Like their big cat cousins, house cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they have to eat meat to stay healthy. Though they’ve been domesticated for thousands of years, these predators have maintained a strong hunting instinct, relying on stealth to stalk prey and attack with sharp claws and teeth.

Overall, cats became a domesticated companion of humans without changing much, says evolutionary geneticist and article coauthor Eva-Maria Geigl. Domestic cats look similar to wildcats, but they aren’t solitary, tolerating both humans and other cats.

An in-depth look at the science and culture surrounding the topic of cat domestication and wild animals. There are actually people who see the domestic cat ( Felis silvestris catus) as not domesticated, or essentially a so-called wild animal.