Cats' and dogs' intelligence

Question:

The question of the intelligence of dogs came up today in a comic strip newsgroup about that excellent comic strip, Get Fuzzy, which features Satch the dog, Bucky the cat, and Rob their human. In yesterday’s strip Satch gives an extra-long speech, which prompted "Sydney" to write: Does anyone else think that Satchel seems unusually eloquent in 3/12’s Get Fuzzy?

Another poster, "Carl" replied I noticed that too. It might have worked better from Rob’s mouth. Satchel’s intelligence varies depending on the needs of the strip (as does Bucky’s).

And this prompted me to write this (the cat part is a personal observation!): – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – True. I’m also convinced that dogs’ and cats’ intelligence vary day to day. Kelsey Grammer says that Moose (now semi-retired and replaced by his son Enzo) who portrayed Eddie, the dog on TV’s Frasier, was brilliant and could do just about any trick he was programmed to do for the show. But there were days that he’d lose it and revert to being any old dog, running around the set and wasting Panavision film in front of a live audience. As for cats – "You know, I think she’s finally stopped scratching the sofa." (Next day:) "Hey, get away from that sofa!" As for people… ???

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – …I’m…convinced that dogs’ and cats’ intelligence vary day to day. Kelsey Grammer says that Moose (now semi-retired and replaced by his son Enzo) who portrayed Eddie, the dog on TV’s Frasier, was brilliant and could do just about any trick he was programmed to do for the show. But there were days that he’d lose it and revert to being any old dog, running around the set and wasting Panavision film in front of a live audience. As for cats – "You know, I think she’s finally stopped scratching the sofa." (Next day:) "Hey, get away from that sofa!" As for people… ???

This reaction to my post from someone named Mike Beede just popped up over at that comic strip newsgroup. There’s a lot of truth in what he says, and it’s what I also find attractive about cats! ______ I don’t know how you’d tell with a cat, since their agenda doesn’t involve doing things people want them to do. They might be smarter than Steven Hawking and I’d never know because my wishes are totally irrelevant to them. Actually that’s what I find attractive about them. A dog puts his head in your lap because *he has to*. A cat sits on your lap because *he wants to*. [Note: pronoun trouble here given most pets are radically sterilized--do we ever find if that's the case with the GF animals?]

Response:

I like to think our cats are fairly smart, but they sure can play dumb when they want to. Fez in particular is quite good at pretending he doesn’t know he’s not supposed to jump on the cutting board when I’m preparing dinner. — Victor Martinez Owned and operated by the Fantastic Seven (TM)

Response:

Yeah, it’s that darned kitty Alzheimers, where they completely forget their housecat manners. (Or they forget you’re watching!) Sherry

Response:

As for cats – "You know, I think she’s finally stopped scratching the sofa." (Next day:) "Hey, get away from that sofa!"

You confuse "intelligence" with "willfulness". Cat’s are intelligent enough about the things that matter to them, they just don’t much care whether they please their humans or not. You can’t "train" a cat not to do something it WANTS to do – about the best you can manage is to teach it not to let you CATCH it doing it!

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – The question of the intelligence of dogs came up today in a comic strip newsgroup about that excellent comic strip, Get Fuzzy, which features Satch the dog, Bucky the cat, and Rob their human. In yesterday’s strip Satch gives an extra-long speech, which prompted "Sydney" to write: Does anyone else think that Satchel seems unusually eloquent in 3/12’s Get Fuzzy? Another poster, "Carl" replied I noticed that too. It might have worked better from Rob’s mouth. Satchel’s intelligence varies depending on the needs of the strip (as does Bucky’s). And this prompted me to write this (the cat part is a personal observation!): True. I’m also convinced that dogs’ and cats’ intelligence vary day to day. Kelsey Grammer says that Moose (now semi-retired and replaced by his son Enzo) who portrayed Eddie, the dog on TV’s Frasier, was brilliant and could do just about any trick he was programmed to do for the show. But there were days that he’d lose it and revert to being any old dog, running around the set and wasting Panavision film in front of a live audience. As for cats – "You know, I think she’s finally stopped scratching the sofa." (Next day:) "Hey, get away from that sofa!" As for people… ???

Oh, people – definitely! One day I may come up with a flash of brilliance or compose an eloquent speech for a Toastmasters meeting. Other days – well, probably the worst was a few weeks ago. I go to a movie almost every week. I use a wallet that hangs around your neck, so I don’t take my purse (handbag). Sometimes I automatically take it along, and if that happens, I lock it in the trunk (boot) of the car before going into the movie. I always lock my car when I leave it, except when it is in my own garage. A few weeks ago, I came out of my movie and noticed that I had forgotten to lock the car. Then I saw my purse on the front seat! I was not only incredibly stupid, but incredibly lucky that day. Joy

Response:

As for cats – "You know, I think she’s finally stopped scratching the sofa." (Next day:) "Hey, get away from that sofa!" You confuse "intelligence" with "willfulness". Cat’s are intelligent enough about the things that matter to them, they just don’t much care whether they please their humans or not. You can’t "train" a cat not to do something it WANTS to do – about the best you can manage is to teach it not to let you CATCH it doing it!

You say I confuse intelligence with wilfulness. Actually, our kitties frequently leave me confused! But you’re right of course. Our little brat-cat Emily has been told – loudly – many times not to chase her little step-sister Sophie under the cedar chest, and, if we’re close enough, has even been squirted occasionally with a water spray bottle. Emily seems to look apologetic as she escapes under some piece of furniture herself. But it’s all for show. She’s biding her time until we’re not around to see her do it again. She never hurts Sophie who’s too quick for her, and every day Sophie is growing bigger and more assertive. Some day she’ll solve the problem herself, feline-to-feline. In situations like ours, I guess our role as human serfs is simply to love ‘em and let ‘em be cats.

Response:

Oh yeah. I just have to think of how I know Sammy acts when we go outside. There are limits to how far I want Sammy to go. When she starts to go outside the accepted boundaries, I’ll call her back. If she feels like it she’ll turn around and come back. Of course, at least 50% of the time she tries to extend the boundary. She’ll either stop and lay down where she is, or just keep walking, pretending she doesn’t hear me calling. Of course her lashing tail and ears cocked back at me sort of give it away. If I threaten to get the bottle, one of the words she knows, she looks back to see if I’m actually getting up. She’ll watch, and once I pick up the bottle she almost always starts sauntering back. Course sometimes I actually have to head in her direction, but she knows the exact range of the spray bottle, waits until I’m "almost" in range, and then takes off running home. — Steve Touchstone, faithful servant of Sammy, Little Bit and Rocky Home Page: http://www.sirinet.net/~stouchst/index.html Cat Pix: http://www.sirinet.net/~stouchst/animals.html

Response:

Oh yeah. I just have to think of how I know Sammy acts when we go outside. There are limits to how far I want Sammy to go. When she starts to go outside the accepted boundaries, I’ll call her back.

Cherokee used to push the boundaries, and when I’d go to pick him up and carry him back, he had this odd trick. He would lie on the concrete, and somehow press hiimseelf down, making it almost impossible to squeeze your fingers under him. He’d look for all the world liike a big fat black bowling ball with a head. Sherry

Response:

Heh. Mike isn’t the brightest of cats, but I think he’s smarter than he usually lets on. When DH and I were dating, he saw me short-circuit Mike’s intended leap into the china cabinet; I shouted "NO" and Mike immediately sat down and started innocently bathing. DH said "Oh, he *does* know that word!" Mikey had completely faked him out. —— Krista

Response:

A former GF told me that when cats go flat, they’re actually utilizing suction.

Response:

I use a wallet that hangs around your neck, so I don’t take my purse (handbag). Sometimes I automatically take it along, and if that happens, I lock it in the trunk (boot) of the car before going into the movie. I always lock my car when I leave it, except when it is in my own garage. A few weeks ago, I came out of my movie and noticed that I had forgotten to lock the car. Then I saw my purse on the front seat! I did something just as bad myself the other day. It was kind of the opposite of what you did. I carry a backpack around with me – it’s my version of a purse, except that it leaves my hands free. Anyway, I went grocery shopping the other day, and I decided to leave my backpack in the trunk of my car while in the store, since all I needed was my wallet, and I put that in my pants pocket. When I was done shopping, I got back to my car and searched my pockets for the car keys. They weren’t there. Then I noticed that the keys were in the ignition. The car was completely locked. Oh, sh*t. I do have a spare car key that I carry around, because I have been known to do this sort of thing before – but guess where that was? In my backpack, locked in the trunk! Real useful. Not only that, but *I had left the engine running*! How stupid is that?? My cell phone was also locked in the trunk inside my backpack, so I had to go back to the store to call AAA (my auto club, which provides emergency road service). I only had to wait about 20 minutes for them to show up, and when the guy arrived, it took him about 20 *seconds* to break into my car. Scary. I think I used up my quota of bonehead mistakes for the next 6 months with that one… Joyce

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Cherokee used to push the boundaries, and when I’d go to pick him up and carry him back, he had this odd trick. He would lie on the concrete, and somehow press hiimseelf down, making it almost impossible to squeeze your fingers under him. He’d look for all the world liike a big fat black bowling ball with a head. A former GF told me that when cats go flat, they’re actually utilizing suction. It’s true. It’s the weirdest phenomenon and hard to explain. It’s funny to me that other people know what I’m talking about. I thought this was a Cherokee-exclusive stunt!

Oh no, I think all cats do it on occasion. (Even where you’d think it wasn’t possible, on soft surfaces like carpets and beds.) – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Sherry

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – Cherokee used to push the boundaries, and when I’d go to pick him up and carry him back, he had this odd trick. He would lie on the concrete, and somehow press hiimseelf down, making it almost impossible to squeeze your fingers under him. He’d look for all the world liike a big fat black bowling ball with a head. A former GF told me that when cats go flat, they’re actually utilizing suction. It’s true. It’s the weirdest phenomenon and hard to explain. It’s funny to me that other people know what I’m talking about. I thought this was a Cherokee-exclusive stunt! Oh no, I think all cats do it on occasion. (Even where you’d think it wasn’t possible, on soft surfaces like carpets and beds.) Sherry

It’s passive resistance. They learn it in their kitty civil disobedience teach-ins. Theresa alt.tv.frasier FAQ: http://www.im-listening.net/FAQ/ Single-mindedness is all very well in cows or baboons; in an animal claiming to belong to the same species as Shakespeare it is simply disgraceful. (Aldous Huxley)

Response:

It’s passive resistance. They learn it in their kitty civil disobedience teach-ins. Theresa alt.tv.frasier FAQ:

LOL! I have a back page in my Franklin planner reserved for funny or weird quotes from people at work, family, etc. Your post just made an entry!! Sherry

Response:

It’s true. It’s the weirdest phenomenon and hard to explain. It’s funny to me that other people know what I’m talking about. I thought this was a Cherokee-exclusive stunt! Oh no, I think all cats do it on occasion. (Even where you’d think it wasn’t possible, on soft surfaces like carpets and beds.) It’s passive resistance. They learn it in their kitty civil disobedience teach-ins.

My cat Betty has pulled passive resistance stunts on me before, but when it comes to being picked up, she’s usually surprisingly cooperative. Even when she’s really afraid, like when I’ve brought out the vacuum cleaner, I can chase her down, and she’ll freeze immediately when I grab her butt, and then go entirely limp when I pick her up. Then, I can put her in a room that I’m not vacuuming. This was one of the things that made me think that Sherry’s Biskit must be a lot like Betty.

Response:

I’m surprised more people don’t seem to agree that cats are way beyond dogs. I came across findings that say cats have the 3rd hightest IQ of all land animals, topped only by the monkey and the chimp. A lot of people aren’t very fond of cats and therefore just notice it laying around. I totally agree with all the cartoons I have seen in how the dog is no match for a cat.. not even close! poor dummy of a dog

Response:

Humans have the fourth highest intelligence of any land animal… Pam S.

Response:

I don’t agree. . I kept dogs before I kept cats and I think dogs are more intelligent. Cats are crafty and self-interested and that’s an entirely different thing. They do things only if it benefits themselves. I love my two, don’t get me wrong, but cats are in the kindliest possible way "parasites" They take all, and give not much. Now, when you can tell me you can train a cat do a mountain rescue, lead the blind, act as a hearing cat, herd sheep etc, etc then tell me cats are best. I don’t wish to be contradictory, but there is no comparison in intelligence, as far as I am concerned. My dogs understood a lot of language. My cats understand only a little. "Out or in" when they are standing in the doorway. If they didn’t make their minds up, the door would push them outside, so they soon learned that one. "Do you want anything?" they know that one too, and also "Grub up!" "Pack it in" they haven’t quite got the hang of (this when Kitty is spitting at Boyfriend (she’s very jealous) or vice versa when he is trying to stick up for himself. Kitty boxes his ears regularly and sometimes – only sometimes – he retaliates. Cats have a very different sort of intelligence compared with dogs. Tweed

Response:

It’s true. It’s the weirdest phenomenon and hard to explain. It’s funny to me that other people know what I’m talking about. I thought this was a Cherokee-exclusive stunt! Sherry

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – I use a wallet that hangs around your neck, so I don’t take my purse (handbag). Sometimes I automatically take it along, and if that happens, I lock it in the trunk (boot) of the car before going into the movie. I always lock my car when I leave it, except when it is in my own garage. A few weeks ago, I came out of my movie and noticed that I had forgotten to lock the car. Then I saw my purse on the front seat! I did something just as bad myself the other day. It was kind of the opposite of what you did. I carry a backpack around with me – it’s my version of a purse, except that it leaves my hands free. Anyway, I went grocery shopping the other day, and I decided to leave my backpack in the trunk of my car while in the store, since all I needed was my wallet, and I put that in my pants pocket. When I was done shopping, I got back to my car and searched my pockets for the car keys. They weren’t there. Then I noticed that the keys were in the ignition. The car was completely locked. Oh, sh*t. I do have a spare car key that I carry around, because I have been known to do this sort of thing before – but guess where that was? In my backpack, locked in the trunk! Real useful. Not only that, but *I had left the engine running*! How stupid is that?? My cell phone was also locked in the trunk inside my backpack, so I had to go back to the store to call AAA (my auto club, which provides emergency road service). I only had to wait about 20 minutes for them to show up, and when the guy arrived, it took him about 20 *seconds* to break into my car. Scary. I think I used up my quota of bonehead mistakes for the next 6 months with that one…

Several years ago, my mother and I stopped at a local Dairy Bard for some soft-serve cones, . When we got back to the car, not only had we left the keys in the ignition, the engine running, but the car was NOT locked! — The ONE and ONLY lefthanded-pathetic-paranoid-psychotic-sarcastic-wiseass-ditzy former-blonde in Bloomington! (And proud of it, too)

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