Is There a Link Between Learning Certain Skills and Having Smart Cats?
Published November 1, 2011
Flickr User vincent.chen
Can external factors and learning different skills at a young age affect how smart our cats are?
Can external factors and learning different skills at a young age affect how smart our cats are?
A recent Daily Beast article took a look at what it deemed the 15 Signs You'll Raise a Genius and discussed some of the factors which may have a positive impact on the IQ of children. As I perused the piece, I got to wondering whether similar factors might influence the IQ of our pets.
Of course, all of the suppositions on whether these factors affect our pet's intelligence are purely speculative, but since most animal lovers consider their furry feline companions as family members, in the spirit of fun and humor, I thought I would give it a go!
According to the article, “Children who play the piano or a stringed instrument score 15 percent higher on verbal skills than children who don't play an instrument.”
This statistic was obtained from a study of music students in the Boston area, and may present a strong argument for considering Zez Comfrey’s rationale for composing his famous ragtime piece, Kitten on the Keys. Purrhaps he was influenced by a kitty that caught his fancy.
With correlations being made between musical skills and language skills, it might not be so far-fetched to think that musically gifted kitties (like Nora, the world- renowned feline virtuoso) might also be honing their “vocabulary” of meows and chirps to communicate with their humans. And when it comes to playing strings, all cat lovers know that the majority of kitties are highly attracted to many varieties of string, eager to play with even the tiniest piece.
Another factor that may affect IQ was aerobic exercise. According to the article, “Aerobic exercise increases children's executive-functioning abilities by as much as 100 percent.”
This definitely is an omen which bodes badly for those couch potato felines who strongly show a preference for heavy-duty napping. Those cats in training to compete in the marathon-sleeping division of the upcoming Winter Olympics might not be so well off. But I suspect getting those kitties running around chasing a laser light or a feather flyer will certainly help them out.
The article sheds light on another interesting factor; apparently, learning to juggle can help increase intelligence. The article says, "Learning to juggle can increase the volume of gray matter in children's brains by 3 percent."
If this statistic about the correlation between juggling and intelligence is accurate, it truly explains why cats are exceptionally intelligent. While felines may not traditionally juggle three balls in the air, they are highly skilled in simultaneously “juggling” several tasks. I don’t know about your kitties, but when ours are eating their favorite food, they purr loudly while affectionately rubbing against our legs, and are always geared up to pounce on an unsuspecting palmetto bug who dares to cross their path during dinner time.
This statistical data represents just a few of the many items presented in the study. I extrapolated the ones I think are the most compelling in justifying my speculations.
What do you think? Tell us in a comment.
Shortly after retiring as a social worker and psychotherapist, I discovered my "writer's voice"…
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Comments (5)
The more you interact with an animal the smarter they will be. That is a fact of life. When we were raising the kittens (6 of them) we worked daily on skills. Molly would go to a home where the new mom would want a cat that would cuddle. Molly was cuddled and fawned over more than the others. She became very much people friendly. She loves to sit with her new mom and dad and purr and just be a lap cat. She also learned the command to "TARGET." That way no matter where she was all we had to do was call her name and say Target and she came immediately and touched our hands. Molly's family thinks she is a genius when in fact she is the least intelligent of all the kittens. Each kitten learned more than one name. They learned to come to us for love and companionship and not for food rewards. Sabu was the only male and he is a very smart young man. He has figured out many problems by himself. That includes how to get the drawer open where the toys are stored. Leo is my sister's cat who came to live with me when her husband died. He is a BIG Maine Coon and was not trained at all but it only took a bit of love and kisses and hugs and he is a genius now too LOL. Although your article might be tongue and cheek it is a reality that if you spend the time and effort and love with animals they pick up on things quickly and can become VERY SMART.
Cute, may have some truth to it. I take my kitties as they are. I've always heard animals are happier when they have a job. So I let them tell me what job they want and let it be. May it be catching flies or telling me where something is I misplaced. A friend was cat sitting, when he came he couldn't find Marty. Toby & my friend, Al are close, Al asked Toby where Marty was (who likes to hide when sleeping during the day) Toby went to where Marty was showing Al he was safe & sleeping. Al has been telling this story for months, sounds true to me. So I've been telling all the kitties they are smart & I know it.
Katrina
of the
www.Southpawcats.net
Most definitely agree with the theory! And this family does boast some cats of superior intellect, if I do say so ;)
A friend of mine has three cats, and he says they are very smart. I'm not so sure about him though.
Hmmmm very interesting.....although this is tongue-in-cheek, I have actually noticed that my more active kitties; over the years; seemed to be more active mentally, learning more skills (like fetching a thrown toy, making their needs/desires known, etc.... you may be on to something!