Cats understand us better than we think. A Japanese study shows that they know how to associate words with pictures and that they react if we make a mistake. They are even faster than babies to make these associations. This work proves that cats listen to us, even if their attitude seems to say otherwise.
We often think that cats snatch their owners. But they pay much more attention to what we say to them than is usually believed in reality. A Japanese study, published in the journal Scientific reportsclaims that farm animals would be able to understand a wide range of expressions that we use in everyday life.
A research team from Azabu University (Japan) reached this surprising conclusion after conducting an experiment involving about thirty adult cats. Each of these felines was placed in front of a computer screen on which two images appeared one after the other, namely one sunsun and a cloud.
At the same time, a recorded message by the owner of each cat was broadcast over the loudspeaker, where he can be heard uttering the same word four times: keraru Or parumo. The first refers to the cloud and the second to the sun. This experiment was repeated several times so that the cats could learn the meaning of each word.
Confused cats
To test their understanding, the researchers showed them the same pictures but associated the wrong word. The expression keraru referred to the sun and no longer to the cloud. An inversion that did not escape the cats. In fact, scientists noticed that felines stared longer at the screen when the spoken word did not match the picture in front of their eyes. Some cats even had dilated pupils, indicating their confusion.
They learn faster than babies
These reactions would be evidence that the cats associated each expression with a particular image. Surprisingly, these animals give meaning to words faster than a small child. ” Most cats habituated to the stimulus pair after four trials, meaning they had only nine seconds of exposure in two trials for each picture–word pair. In a study of newborns, they were given at least four 22-second trials for each picture-word pair. », Explain the researchers in their research.
Researchers at Azabu University do not know why cats are able to form word-picture associations so quickly. Regardless, the results of their study show that our cats are sensitive to the meaning of the words we use when we address them. Even if they sometimes tend to make us believe the opposite.
