We opened our homes and our hearts to them a long time ago, but despite what we think we know about our hairball-hacking friends, there's still a ton of misinformation floating around out there that just refuses to go away.

在很久之前，我們就對牠們敞開了我們的家園和心房，但儘管我們以為我們很懂這些吐毛球的朋友們，還是有很多錯誤的資訊漫天飛舞，不曾消散。

"I bet it flattened itself out and went right through a seam in your wall."

「我敢說牠把自己變扁後，直接穿進你牆壁的裂縫了。」

"I don't think there's anything in the laws of nature that would support that."

「我不覺得有任何自然法則支持這個論點。」

"Cats do not abide by the laws of nature, alright?"

「貓不受自然法則限制好嗎？」

Cats love milk.

貓愛喝牛奶。

You'll see this one everywhere.

這句話無所不在。

If there's a cat, they're given a saucer of milk.

如果有貓，就給他們一碟牛奶。

That's what cats like, right?

貓就是喜歡牛奶，對吧？

Well, no.

嗯...不對。

Cats drink milk as kittens, of course - all mammals do when they're young.

小貓會喝奶，沒錯 - 所有哺乳類動物小時候都喝奶。

But once they're weaned off their mother's milk, they stop producing all the enzymes they need to digest the stuff.

但一旦牠們斷奶，牠們就會停止製造消化這些東西需要的所有酶。

Yes, like the nerdiest of nerds, they're lactose intolerant.

是的，就像最書呆子的書呆子一樣，牠們有乳糖不耐症。

There's another problem with milk, too, and that's the fat and calorie content.

牛奶還有另一個問題，就是脂肪和卡路里的含量。

Give a cat a saucer of milk as big as their head, and that's like you sitting down and eating a gallon of full-fat ice cream with some extra fat for good measure.

給貓一個跟牠們的頭一樣大的牛奶碟，就像你坐著吃掉一加侖全脂冰淇淋，加上一些額外的脂肪。

They still might like the actual taste of milk though, which is why they make lactose-free, low-fat cat milk.

牠們可能還是喜歡牛奶本身的口味，所以才會有無乳糖、低脂的貓咪牛奶。

For cats, not from cats.

給貓的，不是從貓身上擠出來的。

"I had no idea you could milk a cat."

「我不知道你可以餵貓喝奶。」

"Oh yeah, you can milk anything with nipples."

「喔，只要有乳頭，你什麼都可以餵。」

Keeping the balance

保持平衡

Popular belief says that whiskers are tied to a cat's sense of balance, which isn't exactly the case.

人們普遍認為鬍鬚跟貓的平衡感有關，但並非完全如此。

Instead, those delicate little feelers are used for navigation and sensory perception.

這些精細的小觸鬚其實用於導航和感官知覺。

A cat's whiskers are made of the same material that makes up other animals' horns: keratin.

貓的鬍鬚其實與其他動物角的構成物質相同：角蛋白。

They're connected to the cat's face through a whole bunch of nerves, and they can feel the changes in the air that happen as they get closer to walls and other obstacles, which helps them get around just a little more deftly than humans.

它們與貓咪臉上許多神經相連，貓咪可以在接近牆壁和其他障礙物時，感覺到空氣的變化，這讓牠們在活動時比人類更敏捷。

Feet first

腳先著地

Your feline friend might land on their feet most of the time, but not always.

你的貓科朋友可能大多數時間都是腳先著地，但不是每次都如此。

Cats can twist their spines in a way that would kill a human.

貓可以用某種方式扭動他們的脊椎，人如果也這麼做的話可能因此送命。

When a cat jumps, their sense of balance aligns the front half of their body, while their twisty spine snaps into action and reflexively aligns the back half for a safe landing.

當貓跳起時，他們的平衡感會與身體的前半部相對齊，但牠們扭轉的脊椎會突然動作，並反射性地將身體後半部也對齊，以便安全著地。

Even though it's a reflex, it still takes time.

即使這是反射動作，仍需要點時間。

If a cat falls from a low height, they might not have time to flip completely, and they'll land on their side.

如果貓從較低的地方墜落，牠們可能沒有時間完全翻轉，就會變成側面著地。

Loners and rebels

孤獨者與叛逆者

It's unsurprising that cats absolutely can survive on their own and almost always hunt alone.

貓完全可以獨自生活，並幾乎總是獨自打獵這件事並不令人意外。

But when they do gather in groups, they form close-knit relationships that often revolve around a core group of females.

但他們聚集成群時，他們會建立起密切的關係，通常圍繞著由母貓組成的核心團體。

Not only do feral cats gather in colonies, but they share responsibilities, team up in raising each others' kittens, and they even have best friends.

貓咪不只是聚居在一起，他們還共同分擔責任、分組互相照顧小貓，他們甚至有摯友。

Cats in feral colonies usually pair off and hang out together, spend a huge amount of time grooming and greeting each other.

野外的貓在團體中通常會成雙成對行動，花許多時間互相理毛和問候。

It's thought that all that grooming isn't just about getting clean, either, but that it's a way to mingle everyone's scents into a colony odor that identifies each individual as a part of the group.

人們認為，理毛不只是為了變乾淨，也是將所有貓的氣味融合成團體的氣味，讓每隻貓可以被辨認為團體一員的方式。

Fur vs. personality

毛色 vs. 個性

If you want a little love bug, get an orange cat.

如果你想要黏人的貓，養橘貓。

If you want someone to cast spells with, get a black cat.

如果你想對誰施法術，養黑貓。

It's a common belief that certain colors are associated with certain personality traits.

人們常將特定的毛色與特定的性格特質連結。

Researchers at UC Berkeley took a look at whether a cat's fur color has any affect on their personality and found nothing to support this popular myth.

柏克萊加大的研究員研究了貓的毛色是否對牠們的個性有任何影響，結果並未找到任何論點支持這項迷思。

What they did find, though, was that the belief is so firmly entrenched in the collective consciousness that light-colored cats are considered friendlier, so they get adopted more often.

他們發現的反而是，這個迷思在大家的潛意識中如此強烈，淺色的貓被認為較友善，所以他們比較容易被領養。

Cats are picked on appearance rather than personality, and when that belief doesn't prove true, they're often returned.

人們挑選貓咪是依據外觀，而不是他們的個性。當這樣的信念不被證實時，貓咪常被退回。

So whatever you do, don't judge a cat by its color.

所以不管怎麼樣，不要以貌取貓。

Keeping the claws

留著爪子

People think declawing is a painless process, sort of like getting your nails cut permanently.

人們以為去爪的過程是無痛的，就像永久性地剪好指甲了。

Not quite.

並不是。

Contrary to popular belief, declawing is much worse than it sounds.

與多數人認為的相反，去爪手術比聽起來還糟。

The procedure removes part of the cat's paws, and the human equivalent of the same procedure would be cutting off each and every one of your fingers at the first joint.

過程中會移除貓掌的一部分，差不多等同於切掉人類每一隻手指的第一指節。

A whole bunch of medical problems are associated with declawing as well, like permanent nerve damage and bone spurs that make it painful for the cat to even walk.

多不勝數的健康問題也與去爪有關，像是永久性的神經損害，以及讓貓疼痛到甚至無法走路的骨刺。

There's plenty of short-term horribleness, too, like bleeding paws and a high rate of infection.

還有許多短期的可怕後果，像是腳掌流血以及感染的高風險。

People who think it's a good idea to get a cat declawed often say they do it to put an end to things like scratching the furniture or scratching humans.

覺得去爪是個好點子的人，通常都說他們這麼做是因為可以解決貓抓家具或人的問題。

While they might not be scratching anymore, they still have teeth, and they will use them.

他們可能永遠沒辦法再抓東西，但他們還有牙齒，他們會使用牙齒。

Cats are standoffish.

貓很冷漠

People study cat behavior for a living, and yes, they work at real universities.

人們以研究貓的行為維生，對，他們在真的大學裡工作。

They've found cats are every bit as affectionate and loving as dogs—they just don't express it the same way.

他們發現貓在各方面都跟狗一樣充滿感情—只是他們表達愛的方式跟狗不一樣。

Researchers point to a few key findings when it comes to cat affection.

研究員指出幾項貓表達愛的關鍵指標。

Purring has traditionally been interpreted as happiness, but it's closer to a cat asking you to keep doing whatever you're doing.

呼嚕在傳統上被解讀為快樂，但呼嚕的意思比較接近貓要求你繼續你現在在做的事。

When they rub against you, it's the cat equivalent of giving you a big hug, and how adorable is that?

當他們磨蹭你，在貓界來說，這等於給你一個大大的擁抱。是不是很惹人憐愛？

There's also the slow blink, which means they're totally comfortable with you being around.

還有緩慢地眨眼，這代表他們在你身邊感到非常自在。

They also found out that every cat and owner has their own super-secret language, which was discovered during a study that found an owner could tell exactly what a cat was saying, but only if it was their own cat.

他們也發現每隻貓和每位飼主都有他們獨有的極秘密語言，在研究中發現飼主完全明白貓想表達什麼，但必須是他們自己的貓才行。

So, there you have it - not only are cats affectionate, but they like you so much they develop a secret language just to talk to you.

所以，現在你知道了，貓不只充滿感情，他們如此喜歡你，甚至發展出一種秘密的語言，只為了跟你說話。

If that's not love, we don't know what is.

如果這不是愛，我們不知道還能是什麼。

Thanks for watching!

感謝觀看！

Click the Grunge icon to subscribe to our YouTube channel.

按下 Grunge 按鈕訂閱我們的 YouTube 頻道。

Plus check out all this cool stuff we know you'll love, too!

也看看這些很酷的東西，我們知道你也會喜歡！