3 ms·

Cats know their names – whether they care is another matter

33 points by okket 8y ago

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]
pickle-wizard 8y ago
As a person owned by a cat I'm not surprised by this. I'll call his name and he won't respond, but if I say "Do you want a snack"? He'll run to his bowl.
- grawprog 8y ago
  My cats' ears twitch when I say their names. Sometimes they'll turn their heads. Very rarely they'll actually respond and possibly saunter over slowly.
- siruncledrew 8y ago
  My cat knows her name as well as some nicknames. Particularly any name that has an "eee" sound in it gets her attention. More interestingly, she has learned sound associations to the point of being able to tell the difference between crinkling sounds of the treats bag vs. crinkling of another bag that isn't treats.
  - xkcd-sucks 8y ago
    Yeah their hearing is so incredibly acute. I had one who would sleep inside my house while listening to ambient noise through a window. Occasionally he'd perk up and ask to go outside. Then he'd walk over to some bush or leafy patch, pounce once,and emerge with a critter in his mouth. The outside sounds he listened to came in through a window and hallway, the path was not line of sight.
AceyMan 8y ago
Obligatory citation; “Owners of dogs will have noticed that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they will think you are god. Whereas owners of cats are compelled to realize that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they draw the conclusion that they are gods.” —Christopher Hitchens (attributed by Goodreads) (me: Certified Cat Whisperer)
- krapp 8y ago
  "In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this." -- Terry Pratchett
nbabitskiy 8y ago
The very existence of this research puzzles me. When I got a cat, I named him "kot" (a male cat in Russian), cause I thought he wouldn't remember it, so why bother. But he learnt it in a week. I just made my own research, for the sake of this comment: said "Petya", "Idi syuda, durak" and "kot", and sure enough, after the third call he came, sat beside me, and is now watching the screen.
- chewyland 8y ago
  Ohh that's cute. We have 2 Bulgarian Calico sisters and without a shadow of a doubt, absolutely factually, they know their names. I would bet a million Leva on that.
ergothus 8y ago
It's not just their own...we have a cat that knows her own name, but she ALSO knows the n as me of one of other cats and will vocslly complain if you call for him while petting her. It's quite hilarious - she doesn't respond to similar sounds that way, she doesn't respond to his name in other circumstances, but DO NOT call for him while she is expecting pets from you. (It technically happens whether you are or are not petting her, so long as she wants you to pet her)
FatDrunknStupid 8y ago
They live in a world of different information as well. Like dogs better smell and hearing. But a lot of cats don't look up. They're intelligent in their own information domain I believe.

33 points by okket 8y ago

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

As a person owned by a cat I'm not surprised by this. I'll call his name and he won't respond, but if I say "Do you want a snack"? He'll run to his bowl.

grawprog 8y ago
My cats' ears twitch when I say their names. Sometimes they'll turn their heads. Very rarely they'll actually respond and possibly saunter over slowly.
siruncledrew 8y ago
My cat knows her name as well as some nicknames. Particularly any name that has an "eee" sound in it gets her attention. More interestingly, she has learned sound associations to the point of being able to tell the difference between crinkling sounds of the treats bag vs. crinkling of another bag that isn't treats.
- xkcd-sucks 8y ago
  Yeah their hearing is so incredibly acute. I had one who would sleep inside my house while listening to ambient noise through a window. Occasionally he'd perk up and ask to go outside. Then he'd walk over to some bush or leafy patch, pounce once,and emerge with a critter in his mouth. The outside sounds he listened to came in through a window and hallway, the path was not line of sight.

AceyMan 8y ago

Obligatory citation; “Owners of dogs will have noticed that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they will think you are god. Whereas owners of cats are compelled to realize that, if you provide them with food and water and shelter and affection, they draw the conclusion that they are gods.” —Christopher Hitchens (attributed by Goodreads) (me: Certified Cat Whisperer)

krapp 8y ago
"In ancient times cats were worshipped as gods; they have not forgotten this." -- Terry Pratchett

nbabitskiy 8y ago

The very existence of this research puzzles me. When I got a cat, I named him "kot" (a male cat in Russian), cause I thought he wouldn't remember it, so why bother. But he learnt it in a week. I just made my own research, for the sake of this comment: said "Petya", "Idi syuda, durak" and "kot", and sure enough, after the third call he came, sat beside me, and is now watching the screen.

chewyland 8y ago
Ohh that's cute. We have 2 Bulgarian Calico sisters and without a shadow of a doubt, absolutely factually, they know their names. I would bet a million Leva on that.

ergothus 8y ago

It's not just their own...we have a cat that knows her own name, but she ALSO knows the n as me of one of other cats and will vocslly complain if you call for him while petting her. It's quite hilarious - she doesn't respond to similar sounds that way, she doesn't respond to his name in other circumstances, but DO NOT call for him while she is expecting pets from you. (It technically happens whether you are or are not petting her, so long as she wants you to pet her)

FatDrunknStupid 8y ago

They live in a world of different information as well. Like dogs better smell and hearing. But a lot of cats don't look up. They're intelligent in their own information domain I believe.