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A street kitten looks behind a panel of lights in Cyprus in 2018.
Hasan Jamali / AFP / Getty Images
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Hasan Jamali / AFP / Getty Images
A street kitten looks behind a panel of lights in Cyprus in 2018.
Hasan Jamali / AFP / Getty Images
Call a dog by his name and his tail stirs, he begins to gasp happily and he fills you with love and affection.
Call a cat by name, and … well, cats are a bit harder to read. Does the cat even know how he calls?
In Japan, researchers have therefore tried to answer the following question: Can a cat understand the difference between his name and any other random word that resembles him?
The research on cats is slim compared to that on dogs. It may be because cats can not be bothered to participate in the experiments. But in a study published Thursday in the newspaper Scientific reportsJapanese researchers have developed a way to get results, whether or not the cats are interested in cooperating.
The researchers conducted a series of experiments in which one person spoke four different words, then pronounced the name of the cat. According to the study, the words chosen were "names with the same length and the same accents as their own names". If the cat acted differently when he heard his name, scientists would know that he could distinguish his own name from other words.
Four words before the name were used to "accustom" cats – or to get used to hearing lyrics. Cats often move their head or ears when they hear words, but this response diminishes after four words. It was only then that it was time to pronounce the name and see how the cats were reacting.
The researchers conducted several versions of the experiment, all held at the cat's home, in the privacy of the owner. In one version, the researchers broadcast a recording of the owner uttering the four words with a pause of 15 seconds between each, followed by the name of the cat. In another version, an unknown voice would say the words and the name. Sometimes the words were not just names, but the names of other cats who lived in the house.
In any case, the results were clear: most cats moved their heads or ears when they heard their names. The findings, according to the researchers, showed that cats could identify their own names among other similar words.
"We conclude that cats can discriminate the content of human utterances based on phonemic differences," the researchers wrote. "This is the first experimental evidence showing the ability of cats to understand human verbal utterances."
Do cats really understand that the name represents their identity? The lead author of the study, Atsuko Saito, of Sophia University in Tokyo, told Associated Press that this part is unclear. What is clear is that the cat's name is "remarkable stimulant," the researchers said, "and that it can be associated with rewards, such as food, hugs and play."
So whether Sprinkles identifies with Sprinkles or not, she knows that the word has a special meaning.
Jennifer Vonk, professor specializing in animal cognition at the University of Oakland, told NPR by email that she loved the study methodology, which did not require any training push and could be performed in an environment where the cats were comfortable. "I agree with the authors that this can not tell us if cats represent their names as a label that identifies them, but it's interesting that they see it as a special signal, probably associated with rewards such as food and caresses, "said Vonk, who did not participate in the study.
The study revealed a minor exception to the name recognition of cats: cats who lived with others in a cat café. These cats could distinguish their names from random names, but not the names of other cats. Researchers have offered many explanations: for example, different coffee customers call their names with different intonation, or customers say the name of a cat without offering a reward. "For example, if a visitor calls chat A, but cat B addresses the visitor and the visitor catches him instead of chat A," it would reduce the discrimination between the names of these cats. " , wrote researchers.
Peter Pongracz, a professor specializing in the study of animal behavior at the Eötvös Loránd University of Budapest, said by e-mail that the study was "very cleverly designed", while noting that the study was conducted on a regular basis. sample presenting the "interesting results" was somewhat reduced.
Pongracz has defended the tendency of cats not to answer calls, in relation to the obedience of dogs. Dogs have been raised for millennia to be easy to educate and listen to humans, he said. Although cats were also domesticated a long time ago, humans did not attach as much importance to their training. "Most cats are doing really well with humans just by being cute," said Pongracz.
If a cat is less aggressive in his affection, it does not necessarily mean that he is individualistic or antisocial, he said; cats respond in their own way. "As the Japanese study has shown, cats respond to their name without their owner being really run, but perhaps by a simple and subtle ear shot."
So, cat lover, take note. Even if your cat does not welcome you with the same ardor as a dog, he still loves you.
Probably.
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