2 Answers

All felines, big and small, are known for the amazing, graceful, agile movement. We all know that the cheetah is the fastest land mammal, with running speeds of up to 70 mph. But what about their distant relatives, the less speedy but still agile house cat breeds – how fast can a domestic cat run?

It’s believed that the average house cat tops out at a speed of around 30 mph (45 km/hour), beaten by the cheetah and the rest of the large cat species as well. Not too surprising, as hunting down a gazelle requires much more speed than honing in on a rodent. Some have surmised that the centuries of domestication have altered the small house cats physiology – as sprinting to chase down prey over long distances is something that even the most hunting minded farm cat is rarely required to do. Looking at the silent “stalking and pouncing” hunting style of the small African Wildcat (distant ancestors of the house cat) may shed more light on that theory.

Of course, many domestic cats are not in tip-top shape, and would probably have trouble attaining this speed. But, as you probably already know, your cat can run faster than you!

http://www.weetzies.com/cat-questions/how-fast-can-a-cat-run/

Hopefully faster than the mouse that often inhabit our homes in the winter...