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Sand cats have thick fur on the bottoms of their paws. This works like built-in desert sandals: it protects their feet from the burning-hot sand and lets them pad along almost without leaving footprints. Their sandy colour helps them blend in so well they almost disappear.
Deserts are scorching by day and cold at night, so the sand cat is mostly nocturnal; it rests in a cool burrow during the heat and hunts after dark. It has huge ears that can hear the tiniest scratching of prey moving under the sand, even from far away.
Amazingly, sand cats can go a long time without drinking, getting most of their water from the food they eat. Everything about them, their feet, ears, colour and habits, is a clever desert survival trick.