A cat has nine lives.

"a cat has nine lives," is an old expression saying that cats can resurrect from the dead, or that they tend to stay away from harm. I think this expression actually means that cats have such fast reflexes that trouble or danger is not much of a problem for them. Their nine lives derive from their "cat like reflexes" and simply just means that cats are very fast and quite lucky at some times. Their jumping, clawing, and flexible body allows them to accomplish many dangerous and incapable tasks that us humans are unable to perform. I don't know where the "9" part comes from, but I do know that cats are quite capable of avoiding the gates of death. Maybe this is suggesting that after a certain amount of certain death encounters, their fate catches up with them and finally stops them. Cats are extraordinary animals that are much capable of more than just 9 lives!