I know cats and dogs have hair but muskrats and coons and fox have fur. What makes it different
2006-12-26 07:08:50 · 4 answers · asked by Larry m 6 in Sports ➔ Outdoor Recreation ➔ Hunting
The term fur refers to the body hair of non-human mammals also known as the pelage (like the term plumage in birds). Fur comes from the coats of animals; the animal's coat may consist of short ground hair, long guard hair, and, in some cases, medium awn hair. Not all mammals have fur; animals without fur may be referred to as "naked", as in The Naked Ape and naked mole rat.
Fur usually consists of two main layers:
Ground hair or underfur — the bottom layer consisting of wool hairs which tend to be shorter, flattened, curly and denser than the top layer.
Guard hair — the top layer consisting of longer straight shafts of hair that stick out through the underfur. This is usually the visible layer for most mammals and contains most of the pigmentation.
Hair is a filamentous outgrowth of dead cells from the skin, found only in mammals. Although many other life forms, especially insects, show filamentous outgrowths, these are not considered "hair" regarding the accepted meaning of the term.
The primary component of hair fiber is keratin. Keratins are proteins, long chains (polymers) of amino acids. Keratin proteins form the cytoskeleton (miniature skeleton within a cell) of all epidermal cells. Keratin filaments run within a cell from the inside of the outer membrane to weave a "basket" around the nucleus of the cell. Keratins are a principle part of the cells in the epidermis, hair, nails, feathers, hooves, horny tissues and the enamel of teeth.
In some species, it is absent at certain stages of life.It projects from the epidermis, though it grows from hair follicles deep in the dermis. So-called "hairs" (trichomes) are also found on plants. The projections on arthropods, such as insects and spiders are actually insect bristles. The hair of non-human species is commonly referred to as fur. There are varieties of cats, dogs, and mice bred to have little or no visible hair.
2006-12-26 07:16:26 · answer #1 · answered by c0mplicated_s0ul 5 · 1⤊ 2⤋
I love these cut and paste answers.
I hate getting cat hair on me, but yet my cat coughs up furballs???
There is no difference.
2006-12-26 12:35:50 · answer #2 · answered by wall_id_pike 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
what chu talkin' bout willis?
My dog has fur and so does my cat.
So does my coat.
whee
2006-12-26 07:14:26 · answer #3 · answered by Munya Says: DUH! 7 · 3⤊ 2⤋
they both grew on my ex
2006-12-26 07:16:01 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋