I'm an animal person. I
write books that feature a dog. So I
occasionally sound off about animals. Here goes...
Warning: If you're a scientist, read no further, as you
may find this post an affront to your profession. (Hey, I appreciate
scientists, and I'm even a bit of a closet science geek myself –
ask me about entangled particles, one of the stranger aspects of
quantum mechanics – but this is just one of those subjects where
scientists have spent far too long catching up with what regular
people have always known.)
Here's a truth as I know it, a statement with which more
than half the country – the pet owners – will agree. (Oh, the
very thought of popular opinion rearing its ugly head into the world
of hard knowledge is not just disagreeable, but naive. Yet here I go,
another philistine, steeped in his own militant ignorance.)
The statement: Animals are much smarter than the people who measure
animal smarts think.
Nearly all people with dogs and cats will tell you
stories of their pets' amazing abilities. When this happens, any
nearby scientists try not to roll their eyes. Scientists think that
people attribute intelligence to hard-wired behaviors. People
misconstrue animal behavior and call it smarts, they think. People
confuse a myriad of observations and biased opinions with fact, they
think. From the scientists' perspective, they are correct.
So why would I even venture into such scientific hot
water? Because all of my life I usually found myself agreeing with scientists
except when it came to their pronouncements on animal intelligence.
When I was a kid, scientists applied what they now
realize were crude techniques to determine that animals were not very
smart. Birds had “bird-brains.” Horses had about enough smarts to
eat and that was it. Dogs merely did whatever would get them a treat; no significant intelligence was needed.
They've
come a long way, those scientists. And as their testing has gotten
more sophisticated, animals have – surprise – gotten a lot
smarter.
Scientists
now know that crows make and use basic tools.
Scientists have shown that parrots can count and identify different kinds of fruit and tell it all in English. Wait, let me say that again. Parrots can look at a pile of fruit and tell us what and how many there are in ENGLISH. How many scientists out there can speak Parrot? A University of Oregon
scientist did a study showing that when it comes to telling impressionist
paintings from abstract expressionist paintings, trained pigeons can
do it with greater accuracy and speed than can college students. Scientists have learned that geese go to great lengths to keep their extended families together while they migrate thousands of miles. And they get where they're going in the dark. At night.
io9.com |
Scientists
now know that orangutans will purposefully deceive them and tell lies
and hide the evidence of their deceit from the scientists. Scientists
have discovered that dogs can read people's faces and understand what
people want just by the look in people's eyes.
Scientists know that
chimps can learn a huge amount of human sign language even as the
scientists haven't learned how to speak any substantial amount of
chimp language.
ttsGreatDanes.com |
Scientists
have discovered that dolphins and elephants have self-awareness.
These animals understand mirrors. They know the difference between
themselves and others.
Scientists
have even found that fish – fish! – can recognize their buddies.
(Even I thought that all fish looked alike.)
Every
year, more papers are published that detail scientists' discoveries
that animals are smarter than people used to think. Just like what
pet-owners have been saying all along.
True-Wildlife blog |
Emotions
are the next area where scientists are catching up with what regular
people have always known. The people in white coats have historically
said that our perception of animal emotions is merely
anthropomorphism, people ascribing human-style emotions to the
behavior of animals. Yet slowly, scientific study is discovering the
emotions of animals. Dogs,
especially, have many human-style emotions. Those of joy and
happiness are manifest. But melancholy, fear, worry, and grief aren't
far behind. It won't be long before brain scans and other evidence
show clear signs of less obvious emotions.
Those
of us who know animals know how smart they are, how emotional they
are, how their worlds are immeasurably complicated.
Just
like the worlds of scientists.
Have
you ever noticed that we humans have always had a hubris that says
that we are special, that we are much more than just another extra-clever
animal? We assume our specialness just as we assume that animals are
not very special. Prove it, we say about animal smarts even as we
regularly engage in behavior that might have other species saying
“prove it” about our own smarts.
Animal
lovers have known all along that in fact animals are much like us in
many ways. Yes, we humans are clever,
perhaps too much for our own good. But our arrogance is such that we
often don't realize the truth.
We
aren't as smart as we think. And animals are smarter than we think.
Thank you...Thank you for confirming I'm not a 'crazy' human that just applies anthropomorphism animals and their behavior. Luke and Leia are my cats; Leia being the elder of the two.
ReplyDeleteFor some reason, the act of my taking a seat in the easy chair as opposed to the couch is the signal for both of them to compete for my lap. On this particular occasion, the chair was facing the kitchen, which included a door in which I had installed a pet door. I sat down, and Luke settled in my lap purring in contentment. 5 minutes later, Leia came in from outdoors and sashayed over to my feet, sat down and looked up at Luke sitting in my lap as if to say "Move!". Luke merely laid one ear back. "Fine!" Leia turned, walked back into the kitchen and lept up onto the kitchen table. Both cats know this is the biggest "no-no" in the household. Any other time, when I say "Leia! No!" she quickly ceases whatever behavior I'm taking exception to. Not this time.
"Leia! No!" Leia sat on her haunches, her back to us...apparently now deaf. I was appalled...she always had obeyed before. Luke is usually the one that plays dumb.
"Leia! Get Down!" I said loudly. Leia calmly licked her paw, seemingly oblivious. Luke's ears were skewed...he was feeling uneasy.
"Leia! Get off of that table!!" I was now yelling...still no response from her. Luke, however, jumped off my lap and stalked away...it was no longer restful there.
Immediately, Leia jumped off the table and silently walked over to the easy chair and lept into my lap. I was dumbfounded, but couldn't help laughing. "you are such a little wench!" I said, scratching her behind her ears.
Now I ask you...was this all a coincidence? Or did Leia (the better hunter of the two) apply a great strategy? No scientist will ever make me believe that an animal's only motivation is 'treats'.
Todd says: Great example of animal strategy! No question in my mind that Leia knew exactly what she was doing.
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