The history of cat domestication

For years, the dominant theory was that cats were domesticated around 10,000 years ago. The oldest known burial of a cat comes from Cyprus, where a human and a cat were buried together 9,500 years ago. Cat bones also have been found buried in 5,300-year-old refuse pits in China.

However, genetic evidence is starting to emerge suggesting cats may have been domesticated much later than 10,000 years ago. Today's domestic cats descend from Felis silvestris lybica, a wildcat subspecies found in Africa and the Middle East. Yet new genetic data indicate that many of the very early specimens identified as domestic cats — including the 9,500-year-old cat from Cyprus and other early cats from Europe and the Levant — were not the direct ancestors of today's housebound felines. Instead, these ancient felines may actually be European wildcats (​​Felis silvestris) that humans killed for food or pelts.

Instead, the researchers believe domestication took place somewhere in North Africa — potentially ancient Egypt, around the first millennium B.C.

Cats took on a starring role in ancient Egypt. Egyptians treasured cats' protectiveness and independence and saw the traits of their gods in cats. Cats were sometimes even mummified lovingly next to their deceased owners, but they were also sacrificed in large numbers during religious rituals. Bastet, a feline-headed goddess, was worshipped as a protector and as a deity of pregnancy and childbirth.

From ancient Egypt, domestic cats may have taken over Europe and beyond after Alexander the Great's conquest of much of the continent, after around 323 B.C., newer evidence suggests.

Related: Why were the ancient Egyptians obsessed with cats?

You might hear that cats "domesticated themselves." This is because ancient wildcats likely chose to hang around human agricultural settlements, resulting in a mutually beneficial relationship between cats and humans. These settlements provided ample food and shelter for cats.

Because the cats helped keep vermin at bay, the people who inhabited these settlements tolerated — and eventually welcomed — cats' presence. Whereas humans domesticated dogs through artificial selection by breeding for desirable traits, domestic cats evolved simply through natural selection, as friendlier and more docile cats thrived in close contact with humans.

Cats are not as domesticated as dogs are. Whereas cats were domesticated about 10,000 years ago, genetic evidence suggests that dogs were domesticated between 14,000 and 30,000 years ago. It's still up for debate exactly how and why some wild wolves evolved into friendly house pets, but it is clear that humans have spent much more time and effort shaping the genetic makeup of domestic dogs.

In fact, scientists say that even today, cats are "only just" domesticated. Many domestic cats are actually feral, meaning they live outside of human captivity and can fend for themselves. Feral cats and house cats also regularly interbreed, so house cats retain many of their "wild" instincts.

People also bred domestic dogs for thousands of years based on their skills and personalities, whereas humans started breeding domestic cats only within the past few centuries. This means dogs' temperaments tend to be more predictable and aligned with human needs than cats'.

Even now, modern-day cats are categorized primarily by appearance. Although appearance is also a factor in canine breeding, historically, abilities such as tracking game, herding sheep and guarding property were more important.