The indestructability of cats' whiskers

If you clip a cat's whiskers, will this cause a permanent loss, or will the stubs grow out again to their proper length? Or will each stub fall out and a new bristle grow in to take its place? I would experiment on my own cat to find the answer, but I’m rather fond of the guy and don't want to hurt his feline feelings. — Wally Howard, San Diego

Another American in need of a hobby. Leave the cat alone, Wally, okay? I can only hope that if you take the Fiskars to the whiskers, he’ll bite you smartly on the hand. Cat’s whiskers, called vibrissae, are just modified hair shafts growing from follicles loaded with sensory nerve endings. Assuming your pet will let you get close enough (don’t think he doesn’t know something’s up), go nose to nose with him and check out how his whiskers extend beyond the width of his body. When he’s prowling around in dark places, his whiskers help him determine whether a space is wide enough to crawl through. They’re like curb feelers on Dad’s Olds, but sensitive enough to feel a tiny puff of air. Whiskers act as an extension of a cat’s eyes. But like all hair shafts, whiskers fall out on their own periodically, and new ones begin to grow again. Cut them off, and the stubs continue to grow to whatever length they would have been if you’d left well enough alone; then they’ll fall out and regrow, just as if you hadn’t done something so annoyingly pointless. Other than sustaining a major blow to his dignity, the cat won’t suffer greatly from the dewhiskering. 1 hate to give you any new ideas, but cats also have vibrissae on their feet and lower legs that are helpful in maintaining balance. Cut them and you’d have a fairly clumsy pet for a while. He’ll knock over your lamps and knickknacks, all the while plotting some monstrous revenge when he’s fully recovered.