Cats always landing on their feet is a common misconception about cats that we’ve all heard many-a-times.
But I’ve seen cats land on their feet! You say. And yes, cats usually land on their feet, but not always.
For most of my childhood, I thought that cats did indeed land on their paws every time until one of my cats landed on their side after falling a foot and a half off of our porch. I imagine it didn’t feel very good. Luckily, he was uninjured.
How Do Cats Land on Their Feet?
Cats have an ability called “righting reflex” that helps them quickly determine which way is up and turn themselves around to land-you guessed it-on their feet. The vestibular apparatus, located in the ear, is what gives the cat this righting reflex.
Cats have a very flexible spine that enables them to rotate their body speedily.
Cats’ legs are very muscular, and can help absorb impact to soften their landing.
This is very effective, but it doesn’t always work, depending on the height that which the cat is falling.
Cats falling from lower heights are more likely to suffer from injures because of the decreased time they have of correcting their position than a cat falling from a higher distance.
This may seem so foreign, but we have this ability too! It’s just not as advanced or effective as a cats' because we are considerably less flexible and can only rotate our body 90 degrees, whereas a cat can rotate 180 degrees.
What Should I Do If My Cat Falls?
If your cat lands on her feet, she should be fine. But, if she fails to land on her feet, a checkup with your vet is very important because she may have sustained internal injuries.
Works Cited
Jones Meghan, “Do Cats Really Always Land On Their Feet?” Reader’s Digest,
“Do Cats Always Land On Their Feet?” Purina,