Indeed, when discussing evolutionary transformations in animals initiated by humans, the organisms that come to mind most often are those that interact with Homo sapiens. This includes symbiotic microorganisms and pets, particularly cats. The cat, Felis catus, is a domesticated animal that has lived with humans for thousands of years. The owner feeds, treats, cares for, and cares for the pet, and it is these actions, combined with the duration of this bond, that become predictors of evolutionary change. A likely reason for the beginning of the domestication of Felis catus was to help cats with the problem of rodents that were destroying agricultural supplies (Smith, 2019).
In turn, such a quid pro quo relationship may have caused a change in the attitudes of feral cats toward human communities, resulting in Felis catus going from being independent, self-reliant animals to pets that are highly dependent on their host. In addition, changes are also noticeable on the physical level: domestic cats (except for specific breeds) are always smaller in size and have smaller teeth and shorter tails. In addition, sources report that the presence of spotted fur combined with short cat hair lengths is an artificially derived trait native to the Middle Ages (Smith, 2019). Interestingly, some domestic cat breeds appear to be more resistant to hyperthyroidism, while others are more susceptible (Alborough, 2021).
Changes in exposure to endocrine disease may be related to nutrition or intentional mutational processes (selection). Ultimately, it is a fact that the cat as a biological species has changed over the millennia due to its attachment to human communities. Although comparisons between wild and domestic cats show no radical differences, some of the transformations described in the text are significant evidence of human influence on the evolution of friendly species.
References
Alborough, R. (2021). Investigating the domestic cat’s apparent predisposition to chronic kidney disease and hyperthyroidism. Web.
Smith, C. (2017). Cats domesticated themselves, ancient DNA shows. NG. Web.