Greetings from Snoops and Kommando Kitty and welcome to Cat Forum. It appears that the humans have a holiday coming up called Indigenous People Day. As you know, we would never care about a holiday with “People” in its name, so we won’t be celebrating. However, it did make us wonder when cats first graced North America with their presence. So we sent the Cheeseland interns on a hunt. And wouldn’t you know it, some of the best information came from Purr and Roar, one of our favorite blogs about all types of cats.
First is the fearsome saber-tooth tiger (Smilodon). If you’d been around 10,000 years ago, you might have seen one of these guys roaming around. We would have been looking from a distance, because they were seriously scary. It appears that they lived in packs, but no one was brave enough to tell them that cats don’t do that. They could roar too. Pretty cool.
We also have the scimitar cat (Homotherium). They were found pretty much everywhere, in all climates. It appears that they were fast runners, and big. Skeletons suggest they weighed up to 800 pounds. Because of their size and speed, they could eat whatever they wanted (even mammoths). They were around long enough that they might even have hunted humans. Very cool.
Next is the true king of cats, the American lion. They may have been the largest cat of all time, weighing over 1,000 pounds. The humans aren’t sure if they were related to modern lions; they might be related to jaguars. It doesn’t really matter. Obviously, these cats ruled.
So who’s left? Unfortunately, none of the big guys are still around. However, North America still has six wild cats roaming around. They are bobcats, lynx, ocelots, cougars, jaguars, and jaguarundis. They are relatives to the earlier cats, and are definitely not domesticated. We recommend you stay in your own social circle.
Where are we in this timeline? Actually, we are all descended from Middle Eastern wildcats (Felis sylvestris). Over 10,000 years ago, cats started saving grain from rodents and humans (finally) saw what awesome creatures we are. The rest is history.
Of course, our ancestors didn’t swim over here. The settlers brought cats to protect their supplies from rodents on their ships from Europe. Once cats were here, we were basically just work animals. Can you believe it? Humans are so slow sometimes.
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Finally humans realized how truly great we are. There are over 85 million of us in the United States. (Don’t forget ferals and shelter cats.) We rule the Internet and some of us even write blogs.
We come in all sorts of colors and patterns. Some of us talk a lot and some of us are strong, silent types. Some are social, and some prefer their own company. But we can all take pride in our powerful ancestors. Remember, we train humans; they don’t train us.
All pictures courtesy of Google Images.
Adventures in Cheeseland 
I had NO idea at all about the lAmerican Lion in the US. 1000 pounds? That is mind boggling. And the history of cats you have here is fascinating. I will share this with some humans who, while not admitting to being trained, will find it fascinating.
Katie Isabella
Thank you. We didn’t even know there was an American Lion. Definitely someone to avoid. Purrs Snoops and Kommando Kitty
Those olderbig cats are mighty and scary, but I think the smaller descendants of Middle Eastern Wildcats are the smartest, they worked out the best deal with the humans!
There are definitely days when I’m sure my cats have it better than I do. 🦁🐯🐱
Mee-yow wow them Smileyodonss were furry reegal an scarey too! You can REELLY seesimmylaritiy ‘tween Scimitar Cat an Amaerican Lion!!
Love THE last foto; that Black cat lookss ALOT like mee Snoopss an Kommando. An mee has LadyMew purrfectlee trained 😉
***purrss*** BellaDharma
You re right! We definitely see the resemblance.
We still have some bobcats in Tennessee, which are smaller than most wild cats. We used to have cougars (mountain lions), but they disappeared due to hunting and loss of habitat; however, there have been a few reports of recent sightings, so maybe they are making a come back.
We’ll keep our paws crossed
I knew we were all descended from greatness, but I didn’t know how great. Thanks for the family tree history. I think we felines still rule! Nice job Purr and Roar.
We agree completely
That was great. I am well trained by my kitties. XO
As am I
Great photos and information.x😻💜🐾
Thank you!
best fishez two ewe catz at skewl N due knot forget…LUNCH BRAKE !!!! 😉
grate post two day snoops and kommando…and oh em cod we haz knot hurd frum purr and roar in like for ever……hope everee thingz OK ~~~ ♥♥
Thank you. Oddly enough, they just posted today
Thanks so much for the mention. Prehistoric cats are so fascinating! 😺
Your post was the first thing I looked at. You make this stuff easy to understand
Thank you! There is a lot of information on this topic & it is always evolving based on new discoveries, DNA studies etc… Hopefully I will get around to doing an update one day soon.
Amarula wants to know where to go to sign up for cat school!! Great photos again!
She can talk to her localunion rep. Purrs Snoops and Kommando Kitty