Do Cats Have Arms – The Surprising Answer!

When you’re describing the body parts of a cat, you think about the legs, but do you ever think about arms? After all, humans have arms and legs that total four limbs. How does that work for animals like cats? Cats have four limbs too, but do cats have arms?

Cats do not have arms. What looks like a cats arms are often referred to as their four legs. Despite not technically having arms, cats can use their legs to perform many of the same functions.

Cats don’t have arms; they have legs. Even so, they can have parts of “arms” like shoulders, armpits, and elbows. Confusing, isn’t it? Well, keep on reading to learn more about this and why people most often say that cats have legs

Do Cats Have 4 Arms Or Legs

Cats have four legs, not four arms.

First, let’s consider what arms and legs do. 

When you talk about arms, usually you also think about hands. You might also consider how people use their arms. You’re not using your arms in the same way that you use your legs.

Legs, on the other hand, are used for holding your body up and for transportation. Most people will think about the transportation aspect. 

You don’t use your hands and arms to walk, do you? Probably not.

Cats aren’t walking on their hands either; they’re walking on their legs. All four legs are used for the same purpose, too, so you say that cats walk on their four legs.

Rather than talking about arms and legs when it comes to cats, you talk about front and hind legs. Still, they serve the same purpose! 

Do Cats Have All Legs

Yes, cats have all legs.

Cats are what we call quadrupeds, which means they walk on all four legs. This, then, settles the arm versus leg debate. 

You might want to say that cats have arms, but the very definition of what a cat is tells us that they have four legs. 

While this might settle that debate, we’re going to complicate things as we go on. 

Your cat doesn’t have any arms, but your cat does have joints that we name after joints found on human arms. 

It doesn’t make a lot of sense, but we need to follow the scientists on this one. 

Do Cats Have Elbows 

Cats technically have elbows, but they’re named that because of the function they serve, not because they are like human elbows.

When you look at a cat, you might not know how one joint looks more like an elbow than a knee. Your cat bends its legs, but how do you know how they function?

Well, your cat’s front legs have elbows, but their back legs act more like knees. 

The joint between your cat’s paws and legs is like a wrist, and the next joint up is like an elbow.

Again, you’re not going to see this until you look at a cat on a skeletal level. Scientists say that your cat’s front joints act like elbows, even though they’re not actual elbows. 

This can complicate things for those of us who aren’t trained scientists but know that people believe cats have elbows – arms or no arms. 

Do Cats Have Shoulders 

Here’s where things can get confusing. Cats do indeed have shoulders, even though they do not have arms.

Cats have shoulder joints, just like humans do. These joints help give your cat’s legs more motion. 

Now, this is a little weird, right? Cats technically have shoulders on their legs, not on their arms. 

Your cat’s shoulders aren’t the same as your shoulders, though. Human shoulders are a ball joint that gives you a full range of motion to move. 

Your cat doesn’t have a shoulder joint with bone on bone. Instead, your cat’s shoulders are connected by muscle. This helps your cat run with longer strides – not something that you need to worry about with your arms.

The joint uses the same name as the human joint, but you need to keep in mind that cats aren’t humans. It’s not that strange to think that cat shoulders would be different.

Do Cats Have Armpits 

Yes, cats have armpits, too, just like shoulders.

Again, this is strange. Cats have armpits, yet they don’t have arms. Despite not being the same as a human armpit, that’s the best word to use for it.

Your cat’s armpits are hidden away under their shoulders, just like a human. Most people only think of a cat having armpits under their front legs but not necessarily their hind legs.

Cats, however, don’t sweat from their armpits like humans. Cats do not have sweat glands in their armpits.

Thus, a cat’s armpits have very different functions from a human’s; they use the same concept. 

How Many Hands Does A Cat Have 

Since cats don’t have any arms, they do not have hands either.

There are several names and nicknames for cat feet: paws, mitts, muffin makers, biscuit makers, and other names only you use.

You probably don’t say that they’re cat hands, though, do you?

No, most likely not. 

Cats don’t have hands; people see them more like paws than hands.

In the simplest sense, since cats don’t have arms, they can’t have hands. 

Cats also don’t use hands the same way humans do. While cats can hold and pick things up with their paws, it is not the sole purpose of their paws.