why are domesticated cats smaller than domesticated dogs when in the wild cats are larger than wolves???

Question

In the wild, cats (lions, tigers,etc.) are larger than dogs ( dingos, wolves,etc) ,while when domesticated it is the other way around.Why is that?

Answer 1

i dont know the answer. i just wanted to say this is a very good question. and no one has really answered it yet. cause OVERALL domestic cats are smaller than dogs. and OVERALL wild cats are larger than dogs wild or domestic. unless the thing about cats living indoors and dogs living outdoors.

Answer 2

Bobcats, lynx, wildcats, Jennings cats, caracals (or however they're spelled), and different wild felines closely regarding our famous felis domesticus are all instead small. The biggest of these - bobcats and lynx, simplest get to 60-70 pounds ... A long way smaller than a full-grown wolf. The truth is that any feline a lot bigger than that would see humans as advantage prey - cougars, jaguars, leopards, cheetahs, lions and tigers all were known to kill and consume humans every so often. So in making a choice on a species to cultivate, we opted for the smaller cats. Hope that helps.

Answer 3

Bobcats, lynx, wildcats, Jennings cats, caracals (or however they're spelled), and other wild felines closely related to our well-known felis domesticus are all rather small. The largest of these - bobcats and lynx, only get to 60-70 pounds ... far smaller than a full-grown wolf.
The fact is that any feline much larger than that would see humans as potential prey - cougars, jaguars, leopards, cheetahs, lions and tigers all have been known to kill and eat humans from time to time. So in choosing a species to domesticate, we opted for the smaller cats.
Hope that helps.

Answer 4

Two reasons:
1) They were bred thatt way. It's called selective breeding for a reason, and it's the same reason there are dogs small enough to fit in a bag, and
2) That's not necessarily true. MOST wildcats are smaller than dogs; such as the North American Lynx, the Ocelot, the clouded leopard, and a whole host of others. The big ones are just seen more in pop culture and the media.

If you don't believe me, check this out:
http://messybeast.com/small-wildcats.htm

Answer 5

Well, wild dogs live in packs, meaning they have more members to hunt with. Wild cats, except lions, live solitary, meaning they have to take on prey alone.

For example, one female lion can do about the same job at 8 spotted hyena (not a dog, but close enough!)

Lions live in packs because the prey they take down is large even for big cat standards. Think water buffalo.

Answer 6

Not all wild cats are larger than dogs - the lynx and bobcat are both smaller than wolves.

Answer 7

it is an adaptation ,in wild cats are hunting a variety of prey big animals(it is about the way of hunting)they hunt ALONE,the wolves are hunting as a team also big animals but they(animals) are outnumbered by wolves. domestic cats and dogs are different because near human houses dogs and cats lives different .....figure you how? challenge is on!!!!!!

Answer 8

It's because of the breed of animal your looking at. Yes, dogs are not as big as lions, tigers, etc..., but look at asian leopards, jungle cats, and such as those. They are much smaller than dogs.

Answer 9

the domestic cats were bred down from small wild cats....not huge cats such as lions and tigers.

Answer 10

the environments in which they live determines their size. lions live in big open areas and are huge, but there are bobcats which are small. wolves live in dense forests, but they arent that small. they are bigger than average dogs for sure. it just depends on where they live.