Daily Dose of Prehistory: Back From Extinction 40

Barbourofelis fricki, meaning "Barbour's Cat", is an extinct genus of carnivorous mammals belonging to the family Barbourofelidae (false sabertooth cats) that lived in North America from the Late Miocene until the Mid Pliocene. Despite it's very cat-like appearance, Barbourofelis wasn't actually a felid but had evolved along similar lines to cats, closely resembling the much later Smilodon. It was around the size of a lion but, in lamen's terms, was built like a brick shithouse, having a build that more closely resembled Ursids than Felids. Like the unrelated Thylacosmilus, Barbourofelis had "sheaths" on their lower jaw that protected its massive canines when its mouth was closed, keeping them sharp. Unlike cats, this animal had a semi-plantigrade walking stance much like a bear. It is theorized that Barbourofelis went extinct due a combination of competition from bear-dogs and climate change caused by the incoming glaciation.

chinny boi

Man.... if THANOS had a cat, it would HAVE to be this! Heh!