According to a Japanese study published Thursday 4th April, 2019, which analysed 78 cats, felines do indeed have a reaction when called by their name.
The cats snub us. You may have doubted it with your nice tomcat at your feet, but researchers have just proved the indifference that felines give us.
In a study published Thursday, April 4, 2019 in the journal Scientific Report , Japanese scientists have shown that these animals do indeed recognise their name when called . And if they do not respond … it’s just that they do not want to.
78 cats studied
To arrive at such conclusions, 78 domestic subjects of various races, from families and “cat bars”, were studied. For each of them, the researchers broadcast through loudspeakers five names, including theirs, sound close.
As usual, the cats showed very little interest in the experiment, but reacted each time they heard their name: half of them moved their ears and / or head, others have meowed, moved and / or wagged their tails.
The tests were more conclusive with the animals living in the families than those of the cafes
Reflex?
Cats would not react only reflexively to the simple sound, even if nothing proves that they recognize their name as such. It could be a reaction associated with a reward (caresses, croquettes, pâté …), says a veterinarian at Time .
For more certainty, it should be known if this ability to distinguish sounds is found in the wild cat. “We do not have the answer to this question,” says Atsuko Saito, the author of the study to our colleagues . But it is possible that cats acquired this ability during their domestication. ”
If your cat persists in turning his back on you when you call him, chances are he’s just making fun of you.
