Key Provisions Regarding Cats:
Valuation by Age & Skill:
A newborn kitten was worth 1 legal penny.
Once its eyes opened: 2 pence.
Once it proved itself a mouse-catcher: 4 pence — the same value as a small sheep.
Compensation for Harm: If someone killed or stole a cat, the perpetrator had to compensate the owner with wheat equal in volume to the cat's body (measured nose-to-tail). If wheat wasn't available, a sheep with her lamb and wool sufficed.
Legal Status of Settlements: A hamlet was only considered legally complete if it included nine buildings, a plough, a kiln, a churn, a bull, a cock, a herdsman, and a cat"