yo i heard that if you put a cat or if a cat or kitten in near your face it is because it is taking my/your breath away.(stealuing parts of your soul). i thinks thats why they say that cat's have nine lives. i don't know, i have a kitten and i don't let it near my face anymore.
2007-11-01 03:45:23 · 14 answers · asked by xavier T 2 in Pets ➔ Cats
That's an old wives tale. They're smelling the food on your breath. I call it being nosy. My cats have always done that and I have had many felines over the years. Cats also do not have 9 lives....they have one....as evidenced unfortunately by the road kills you see everywhere.
My cats sleep in our bed with us. I have a 14 year old male and a 7 week old kitten right now.
2007-11-01 03:49:58 · answer #1 · answered by Bridey 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cats DO NOT take your breath or steal your soul. It even sounds stupid. I have many cats, have had them all my life, & guess what, I'M STILL HERE, BREATHING & FULL OF SOUL, BABY! Some reasons for that old tale are probably these - (1) Some people hate cats & like to spread stories to cause others to hate them too. (2) Some people are allergic to cats & have asthma - for those people, having a cat in their face might trigger an asthma attack & shortness of breath. But breathing in dust, mold, dog fur, cold air etc might also cause asthma in a person sensitive to that - it is an allergic reaction. (3)There is an "Old Wives Tale" about cats stealing the breath of babies. Please remember up until 50 or 60 years ago, infant mortality rates were very high - babies & children died often - there was no prenatal care, no antibiotics, etc. People didn't know about germs & the need for clean hands & such. Most babies were delivered at homes. Babies delivered by doctorys or in hospitals often had even higher death rates due to unclean deliveries, infection spread, etc.Back then, women were often cautioned to keep a cat away from their baby as it would "suck their breath away". In reality, cats probably were curiously checking out a baby, when coincidentally, it died. Think of why a cat would be attracted to a baby, hmmm . . . . its warm, its lying still, but may be wiggling, it makes soft little noises, & smelling of warm milk. And the baby might have been in a cradle or bassinee or some other small enclosure with sides - what cat wouldn't check that out? So its not hard to believe that a cat might climb in and sniff the baby's mouth with its milk breath, or snuggle up with it for a nap, then the baby be found dead & the cat blamed when it had nothing to do with it. People believe a lot of things that aren't true - its kind of like superstitions. There is usually some basis, like the cat checking out the baby, for the belief, but the REALITY is, is just isn't true.You may snuggle your kitten without fear & even put it in your face (if you don't have allergies) & live to tell about it! And by the way, when something sounds ridiculous, it usually is.
2007-11-01 11:37:02 · answer #2 · answered by j c 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not so. The reason it is said they are stealing your soul or life is that the cat would get in the face of infants to lick the milk around the mouth. This would quite possibly cause the child to gasp or appear to be loosing their breath . There by making someone think the cat was taking the breath and soul of the infant.
2007-11-01 10:54:56 · answer #3 · answered by mtchndjnmtch2000 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you shouldn't have a cat/kitten near your face anyway ... have you ever paused to consider where a cats face has been *pause* ... how does it clean itself *pause* ... there you go ... lots of parents/adults start superstitions as a way to deter children from doing things they shouldn't ... so keeping the cat away from your face is probably one of your better ideas ...
2007-11-01 10:55:28 · answer #4 · answered by Taz 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they say that because when a cat sleeps on your chest they can inadvertently (spelling?) block your nose and or mouth preventing you from being able to breathe...thus the saying steal your breath but no they don't steal your soul....ha ha lmao...they say cats have 9 lives because they often find themselves in sticky situation but somehow get out of them...but trust me, they only have one like everybody else
2007-11-01 10:49:01 · answer #5 · answered by beast 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They don't steal your breath, yes that is just a superstition, that's why? my cat died at a young age, she didn't have nine lives, she had one.
2007-11-01 10:50:12 · answer #6 · answered by criminal_justice2007 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Superstitions are just that- superstitions. They are only believable if you believe in them. Black cats are supposed to be bad luck. We have had a black cat-solid black-for 6 years, now. She had enriched my life tremendously. I have broken mirrors, opened umbrellas indoors, stepped on cracks, walked under ladders, spilled salt, etc, etc, and am still alive 53 years later to tell about it. So kiss your kitty and don't worry about stupid, baseless superstitions. :)
2007-11-01 11:09:55 · answer #7 · answered by porkchop 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They also say cameras do the same thing. I've never heard of a camera with nine lives. Don't be gullible.
2007-11-01 10:47:56 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
thats stupid! the kitty just likes the warmth of your breath.it's not stealing your soul that doesn't even make sense your soul doesn't sneak out when you breathe
2007-11-01 10:49:29 · answer #9 · answered by karen w 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Worst thing that could happen is you get scratched. The superstition is exactly that - superstition & nothing more.
2007-11-01 10:49:05 · answer #10 · answered by the Boss 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋