Object permanence, memorization, intelligence, etc.. Interesting.... (LONG)

[Descartes]

I've always been into ethology, and have always casually observed my two cats. Although I have no scientific basis for my claims, I find them to be rather intriguing.

I have two cats: Sebastian (after Bach), and Giovanni (Don Giovanni). Sebastian always seemed to be a little more precocious than Gio, but both very active nonetheless. Often times when I shaved, Sebastian would sit on the side of the sink and watch me very attentively. When I wash my face at night, he's right there next to me. He seemed to be intrigued by the sound/flow of water, so I let the sink run, and he proceeded to bat the stream w/ his paw. He tried sipping some of the water from the bottom of the sink (nasty), and then quickly learned to tilt his head, and drink from the stream as we would from a water fountain. I was impressed by this, as I had never seen this before. So, not too long after, I move. In my new place, the sink configuration is entirely different than that of my old place. Didn't matter, as Sebastian went to the same routine, drinking from the sink. I am impressed. This suggests object permanence, and reason (the sinks look are entirely different), which is normally a function of the frontal lobe, yes? When we think of a car, a sink, a human, cat, ad nauseum, we can quickly identify an object as a previously known class, but do all animals have this ability?

I tried to find out whether or not felines had a frontal lobe, but came up w/ nothing. I'm almost sure they don't, as the frontal lobe evolved from the hominids and was first manifested in homo habilis, correct? Anyone else impressed w/ the intellect of their animals?

[edit]Forgot to add, I live in a townhome, and when my neighbors turn on their outside faucet, I can hear the water flow through the types in my bottom floor bathroom (ugh!). I had the water running and Sebastian was drinking from it as normal, but when I turned it off, he still tried to drink from it due to the sound of the water from the neighbors' faucet. So, this is not simply visual permanence, but audible permanence as well.[/edit]

 

[yakko]

I have had cats drink out of the faucet before. Cats can be quite interesting to watch in their normal activities. They are also about the only pets I would consider owning.

 

[warcleric]

The only good cat is a dead cat.

 

[Spamela]

i call one of my cats "chicken-brain." kant would have a field day with him.

 

[Azraele]

Cats are fascinating animals, and I love them to death. Here's an interesting story to go along with yours. A lightbulb needs changing, and kitty watches the proceedings. When the new bulb is in place and turned on, kitty is fascinated and kind of paws at it. The kitty goes to a nearby window and stares at the sun, then returns to the lightbulb. This goes on for a while. Did the kitty make the connection that both produce light?

Another story. I was playing with my cat Tender and someone kocked on the door. I tell her to stay right there that I will be back. Needless to say, I forget completely about her and once I remembered, I go upstairs where I left her and there she sits, with the ball of yarn at her feet. Did she actually understand what I wanted her to do? Not necessariy my words, but my intent, that I wanted her to stay put?

 

[Zenmervolt]

If cats don't have reasoning ability my cat, Abbott (after Bud Abbott of Abbott and Costello), certainly fakes reasoning ability well. Abbott likes to stay outside at night and hunt or do whatever it is cats do at night. One night we had a thunderstorm come up around 4am and Abbott decided that he wanted to come in. Of course at that time he couldn't very well go to the sliding door and expect to get let in because there would be no-one to see him. So what to do? My room is on the second floor of our house, and the windows look out on the first floor roof, so Abbott decides that the best thing to do is to climb the maple tree, jump from the maple tree onto the first floor roof, and sits at my window howling until I wake up and let him in through the window. Stupid me let him in, and now whenever he wants in at night guess what he does.

Zenmervolt

EDIT: I was more impressed with Abbott's ability to come up with the plan in the first place than with his decision that it would work whenever he wanted in at night.

 

[ArkAoss]

ahh cats.. highly inteligent they be, but always watch em around a baby.

 

I have run several experiments of intellect on my cats as well

1) Playing chase the ball with my kitten.Roll ball from carpeted living room to tile floor in dining room.Spray silicone on floor,repeat experiment (Watch cat hilarioulsy slide on tile)
After third slide,kitten runs right up to edge of tile and carefully walks to ball.
Clean floor and repeat experiment,First time cat walks across tile floor,second time cat runs
Respray floor,cat runs up to tile floor and walks across !
( Cat was watching me spray floor )

2)Fill bathtub with water,try to put kitten in bathtub
( didn't work )
Drained bathtub ( cat went right in )
Removed cat to another room and filled bathtub,turned bathroom lights off and tried to insert cat into bathtub full of water ( cat immediately tried to resist even before cat touched water ) ( Night time vision I suppose )

 

[ArkAoss]

ahh thats interesting roger.. But puppy's are more fun, We have a side walk in front of our house, and the dog runs down it, and cuts the corner at doggy mach 10. Then zips into the back yard. But after a snow, and it melts a little, that corner is low, so it becomes a sheet of ice, after tryin to cut that corner a few times, he now slides across the ice, and then hops into the snow pile between the sidewalk and drive way.

 

[nightowl]

I still believe in the fact that owners do not train their cats, cats train their owners. One of the cats that my parents have has trained them to get what ever he asks for. In the morning, he always manages to wake one of them up so they can let him outside. He also paws on the door to let them know he wants in. After he comes in from his early morning venture he always sits in front of the refridgerator until one of my parents adds tuna to his water. I you just give him fresh water he will sit there and stare at you until you add the tuna. After that he is fine for the rest of the day. I guess that cat owners are just to nice to let an aminal take over their everyday routine.