These myths about our feline friends will surely live on, despite explanations to the contrary.

By Karen Commings

Cats have spent more than 5,000 years living with humans. But no matter how advanced twenty-first century veterinary medicine and feline care have become, some old ideas persist about our feline friends.

Cats can see in the dark. Cats have always been credited with seeing things people can’t, and in low light that’s certainly true. “Cats can’t see in total darkness,” says Thomas Kern, DVM of Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. But they can see in only one-sixth the amount of light that a human requires. The light-sensitive part of the eye, the retina, contains two kinds of photoreceptors — cones and rods. Cones help the eye define color and…

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