How to give the best food for cats and what their whiskers are for

Whether or not you have a cat at home, you have probably wondered what their whiskers are for. They are one of the most outstanding characteristics of the cat's facial anatomy and it may seem like a mystery that these rigid hairs that cats have on their faces have such important functions. That is why we want to explain to you how these are basic to help them complete the perception of their environment, to function with ease in the outside environment and to be able to communicate better.

Here are some of the characteristics and functions of cats' cute whiskers.

How and where does a cat have whiskers?

There is no better way to take care of your pet than to give him the best cat food so that he has all the necessary nutrients to lead a healthy and balanced lifestyle. However, there is one aspect that we often forget to take care of: mustaches. Their more technical name is 'vibrissae' and cats have between eight and twelve of these stiff, mobile hairs on each side of their nose. But these whiskers are not only on their snout - where they reach their greatest length - but in some cases they also appear above the eyes, in the chin area, under the ears or on the back of the little one's legs. feline.

Highly sensitive hair

The type of hair that forms the mustache is very different from that which covers the rest of the animal's body. It is a much thicker hair, with many nerve receptors and to which an important blood supply reaches. That's why cat whiskers are so sensitive to any object or vibration, even small air currents. Thus, the vibrissae fulfill a radar function regarding the environment in which your furry companion moves.

Sensors to see better

Cats' whiskers act as a kind of sensors for them. Cats' eyes are specialized in detecting prey at medium and long distances, so at short distances they have more vision problems. In this way, the whiskers compensate for these deficiencies in proximity by offering the animal tactile stimuli that give it a three-dimensional image of the object in front of it. In low light environments or at night, whiskers are also your faithful ally to orient yourself and know where you should move.

Perception of spaces

In most cases, except in overweight cats , the whiskers protrude from the face to a width that matches that of the feline's body. In this way, when a cat thinks about exploring any hole or corner, it will first evaluate its size with its whiskers and know if it fits in the hole or not. And let's explore!

Avoid obstacles

As with spaces, the high sensitivity of cats' whiskers allows them to detect all types of objects, obstacles or walls that may get in their way. When something approaches the feline's face, it will detect it with its vibrissae and will be able to avoid a possible collision.

Communication tool

You could say that a kitten's whiskers have their own language. You should pay attention to their position to know the mood of your feline companion since they can reflect whether they are calm, alert or even angry. We give you some keys:

• Falling to the sides and relaxed: your kitty is calm.
• Forward and more tense: you are in a state of alert.
• Almost glued to the face: their state is anger, tension or discomfort.

Take care of their mustaches

As you can see, these nice and characteristic hair extensions for your cat are essential for their daily life, to orient themselves, see and avoid any accident. That is why you should never cut its length as this would cause it to not measure distances correctly, which could also affect it emotionally.

If for any reason you detect that your cat's whiskers are falling out a lot - during shedding it is normal for the animal to lose some whiskers - this may be a symptom of some type of allergy, parasites or stress that it may be suffering from. If you see that this happens frequently, do not hesitate to consult with your veterinarian to check that everything in the health of your furry little one is following its course correctly and do not forget to always give him the best cat food to keep your pet healthy and happy.