Tickle My Whiskers: A Look Into Feline Whiskers

Felines possess many physiological attributes that give them their astounding athletic abilities. But one of their most prominent characteristic that all cats share that helps them maneuver gracefully is the whiskers. They have about 24 movable whiskers on their muzzle, twelve on either side of the nose, arranged in four rows in a pattern as individual as our fingerprints. There are also small groups of whiskers situated on other parts of the body as well: high on the outer edges of the cheeks, and above the eyes.

Shorter whiskers, also known as tylotrich, are specialized hair for sensation and are the large single hairs scattered over the skin and body acting like short whiskers. One example of where the tylotrich can be located are on the back of the front legs. There are many throughout the cat’s body but outside of the knowledge we have for whiskers, little is known about how these are used.

A common mistake people make is assuming that cat whiskers and human hair are alike. However, the facial whiskers, unlike human hair, are actually touch receptors and are twice as thick as the hair on its coat. They are also known as vibrissae, embedded more deeply in the cat’s body than the shorter top-fur coat, are connected to the sensitive muscular and nervous systems under the skin. Being connected to muscle, the whiskers can be moved backwards and forwards at will.