They evolved from reptiles the size of house cats.

 

They evolved from reptiles the size of house cats.

From around 244 to 242 million years ago, small yet agile reptiles known as dinosauromorphs rapidly increased and spread across the world.

While they were far too small to come even close to the top of the food chain, they were speedy enough to escape predators for long enough to evolve into dinosaurs!

So how did cats become our purring feline friends? Perhaps a kind-hearted hunter came across a lonely litter of kitties mewling in the forest and brought them home. While this makes for a sweet story, it doesn't synch up with what really happened. For thousands of years, cats had no real need for humans—and vice versa—so we generally went our own ways.

But that changed as we began settling down into flourishing agricultural communities in an area called the Fertile Crescent, which stretches from the Nile River to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. There humans were able to grow and store plentiful amounts of grain. And all of that grain began to attract mice. Lots of mice. These mice, in turn, drew cats who were pleased to discover an abundant and relatively easy to hunt food source.