Two cats with a text book.

Cat intelligence is the considered capacity of learning, thinking, problem solving, reasoning, and adaptability possessed by the domestic cat. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Binomial name Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758 Synonyms Felis lybica invalid junior synonym The cat (or domestic cat, house cat) is a small carnivorous mammal. ...

Brain Size and Surface Area

The brain of a cat

The brain size of the average cat is 5 centimeters in length and 30 grams. Since the average cat is 60 cm long and 3.3 kg,^[1] the brain makes up one twelfth of its full length, and 1/110 of its weight. Thus, the average cat's brain accounts for 0.9% of its total body weight, compared to 2% of total body weight in the average human. Ultimately, however, there is no conclusive proof of correlation between brain mass and intelligence. The surface area of a cat's brain is approximately 83 cm². The modern human brain is about 1350-1400 cm². Image File history File links Cat_brain. ... Image File history File links Cat_brain. ... For other uses, see Brain (disambiguation). ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... BIC pen cap, about 1 gram. ... For other uses of this word, see Length (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Weight (disambiguation). ... This article is about modern humans. ... Positive linear correlations between 1000 pairs of numbers. ... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... For other uses, see Intelligence (disambiguation). ...

The Learning Cat

Cats learn by trial and error, observation and imitation.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7]} Cats' learning abilities are aided by their good memory.^{[8][9][10][11][12][13][14]} In one study on working memory, dogs greatly outperformed cats.^[15] In another study, it was found that cats possess visual memory ability comparable to that of monkeys.^[16] Trial and error is a method for obtaining knowledge, both propositional knowledge and know-how. ... For other uses, see Observation (disambiguation). ... Imitation is an advanced animal behaviour whereby an individual observes anothers behaviour and replicates it itself. ... For other uses, see Memory (disambiguation). ... Working memory is a theoretical framework within cognitive psychology that refers to the structures and processes used for temporarily storing and manipulating information. ...

In practice, studies of the kind mentioned above suffer greatly because they cannot take the mindset of differing types of animals into account. Intelligence is a quality which has to support a specific lifestyle, and monkeys or dogs, as social animals, are likely to interact much better with a human than a solitary predator such as a cat. What goes on in the mind of a cat is not a question we can confidently answer in our current state of knowledge, but a typical cat seems to many people to exhibit a withdrawn and insular mind as compared with a pack animal. It can be conjectured that, while pressures to please another life form might be strong in a social animal, they are weak or non-existent in a predator. In fact, a predator is likely to be very suspicious of experimenters and experimental conditions, raising doubts about the validitity of any such findings.

Intelligence by Breed

Ranking the intelligence of cats by breed is popular among pet owners, veterinarians and others, but the practice tends to run into difficulties. The Animal Planet website, for instance, ranked cat breeds' average intelligence on a 1-10 scale; 1 being the lowest, and 10 being the highest.^[17] Animal Planet goes on to define "intelligence" as: "the general amount of "smarts" the breed tends to exhibit",^[18] which, aside from being vague is in fact circular (that is, it amounts to saying that intelligence is being defined in terms of intelligence, which is not helpful if one wants to know what "intelligence" means in this context). Moreover, the website does not discuss how intelligence (or "smarts") was measured, which if any tests the cats had to perform, etc. Animal Planet's approach therefore does not represent a scientific investigation, and in general the subject of cat intelligence rankings tends to be a subjective business. Animal Planet, launched in 1996, is a cable and satellite television network co-owned by Discovery Communications, Inc. ... Begging the question, in modern popular usage, is often used synonymously for raising the question. However the original meaning is quite different: it described a type of logical fallacy (also called petitio principii) in which the evidence given for a proposition as much needs to be proved as the proposition...

For example, some cat breeders consider the exotic shorthairs smarter than Persians,^[19] but cat breeder Norman Auspitz states the following: "As a rule, people seem to think the more active breeds have higher intelligence than the less active breeds. I will tell you that in feline agility, all breeds have done very well or very poorly as the case may be. Having said that, there is no certified measure of cat intelligence and this general rule may be very anthropomorphic... until there is a credible definition of what might be meant by cat intelligence and a way to measure it, any comment anyone will make about the subject is, at best, speculation."^[20]

Nevertheless, for the sake of interest, here are Animal Planet's cat intelligence rankings by breed:

Intelligence for Recognized Breeds by Animal Planet

Breeders crossed the American Shorthair with the Persian in the United States around 1960. ... Front view of a Himalayan cat Side view of a Himalayan cat The Himalayan, also called colourpoint persian, is a breed of cat with extremely long, fluffy fur, and the blue eyes and the points of a Siamese. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The American Shorthair is the most popular and most prevalent breed. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The term Bombay cat is used to refer to two different breeds of cat. ... The Abyssinian is a natural breed of domesticated cat believed to originate from one Egyptian female kitten called Zula that was taken from a port in Alexandria, Egypt, by a British soldier and brought to England where the breed was developed by Zula being bred with an English tabby, and... The American Curl is a breed of cat with unusual ears. ... The American Wirehair is a breed of domestic cat that originated in upstate New York. ... The British Shorthair is a domesticated cat that is said to resemble a teddy bear. ... A Cornish Rex is a breed of domestic cat, with no hair except for down. ... Country of origin Isle of Man Breed standards (external links) ACFA, TICA, CCA, ACF, Notes TICA and ACF consider Cymrics a variety of Manx The Cymric is a breed of cat. ... The Maine Coon is one of the largest breeds of domestic cat, known for its intelligence and playfulness as well as its distinctive physical appearance. ... The Ragdoll is a breed of medium longhaired cat. ... The Scottish Fold The Scottish Fold is a breed of cat with a natural mutation to its ears. ... Purebred Snowshoe The Snowshoe is a breed of cat. ... The Chartreux is an internationally recognized breed of domestic cat from France. ... The Devon Rex is a breed of cat that emerged in England during the 1960s. ... Egyptian Maus are a medium-sized short-haired cat breed. ... A Japanese Bobtail cat, with the short tail clearly visible The Japanese Bobtail is a breed of cat with an unusual bobbed tail more closely resembling the tail of a rabbit than that of an ordinary feline. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Common nickname Wegie Country of origin Norway Breed standards (external links) AACE, CFA, ACF, ACFA, CCA, TICA, FIFe The Norwegian Forest Cat is a breed of domestic cat native to Northern Europe, and adapted to a very cold climate. ... The Ocicat is a new and still-rare breed of cat which has spots resembling a wild cat and the temperament of a domestic animal, named for its resemblance to the ocelot. ... The Russian Blue is a breed of cat. ... The Siberian is a recognized breed of cat. ... The Singapura is a recognized breed of cat. ... Tonkinese are a medium-sized short-haired cat breed distinguished by points as with Siamese and Himalayans. ... The Turkish Angora (Turkish: Ankara Kedisi) is a breed of domestic cat. ... The Turkish Van (Turkish: , Armenian: ) is a rare, naturally occurring breed of cat from the Lake Van region of present-day Turkey. ... The Balinese is a breed of oriental cat with long hair and Siamese-style markings, or points. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Three month old red point Siamese kitten. ... The Havana Brown is a breed of cat, resulted from persistent efforts to develop a completely brown cat breed. ... The Javanese is a recognized breed of cat. ... The Oriental Shorthair is a breed of cat. ... The Siamese is one of the first distinctly recognised breeds of Oriental cat. ... See also Sphinx (disambiguation) See also Peterbald Sphynx The Sphynx (aka Canadian Hairless) is a rare breed of cat. ...

Cat tricks

Cats are traditionally hard or impossible to train as circus animals. They may, however, exhibit learned behaviours which humans find endearing. Almost all these behaviours will have some direct advantage to the cat, and they will indulge in them because they want to, as opposed to, say, a dog, which may perform a trick solely because it is requested to. Since they are not social animals, there is very little opportunity for one cat to pass learned advantageous behaviour on to another. The Big Top of Billy Smarts Circus Cambridge 2004. ...

Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... Shortcut: WP:WIN Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia and, as a means to that end, also an online community. ... Shortcut: WP:CU Marking articles for cleanup This page is undergoing a transition to an easier-to-maintain format. ... This Manual of Style has the simple purpose of making things easy to read by following a consistent format — it is a style guide. ...

Opening doors and windows

Cats that are accustomed to being let outside, or that want to get into their home, may learn to open windows and doors. They are capable of learning different routes for entry and exit; for instance a cat might find the window in its owner's kitchen easier to open to exit the house, but to get in, they might have to use the screen door in the backyard. Also, they may learn to open cupboard doors to get to food. Cat's paws are not designed for manipulation, but they can, for instance, learn to operate door handles by clinging onto them and pulling them down.

Turning on water

Cats may prefer the taste of fresh water to the water in their dishes, so they might find it useful to learn to operate the faucet. By coming into the kitchen or bathroom at the time a human is using the water, they may pick up how to work it. After some trial and error, they may finally figure out the right temperature and how to drink out of it without making a mess of themselves. ^{[citation needed]} Impact from a water drop causes an upward rebound jet surrounded by circular capillary waves. ... Indoor Tap - commonly found in the bathroom/laundry and/or kitchen. ... A typical American bathroom A bathroom is a room that may have different functions depending on the cultural context. ... For other uses, see Temperature (disambiguation). ...

Retrieving items from hard to reach places

A cat playing with a ball may suddenly find that the ball is under the couch. The cat will try different ways, changing paws, position, and other elements, the way a human would. This trial and error approach to puzzle solving can be demonstrated in the laboratory using Thorndike's puzzle boxes. In these boxes, cats must manipulate series of levers in order to escape. They initially achieve this by trial and error, before committing the sequence to memory. They also use memory to reduce the amount of trial and error when encountering comparable novel situations e.g. new puzzle boxes.^[2] The cat may also be taught to get treats from high and hard to reach places, like on top of a refrigerator, or in a cupboard. Using the same logic as it did with the toy, the cat will get to each treat. A cat that has figured out where the cat food is kept may find that the food is inside a large bag. It might try to get in the bag or open it by means of removing the clip. Cats can also, sometimes, be observed working with each other or even a dog to get cat food, e.g. a cat knocking down cat food from a cupboard, the dog chewing open the tin or packet, and then both of them sharing the food. ^{[citation needed]} For other uses, see Ball (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Couch (disambiguation). ... A dogs paw resting on a hard concrete surface. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... “Freezer” redirects here. ... Paper bag redirects here. ...

Using the toilet

Toilet-trained cat

Because of their sensitive sense of smell, cats prefer going outside to urinate and defecate. Kittens need no training to use a litter box and cover up their waste; once they understand where the litter box is they will seek it out from then on. Cats can be trained to make use of a toilet.^[21] Some cats learn on their own, while others are taught by owners and possibly even from their mothers as young kittens. In general, however, a toilet-trained cat is a rare animal, and successful toilet training of cats depends both on the willingness of the animal to learn a rather awkward maneuver and on the patience of the owner to teach. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1062x1176, 734 KB) Panther, a cat-using toilet, photographed in San Francisco on 22 August 2005. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1062x1176, 734 KB) Panther, a cat-using toilet, photographed in San Francisco on 22 August 2005. ... Young boy smelling a flower Olfaction, which is also known as Olfactics is the sense of smell, and the detection of chemicals dissolved in air. ... A litter box and a package of filler A litter box, sometimes called a sandbox, sand box, litter tray, litter pan, catbox, or cat box is an indoor feces and urine disposal box for cats (as well as rabbits and other pets that naturally or through training will make use... For other uses, see Toilet (disambiguation). ...

As a point of general interest, a course on cat toilet training can be found on a website devoted to legendary jazz bassist Charles Mingus. It is entitled "The Charles Mingus Cat Toilet Training Program," and appears to have been written sometime in the 1960s by the bassist himself.^[22] Charles Mingus (April 22, 1922 – January 5, 1979) was an American jazz bassist, composer, bandleader, and occasional pianist. ...

Playing fetch

Some cats can be trained to play fetch with a varied degree of success (which is dependent on the cat and its mood). It is possible to get a cat to remain seated until an object is thrown. At that point, their very keen sense of sight kicks in. As long as there is at least a remote chance of locating said thrown item, the cat will run off to find it. Once retrieved, waiting or a simple call is enough for the cat to return with the item and deposit it (usually) within arm's reach. Visual perception is one of the senses, consisting of the ability to detect light and interpret (see) it as the perception known as sight or naked eye vision. ...

See also

• Cat
• Animal intelligence

Binomial name Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758 Synonyms Felis lybica invalid junior synonym The cat (or domestic cat, house cat) is a small carnivorous mammal. ... The term Animal intelligence is currently used in three distinct but overlapping ways: as a synonym for animal cognition, to pose the question “are animals intelligent?”, or to denote a discussion of relative levels of intelligence in different animal species. ...

References

Further reading

• Bergler, Reinhold "Man and Cat: The Benefits of Cat Ownership" Blackwell Scientific Publications (1989)
• Bradshaw, John W S "The Behaviour of the Domestic Cat" C A B International (1992)
• Chesler, Phyllis. "Maternal Influence in Learning by Observation in Kittens" Science 166 (1969): 901 - 903.
• Hobhouse, L T "Mind in Evolution" MacMillan, London (1915)
• Turner, Dennis C, and Patrick Bateson. "The Domestic Cat: The Biology of Its Behaviour" Cambridge University Press (1988)
• Miles , R C "Learning In Kittens With Manipulatory, Exploratory And Food Incentives" Journal of Comparative and Physiological Psychology 51 (1958): 39-42
• Neville, Peter "Claws and Purrs" Sidgwick & Jackson (1992)
• Neville, Peter "Do Cats Need Shrinks" Sidgwick & Jackson (1990)
• Voith, Victoria L "You, Too, Can Teach a Cat Tricks (Examples of Shaping, Second-Order Reinforcement, and Constraints on Learning)" Modern Veterinary Practice, August 1981: 639 - 642.

Year 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (link displays 1989 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Phyllis Chesler (Ph. ... Also: 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... Macmillan Publishers Ltd, also known as The Macmillan Group, is a privately-held international publishing company owned by Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group. ... This article is about the capital of England and the United Kingdom. ... Year 1915 (MCMXV) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Thursday[1] of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... The headquarters of the Cambridge University Press, in Trumpington Street, Cambridge. ... Year 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday (link displays 1988 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Peter Neville (died August 9, 2002) was a further education lecturer and sociologist known for his activity and writings in the anarchist and peace movements in Britain. ... Year 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1990 (MCMXC) was a common year starting on Monday (link displays the 1990 Gregorian calendar). ... Year 1981 (MCMLXXXI) was a common year starting on Thursday (link displays the 1981 Gregorian calendar). ...

External links

• Brains and Body-Size
• The Intelligence of Cats
• How Intelligent Are Cats?
• Documented Tool Use by a Cat
• The Charles Mingus Cat Training Program