After Dogs, the Cats Honor — which many clubs register under the name Felines — is probably the animal honor most requested by Pathfinders. The reason is simple: almost everyone knows a cat up close. You do most of it at home, with the animal that already lives with you or with photos and videos, no collection, no breeding and no expense.
But "easy to love" is not "easy to close out". The requirements go beyond affection: they ask for the scientific name of the family, the animal's anatomy, four domestic breeds with the temperament of each one and seven wild cats with the region where they live. Many people get stuck exactly on the wild cats and on the three records at the end.
This guide is editorial, it is not an answer key. It shows what each block of requirements wants from you, how to study without memorizing ready-made answers and where the mistakes that get you sent back are. You build the answers with your cat and with the official source. Content checked on 07/22/2026 in the Honors Manual and in the official references listed at the end.
What is the Cats Honor about?
The Cats Honor belongs to the Nature Study area, the same as Dogs, Birds, Mammals and Reptiles. It is a knowledge honor: you do not need to breed or collect anything, you need to understand the animal and show that to the instructor.
One point that confuses people: on some cards it appears as Cats and, on others, as Felines. In practice, it is the same animal seen from two distances — the domestic cat that purrs in your lap and the great family of wild cats, from the wildcat to the tiger. That is why the requirements mix the domestic and the wild on the same sheet.
There is also an advanced version, for those who have already earned the basic one and want to go deeper into care, health and conservation. The rule for knowing whether you have closed it out is a single one: being able to explain each requirement in your own words, pointing out on your cat (or in the photo) what it describes. If the answer only exists copied from a blog, it is not yet yours.
What do the requirements really ask?
Before you set off studying at random, it is worth seeing the honor in blocks. The requirements are grouped into four big themes, and each one asks something different of you.
| Block | What the requirement asks | How you prove it |
|---|---|---|
| Science and family | Scientific name of the cat family and characteristics common to all felines | Explaining in your own words, not just reciting the name in Latin |
| Cat anatomy | Paws, eyes, whiskers, ears, teeth and the main food | Observing and pointing out on your own cat or on video |
| Domestic breeds | Identify 4 breeds of domestic cats and describe the temperament of each one | By photo, illustration or observation, with the behavior of each breed |
| Wild cats | Identify 7 wild cats and say where in the world they live, plus 3 records | By photo or illustration, knowing the region of each one |
Notice the verb that repeats: identify. For four breeds and for seven wild cats, the requirement accepts a photo, an illustration or personal observation — you do not need a zoo or seven cats at home. And the most common mistake is treating everything as an exam question. It is not: the instructor wants to talk, to see you show the cat's whisker, explain why the pupil closes in the light. Study to show, not to answer.
How to study the four domestic breeds without memorizing?
The requirement asks for four breeds of domestic cats and, for each one, the temperament. The trap is choosing breeds you have never seen and memorizing a ready-made sentence about each one. It comes out shallow, and the instructor notices on the first follow-up question.
Do the opposite: choose four breeds you truly recognize by photo or observation, with striking, easy-to-distinguish characteristics. Three tips that separate those who understood from those who memorized:
- Link appearance and temperament. It is not enough to say "the Siamese is talkative". Say what you observed or read: how it behaves, how much attention it asks for, whether it is restless or calm. Temperament is behavior, not a loose adjective.
- Keep an image of each one. Put together a board with a good photo of each breed and point out the physical characteristic as you speak — coat, face shape, size.
- Watch out for breed vs. color. "Black" and "tabby" are not breeds; they are coat colors. A classic mistake that makes the instructor ask you to redo it.
There are today dozens of cat breeds with recognized pedigree in the world, and that total varies according to the entity that registers them. You do not need to know how many there are — you need to master the four you chose.
The seven wild cats: how not to get tangled up?
This is the block that fails the most people. The requirement asks for seven wild cats and, for each one, where in the world it lives. It is no use listing seven names if you do not know the continent of each one.
The best way to study is to group them by region, so the geography sticks together with the animal. A simple mind map solves it:
| Region | Typical wild cats |
|---|---|
| Africa | Lion, leopard, cheetah |
| Asia | Tiger, snow leopard |
| Americas | Jaguar, puma (cougar), ocelot, wildcat |
You only need seven, so there is plenty to choose from. A selection that covers the three records of the requirement well usually includes the tiger (Asia), the lion and the cheetah (Africa) and the jaguar (Americas) — so you also knock out, in one go, the three record questions at the end of the honor.
The three records, straight to the point, for you to study with the source in hand:
- Largest cat in the world: the tiger, whose largest populations live in Asia. The Siberian tiger (or Amur tiger) is the largest form.
- Largest cat in South America: the jaguar — the same animal that many people call by its Portuguese name onça-pintada. It is the largest cat in the Americas.
- Fastest: the cheetah, capable of exceeding 100 km/h in short bursts. It is the fastest land animal.
A mistake that trips up many people: confusing the jaguar with the puma (cougar). They are two different cats of the Americas. The jaguar is the big, spotted animal with rosettes; the puma is plain, of a uniform color. Knowing how to tell the two apart already shows that you really studied.
Read alsoOrigami Honor: how to earn itAnatomy: what does the board want to hear about paws, eyes and whiskers?
This is the block you do best with the cat in front of you. Each anatomy requirement has an answer that becomes obvious when you observe the animal up close, and artificial when you just copy.
Paws. The cat has five toes on the front paws and four on the hind ones. The pads cushion the step — that is why it walks in silence — and the claws are retractable, that is, they draw in when it does not need them. Ask your cat to stretch and you will see the claws appear.
Eyes. The pupil closes to a slit in strong light and dilates in the dark. Behind the retina there is a reflective layer, the tapetum lucidum — it is what makes the cat's eye "shine" in a photo with flash and what gives it low-light vision. Explain this and you have shown that you understood why the cat sees well at night.
Whiskers. They are not an ornament. The vibrissae work as touch sensors: they help the cat measure spaces and find its way in the dark. Never cut a cat's whiskers — that disorients it.
Ears and teeth. The ears are very sensitive and protected by hairs that block dust and insects. The teeth tell the diet: sharp canines to hold the prey and back teeth that cut the meat. All felines are carnivores — they feed essentially on meat. That is the thread that links anatomy and food: the cat's whole body is designed to hunt.
How to earn it, step by step
With the blocks understood, the path gets short. A sequence that works for most Pathfinders:
- 1. Get the official honor card from your instructor or in the Honors Manual. Confirm the exact list of requirements for your field before studying — old cards go around out there.
- 2. Start with the anatomy, with your cat. Paws, eyes, whiskers, ears and teeth come out in an afternoon of observation. Film it, if you can.
- 3. Put together the breeds board. Choose four breeds you recognize and write the temperament of each one in your own words.
- 4. Make the wild cats map. Seven cats by region, plus the three records. Study with a photo next to the name.
- 5. Rehearse the conversation. Ask someone to point at a photo and ask "who is this and where does it live?". If you answer without freezing, you are ready.
The mistakes that most make the instructor ask you to redo it:
- Swapping color for breed ("black cat" is not a breed).
- Confusing the jaguar with the puma.
- Listing wild cats without knowing the region of each one.
- Memorizing blog answers and not being able to explain when the instructor asks "why?".
- Cutting or messing with the cat's whiskers to "demonstrate" — never do this.
And the registration? When you close out the honor, the one who validates and officially records it is the club, in the SGC, the DSA's Club Management System. That is where the insignia enters your history. Support tools like Desbravai help to follow the progress day to day, but the official record is always in the SGC.
Why is this honor so good to start with?
If you are putting together your year of honors, Cats is a smart choice for the Nature Study area. It teaches you to look at an animal with attention — anatomy, behavior, classification — using an animal you already love, and that base of observation serves every nature honor that comes after. It is warm in a rare way: caring for a cat, understanding why it acts the way it acts and respecting its limits speaks directly to the spirit of the Pathfinder, who learns to care for creation.
One last piece of advice: if you really liked it, do not stop at the basic one. The advanced version takes you to the care, the health and the conservation of felines — including the threatened wild ones. It is the natural step for those who discovered, in the middle of the requirements, that the cat has a lot more to it than it seemed.