So, you're saying that cats weren't always our pets? 
So, you're saying that cats weren't always our pets?
Yes. A long time ago they were wild animals, like raccoons or bears are today. They had to catch their own food (imagine Garfield having to hunt!) and lived in the wild.
Then how did they get to be pets?
It all started around 10,000 B.C. (that's a LONG time ago!). Early humans had just begun to live
on farms and raise crops. But all that food attracted rodents, like mice! And that in turn,
attracted wild cats! 
Then did they become our pets?
No, not yet. For a time, they were what were called wild visitors. That's a fancy term for any wild animal that lives near humans and benefits from their prescence. Try it out on your teacher sometime and see if they're impressed! Basically, the cats remained wild and lived close to people's homes, eating the rodents that were attracted by people's crops. The cats benefitted because they got food, and the humans benefitted because the cats saved THEIR food from being eaten.
OK, OK, when did they go from being wild visitors to pets?
We're not quite sure. The earliest cat remains associated with humans was found at an archaeological site in the city of Jericho. Those remains dated all the way back to 6700 B.C.! Other cat remains have been found in the Indus Valley that date from 2000 B.C. and in Cyprus which date from 5000 B.C. The problem is, we don't know if they were still wild at that time or living with the humans as pets.
The first clear evidence of cats becoming pets is found in Egypt and dates from around 2500 B.C.
In the tomb of one of the Pharaohs, archaeologists found a statue of a cat, and it was wearing
a collar! Everybody knows you can't put a collar on a wild animal (try putting a collar on a
lion sometime and see how far you get!), so the cat must have been tame.
Cats must have left quite an impression on the Egyptians, because roughly 500 years later, we
see the Egyptians worshipping the cat goddess Bastet! 
The Tomb of the Chihuahua Pharoahs Friends of the National Zoo Kids' Page
Animal Photos from the National Zoo
Have fun, explore, and enjoy!
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