KidZone Animals
Cats: Science

© written by Tasha Guenther

There are many types of cats. The entire biological family of cats is referred to as the Felidae. Within this family, there are three existing subfamilies referred to as, the Pantherinae, the Acinonychinae, and the Felinae.

Within the subfamily Pantherinae, for example, there are lions, tigers, and leopards; within the Acinonychinae, there are cheetahs; and within Felinae there are cats familiar to North America such as the Lynx, the Cougar, and of course, the domestic cat.

However, no matter the subfamily or species, all cats are carnivores. This means they eat meat.

Cats are obligate carnivores – meaning they must eat animal meat to survive. This is probably why, if you have a house cat, he or she doesn’t eat vegetables!