senses because your munchkin’s tender whiskers are capable of fathoming even the vibrations in the thin invisible air. A cat’s whiskers can detect the smallest of directional change in an air breeze.
• Whiskers for a cat are hence of paramount importance as it not only helps them scrutinize their immediate surroundings, but it also helps your kitty measure distances, and her long whiskers even helps her in chasing down preys. These whiskers hence act as a cat’s puissant radar that assist them in sensing the most unpredictable
• Whiskers act as a knight on a white charger for your sweet kittens who literally have these whiskers as a night vision aid, and its the whiskers that helps your sweet kitty smoothly move around, without bumping or falling into anything during the dark nights. Also unlike what we think, a cat’s close up vision isn’t great and they can hence not easily see anything that is less than 30cms ahead of them. Cats ergo use their majestic whiskers to navigate through their eclectic surroundings. They would primarily make use of their whiskers for touching against any object so as to determine its size and texture prior to bumping into

Also air currents of a room are absolutely different at different places, depending on where the household furniture is placed, and it is by virtue of these powerful whiskers that a cat can evaluate her immediate surroundings along with the air currents, and these whiskers even detect and tell her smart brain as to where things are.

• Whiskers act as a cat’s guardians and help her navigate her way through the darkest of nights, and midst the darkest of the dark dells.

• Also cats have 24 whiskers in total that is evenly divided in two sets across their beautiful muzzle, and this equal division and symmetrical distribution helps a cat scrupulously analyse her environment to a
• A kitty’s whiskers also act as a buffer to protect the sensitive spots such as her face and her charming eyes from any sudden injuries. The whiskers that your furball has around her eyes respond to the most tiniest of touch, and these whiskers immediately detect all sharp or perilous objects around, thereby rendering the mandatory protection to a cat’s eyes and face. Whiskers are considered absolutely brilliant in helping a kitty understand how tiny or small any space is.
• Whiskers can also give us an insight of how our kitty feels, it helps us understand her demure and usually shy, introvert nature. If a kitty’s whiskers are in their innate position, and not spread across her face and cheeks, that signifies that your kitty is calm, and content, and is feeling relaxed. However on the contrary, if your beloved cat’s whiskers are spread all her face, this alludes to the fact that she might be feeling threatened, and is intimidated by some object, certain change, another new pet animal or as a result of any such unsolicited intrusion in her
• A cat’s whiskers should hence not be trimmed at all, this is a complete no no! As loving masters, we should never ever cut or trim our kitty’s whiskers. Whiskers are a vital sense organ of your kitty, and in case trimmed, your kitty might get extremely stressed and disoriented. Your feline companion would feel disoriented as she might not be able to fathom her surrounding environment. However in case your kitty’s whiskers naturally fall off, you don’t have to fret about it as whiskers always grow back, but trimming or cutting a cat’s whiskers is considered absolutely off limits, and is completely forbidden. Please let your cat be her natural self!

• We sincerely hope that this blog was worth a read, however should you have any further doubts or queries, please feel free to contact our expert cat behaviourist and experienced professionals at.