Why do cats have less fur on their heads?

December 31, 2008 1:15 PM

Why do cats have less fur in front of their ears?

I've noticed that both of my cats have noticeably less fur from the front of their ears to the tops of where their eyebrows would be than on the rest of their body. Why is this?

posted by youcancallmeal to Pets & Animals (11 answers total)

I think this is the case with many animals. My guess is that it's partly so they can see (keeps wet hair out of their faces and ears), and partly to keep their fur cleaner when they dive face-first into animals they're eating.
posted by pseudostrabismus at 1:25 PM on December 31, 2008

Domestic cats rely very much upon their hearing when hunting. There might be an evolutionary advantage, however small, to their ears being less obstructed than they would be were there a "normal" amount of fur in front of them.
posted by Flunkie at 1:28 PM on December 31, 2008

To hear better. It's evolution, baby.
posted by watercarrier at 1:31 PM on December 31, 2008

Hmm, for my old cat, it was a billboard for "scratch here dummy, and dont stop till I beg you!"

But yeah, an evolutionary development for better hearing or vision.
posted by elendil71 at 1:42 PM on December 31, 2008

acoustics. You know how when you walk into your bathroom, or a racquetball room or other similarly barren room, and the sound carries much better? And how radio sound-booths, and voice-over rooms have padded walls to deaden the extra noise? I'm assuming it's the same thing with cat's ears. (from the evolutionary process, or whathave you)

More fur near the ears would dampen sound, and for survival, felines need excellent hearing.

(I'm no vet, or biologist, but I know sound, so that's my assumption...)
posted by hasna at 1:43 PM on December 31, 2008

Don't they also have glands just below this area (near the outer corners of their eyes), as well? I've always wondered if there was less hair so that more scent could be distributed to whatever they're rubbing against, rather than staying in the hair.

The hearing thing sounds more likely, though.
posted by illflux at 1:53 PM on December 31, 2008

I thought this was the spot they rub on you to mark you as theirs.
posted by HotToddy at 1:53 PM on December 31, 2008

With my black cat, it's definitely an attempt to look like she has huge eyes while she's asleep.
posted by fish tick at 2:42 PM on December 31, 2008 [2 favorites]

I believe the technical term is negative eyebrows.
posted by Lord_Pall at 8:58 PM on December 31, 2008 [3 favorites]

As fish tick says, I've always heard it was to make it look like they had their eyes open when they were sleeping. On my 2 cats it's significantly more noticeble on the black one that it is on the little ginger furball of death.
posted by onoj at 11:10 AM on January 1, 2009

It am godz falt.
posted by JimN2TAW at 1:06 PM on January 1, 2009