Cats Like To Keep Track Of Their Owners
January 4, 2022
Scientists have made a discovery in cats that suggests they have an internal GPS system that tracks their owner’s movements.
Having the ability to imagine in our heads the whereabouts of others is an innate survival skill. It helps animals, and humans, to sense and be wary of the presence of predators or prey. This mental representation falls under the category of socio-spatial cognition or mental mapping.
Biologist and BBC host of the TV show Cats, Roger Tabor, talks about this survival instinct in an interview with the Guardian:
“A lot of what a cat has to interpret in its territory is an awareness of where other cats are. It is also important for hunting: how could a cat catch a field vole moving around beneath the grass if it couldn’t use clues, such as the occasional rustle, to see in its mind’s eye, where they are?”
In a study from the University of Kyoto (PMC8580247), 50 cats were observed and tested for their reactions to their owner’s voice and location. They also tested this theory on the vocalization of a familiar cat.
The cats were placed in separate rooms, where they could hear a recording of their owner’s voice calling from outside. After a while, another voice could be heard coming from a speaker placed in the corner of the room. The researchers noted the cats’ reactions and the intensity of shock based on their facial expressions and body language.
The results showed that cats were more surprised by the sound of their owners’ voices coming from inside the room when they had mentally mapped them as being outside. They were less shocked by the sound of a cat’s meow or other electronic sounds coming from the speaker.
These findings prove that cats track the whereabouts of their owners at all times. But why is this so important and what does it mean? Tabor explains:
“A cat’s owner is extremely significant in its life as a source of food and security, so where we are is very important.”
So don’t be fooled by that indifferent, dozing cat on the windowsill, our cats are paying attention to our every move. They know exactly where to find us at all times and don’t try to tell them any different!