Can kittens do math? What a new study tells us about cats’ cognitive abilities By: Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado Click HERE for original post Can kittens do math? Most, if not all, animals show the ability to perform a rudimentary form of math. We call the ability to tell between a smaller and a larger amount quantity discrimination. This “number sense” may help animals with important survival needs, including finding food (which patch has more berries?), avoiding conflict (which area has more predators present?), and reproducing (which male is larger?). What is Weber’s Law? The ratio between c ..read more

The Feline Grimace Scale Helps You Know if Your Cat is in Pain by Zazie Todd, PhD Click here for original post Cats have a reputation for being inscrutable and It’s well known that it’s hard to spot when a cat is in pain, so the Feline Grimace Scale is an important breakthrough to help veterinarians recognize the signs in their feline patients. New research shows that cat guardians can use the scale too. This is great news for cats because it means people can more easily assess when their cat needs to go to the vet due to acute pain. Dr. Beatriz Monteiro of the City Univer ..read more

3 Easy Ways to Get Started with Training Your Cat Click Here for original post By Zazie Todd PhD If you’ve never trained one of your pets before, it can feel a bit intimidating to get started. Especially when your pet is a cat. But the good news is that despite the stereotypes, an increasing number of people are realizing that cats can be trained—and it’s fun for you and the cat. This article will look at why we should train our cats, as well as 3 easy ways to get started. The benefits of training cats Training can have several benefits for cats. Training cats does not necessarily mean teachin ..read more

Can We Keep Our Cats Warm Enough? Click Here for Original Post Reading the Wired story on cats and boxes last week I was introduced to the cat’s “thermoneutral zone.” This is the temperature range at which animals do not expend any additional energy trying to stay warm (or cool off). For cats, this range is believed to be between 86 to 101 degrees Fahrenheit (for comparison, for dogs, the “TNZ” is more like 68 to 95, with much more variability and tolerance for lower temps)! Because most of us wear clothes, the human TNZ ranges between 64 and 72. I realized how sad so many ..read more

Problem-solving and “pawed-ness” in cats – is there a relationship? By: Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado Click Here for Original Post Most humans are right-handed (although as someone who lives with a lefty – DEFINITELY not all!); have you ever wondered if your cat also has a paw preference? I’ve previously blogged about studies of handed- or pawed-ness in cats, and its potential relationship to breed. It turns out that science is very interested in which paw cats prefer to do things with! A review of most of the paw preference research to date suggests that about 80% of cats strongly prefer ..read more

The Best Cat Training Treats By. Zazie Todd, PhD Click here for original post Whatever animal you are training, it’s necessary to find a way to motivate them. As reward-based trainers, we find something the animal loves to use as positive reinforcement. Food works to motivate cats just like for dogs, and so it’s a great choice to use in training. Little pieces of tuna, prawn, chicken, freeze-dried meat or fish, and cat treats are all good ideas. You can also use the wet cat treats that come in a tube or use a plastic syringe to deliver a meat paste. Experiment to find out ..read more

Cat Bites: Recent Research about Cats By. Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado Click here for original post Dreaming About Cats: An Online Survey A study recently looked at the content of people’s dreams…and whether they included cats! Previous studies found that a lot of dreams about animals are reportedly negative, with people dreaming of being chased or bitten. Previous studies found that 10% of those who dreamed of cats often dreamed of being threatened or annoyed by them, but a larger number had neutral or positive dreams. The purpose of the current study was to look at the effect of currently living ..read more

Can pet tech help your cat lose weight? By Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado Click Here for original post A newly published study is small, but promising Being overweight impact a significant number of pet cats — current estimates are that up to 60% of cats are overweight or obese. An overweight cat is at greater risk for medical problems, such as diabetes and joint disease, and will likely face some behavioral challenges as well (such as being able to groom themselves or use a litter box consistently). Despite this epidemic of overweight among pets, cat guardians often do not recognize the problem, and ..read more

Do kittens recognize their mothers even after they’ve lived apart? By: Dr. Mikel Delgado Click for original post I previously reported on a study that found that mother cats can discriminate their own kittens’ smell from that of other kittens (by sniffing their butts). So mom cats recognize their kittens by scent, but what about kittens? Do they recognize the smell of their moms? And would they be able to do so a year after being separated from her? The same team of researchers in Mexico city conducted a study to find out. The manuscript, “Are you my mummy? Long-term olfactory memory ..read more

Does your cat find your scent comforting? by Dr. Mikel Maria Delgado Click here for original post Cats have an excellent sense of smell, not quite on par with that of dogs, but certainly one that greatly exceeds the sniffing abilities of humans. Cats use scent in ways that humans do not – for example, by rubbing their scent glands (found for example on their cheeks, forehead, sides, and paws) on objects and other individuals to send messages (“I was here”) and create social bonds (“we are close”). I’ve also reported on studies that show that mom cats can recognize the scent of their kitte ..read more