Catopidia

Cats mentally map where you are from your voice

When you call from the next room, your cat doesn’t just hear you – it pictures you there.

Takeaway

Cats were surprised when their owner’s voice seemed to ‘teleport’ – a sign they picture where the owner is.

What the study did

  • Kyoto University researchers played an owner’s voice calling the cat from one speaker, then from another speaker elsewhere.
  • The main experiment tested 50 cats (27 cat-café cats, 23 house cats).
  • Cats looked most surprised when the owner’s voice jumped to a new spot for no reason.
  • The effect vanished when the owner’s voice was replaced with other cats’ meows or non-vocal sounds.

Limitations

‘Surprise’ was scored from ear and head movements; Japanese sample; results are shown only in figures.

Citation

Takagi S, Chijiiwa H, Arahori M, Saito A, Fujita K, Kuroshima H (2021). Socio-spatial cognition in cats: Mentally mapping owner’s location from voice. PLOS ONE. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0257611

For general information only; it does not replace advice from your vet.

More studies