“When you call your cat, sometimes it completely ignores you. You might wonder: Did it not hear me? Should I call out louder? But then again, why would it understand its name? However, recent studies show that cats can actually recognize their names. If your cat is ignoring you, it’s simply because… it just doesn’t want to pay attention!”
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Cats’ Language Skills
As early as 2019, a paper published in Scientific Reports pointed out that cats can recognize their own name from a string of words. More recent studies suggest that domestic cats may have language recognition skills similar to dogs, potentially distinguishing the names of their friends. In the latest study, researchers conducted experiments with 48 cats, 29 of which were from cat cafés, while the remaining 19 came from private homes, each with three or more cats. The experiment was simple: the researchers played a recording of the cat’s owner calling the name of another cat in the household multiple times. After the fourth call, the researchers showed the participating cat a photo. Two scenarios could follow:Consistent: The photo matched the name the owner called.Inconsistent: The photo did not match the name the owner called.
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Domestic Cats vs. Cat Café Cats
What were the results?Domestic Cats: The researchers found that when presented with the “inconsistent” scenario, domestic cats tended to look at the screen longer. On average, the difference in time compared to the “consistent” scenario was only one to two seconds. This suggests that when cats hear the name of a friend, they expect to see that friend’s photo. However, when the expectation is not met, they need a moment to adjust to the mismatch between the name and the face. This also indicates that cats, without special training, can associate a friend’s name with their appearance.Cat Café Cats: Interestingly, cats living in cat cafés did not react the same way as domestic cats when faced with the “inconsistent” scenario. No matter who was called, their response was much less focused. Moreover, not only did the cat café cats show little interest in the recordings, they were also largely indifferent to the whole experiment—clearly not bothered by what the humans were up to.
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Why Do Domestic Cats Remember Names Better?
Once the experiment was complete, the researchers analyzed the results. They concluded that, compared to domestic cats, cats in cat cafés were likely more unfamiliar with their friends’ names since they probably heard them less often. After all, running a café can be exhausting for a cat—who has time to remember their colleagues’ names? On the other hand, domestic cats probably hear their companions’ names more frequently. Especially during feeding times, when the owner calls out a cat’s name, that cat gets the food. To secure a meal, domestic cats are more likely to remember not only the names but also the faces of their feline companions.
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The Uncooperative Cats
Of course, since the study subjects were cats, it was inevitable that some cats would be less cooperative. Capturing a cat’s attention isn’t easy. The researchers had to rely on catnip to get the kittens’ attention. And some cats refused to even look at the screen, which meant they had to be excluded from the analysis.
“The researchers even wrote in their report that one cat, after completing only the first trial, escaped the room and climbed to a place they couldn’t reach… Trying to study a cat? Ha, you humans still have a lot to learn.”
