Domestic cats show enough similarity to their big cat cousins that we should maybe sleep with one eye open.

By Justyne Yuen-Lee

Do you ever wonder what your cat really thinks of you?

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My cousin recently brought a new kitten home. She's been the star of the show and our family visits the kitten more frequently than we've ever visited my cousins. The tiny cat eludes us from time to time and appears out of nowhere causing most of us to jump. We've had to fit her collar with a bell so we know in which area of the house she's roaming. She's tiny, but pounces like a mini wildcat. Her elusiveness and impressive ambush skills are just two of the many characteristics she shares with her larger feline relatives.

The University of Edinburgh conducted a study to investigate further parallels between domestic cats and larger felines. The personalities of clouded leopards, African lions, snow leopards, and Scottish wildcats were compared and researchers found that the traits were strikingly similar to domesticated cats.

We might chalk it up to resting cat face...but it just might be a plotting face.

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The study found that both wild cats and domestic cats demonstrated dominance, impulsiveness, and neuroticism.

Kitties, both big and small, showed signs of mistrust and fear of people. However, captivity inhibits domestic cats from their natural instincts to roam. This may lead to bad feelings, perhaps?

If your cat purrs often, you might just be okay!

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So, given that kitty is not so different from a lion or a tiger, your safety may depend largely on her continued acceptance of your affections and her overall size. Would your cat plot your death if she were just a little bigger?

The evolutionary pathways branched off just a short time ago, and pet cats haven't strayed too far from the original wildcat, it seems. But, don't worry, your cat isn't going to get any bigger or wilder as the days go by. In more good news, older kitties lose their impulsiveness as they age.

So, treat your kitty with kindness and don't let them know that you are onto their plots!