The Cat's Senses

Vision

One of the things many people fasten on about the cat's eyes (apart from their ability to glow in the dark), are the split shaped pupils. They are characteristic of the smaller species of the cat family - the bigger species like lions and tigers have round pupils.
Apart from regulating the quantity of light the cat uses its pupils to focus with, because their lenses aren't as flexible as ours. The cat's pupils also play a part in communicating, because their size can tell something about the cat's state of mind: a scared cat often has very large pupils, whereas an angry cat has quite narrow splits.
The cat's retina has two types of cells: one to perceive vertical objects and one to perceive horizontal ones. The use of these two types of cells has to be learned to a certain degree. Experiments have shown that cats that have grown up in an environment with only horizontal visual impressions will have difficulties in perceiving vertical objects and therefore walk into table legs etc. constantly.
Certain scientists claim to have proven that some of these cells also can perceive sound. It is as yet undecided, however, what the exact implications of this may be, and why the cat would need the ability to "hear
with its eyes".

The field of vision of the cat is very wide; in return its vision is a bit blurred in the edge of the field. It doesn't see colors quite like humans; in short it sees colors the same way colorblind humans do, for example it sees red and yellow colors as bluish and greenish nuances. In return cats can see the color ultraviolet which is invisible to humans.
The cat needs very little light to see; the sparse starlight penetrating on a cloudy night may be enough. This is partly due to its luminous eyes; the cat's retina has a fluorescent layer ("tapetum lucidum"), which reflects the light, so the cat in a way can "use the same light more than once". Oddly enough most people almost exclusively associate this ability with cats, even though it is a widespread phenomenon among mammals that need to be out at night; dogs, for example, also have it.
The cats' vision is incredibly acute in the middle of the field of vision, however best at a certain distance: cats are somewhat longsighted. When they eat they can't actually see their food but keep in contact with it by means of their whiskers and their smelling sense. This is why many cats refuse to eat something which is odorless, for example dried food. This may be met by soaking the food which will make it smell more.
The center of vision in the cat brain has a sort of "filter" which mainly lets impressions of things in motion pass. Actually many things indicate that cats have difficulties seeing objects that don't move. There have also been credible reports about mice who have saved their lives by "playing dead". This is useful to know if one should reincarnate as a mouse!

Kasper, who could tell the sound of "Dad's" bike baggage rack from that of anyone else's ...

The Hearing

is very keen in the cat - even keener than in the dog. Not surprisingly it is particularly keen in the pitches that mice and other small rodents use. Cats in fact use their hearing for preying , for example for deciding whether a mouse hole is inhabited or deserted.
One should think that an animal with such excellent hearing would be extremely bothered by New Year's fireworks and the like; but for unknown reasons most cats don't turn a hair because of it. It is not unusual to see the cat sitting in the window following the events of the fireworks with great interest, especially if there are many good rockets.
The good hearing makes it possible for the cat to tell the engine sound in its humans' car from that of all other cars of the same make and model. It can even tell which family member is behind the wheel because everyone has his own way of driving generating discernible sounds.
My first cat Kasper could hear if it was the baggage rack of my bicycle or that of a neighbor snapping outside. If it were mine, he rushed to the hall to begin the daily greeting ceremony, if, on the other hand, it was the neighbor's, he proceeded with his nap.
The hearing is of course also important in communicating with other cats.

The Sense of Smell

The cat's sense of smell is considerably better than humans', but not quite as good as the dog's. The cat uses this sense in the interaction with other cats.
Cats are equipped with glands that secrete pheromones. These scents are just as different from cat to cat as fingerprints are in humans.
These glands are found on the cat's cheeks, on its lower legs, and under the tail. Whenever a cat is "patrolling", it will deposit scent marks, partly when the grass touches its legs, partly when it rubs the corners of its mouth and its cheeks against objects on its route. Scents are also deposited when the cat whets its claws and of course when it sprays.
If another cat passes later, it will be able to tell from the scents that another cat has been there - which cat it was (that is if it's one it knows) - and app. how long ago it was. It can also determine from the scents in which direction the other cat went. It is even possible it can smell in which kind of mood the other cat was.
It is important to make it clear that scent marking doesn't necessarily reflect an aggressive "Clear out, this is my place!" attitude.

The message is often more related to the one known from humans: "Kilroy was here", that is a neutral demonstration of presence.This marking plays an important part, when several cats have adjacent territories, which may even overlap with common areas in the middle, (the latter is not unusual). The cats may then by means of the scents adapt their patrolling, so they don't run into each other; this way a lot of trouble is avoided, something that cats attach great importance to. This is something they have in common with most carnivores because of the dangerous weapons they have at their disposal; a species could make itself extinct within a short time, if all individuals fought each other without restraint.
Apart from its nose the cat has an olfactory organ in its mouth, more precisely in its palate. This is called Jacobson's organ and is also known from horses, sheep and especially reptiles. It is particularly used for identifying other cats, and impulses from this organ go directly to the centers for sex and hunger in the brain.
When using this organ, the cat will pull its lips aside and suck air through its teeth into the mouth.

The Sense of Taste

is not so well-developed in cats. Where humans and dogs have taste buds spread all over the tongue, cats only have a few along the edge.
Formerly it was believed that cats were unable to taste sweet - probably because sweet-toothed cats are rare. Now a days it has been established that cats have a few taste buds for sweet at the back of their tongues. They probably don't have much importance, since cats need very little carbohydrate to survive.
Even if cats can taste sour, sweet, bitter, salt and water, they "taste" on the whole with their smelling sense.

Let me use the opportunity to refute a dangerous myth: Cats cannot taste or smell, if something is poisonous, and they don't have an inborn instinct for what is safe for them to eat or drink. On the contrary they depend on their mother to learn what is "food". This education is so efficient that the kittens may learn to tell for example mice and rats apart, even if you only show them a bit of skin. Since you are "in loco parentis" for the cat, you must take responsibility for your cat in this respect as well.

The Sense of Touch

is especially keen at the pads and at the whiskers and similar tactile hairs.
Such hairs can be found over the eyes, under the chin and on the legs. The cat uses these hairs to feel with, whenever something is to close for the cat to be able to see it, or when it is so dark that even cats have difficulties seeing.
The tactile hairs are moreover used for balance purposes

(exactly how is not clarified). A cat which has lost its whiskers, will often move, as if it has had a drop too much.
The cat can not only feel something that touches the tactile hairs directly; it can also feel air currents like for example those that arise from the body heat of living creatures.

The sixth sense?

Many myths about the cat's supernatural powers are circulating - as if its natural powers weren't fabulous enough!
Many of these myths have their origin as far back as the Middle Ages, where it was the general belief that the cat was the Devil's messenger.
More of this kind of attitudes than we like to think are still alive in our subconsciousness. This may be one of the reasons why even devoted cat lovers don't always feel secure around their animals, especially not when they sit staring at you for hours. But remember that the cat sees things best, if they move, so it might just be waiting for you to move in order to see you properly. :-)
Both stray and tame cats find great pleasure in watching people.

The American author Roger A. Caras ("A Cat is Watching") goes

as far as to maintain that even if we don't see any cat, all humans are being watched by at least one cat. Why we are so interesting to cats is still a mystery.
Another reason why many people talk about a "sixth sense" in connection with cats, may be their extraordinary flair for the state of mind of both animals and humans. Often you have a feeling that they can even read your thoughts. This is probably due to the fact that the cat is well endowed by nature to read body language and scents as well as facial expressions. A cat will also perceive even the slightest change in your tone of voice. Often the cat will find out how you feel a little before you find out yourself.

The Cat's Sense of Time

Most ethologists (ethology: behavioral science) agree that animals don’t have as developed a sense of time as humans. It is also true that many animals don’t know how many hours they have been alone or when to expect the food bowl to be filled. There are however many signals that can help the cat keep track of times (rather than time spans). The rush hour traffic is noisy at the same time every day and the bird song varies during the day. Different plants flower at different times during the year and emit each their special aroma. And the light changes as well. Humans and animals at the neighbor's also emit different sounds, smells and visual stimuli according to the time.
Still it seems surprising and illogical - even mystical - when certain cats are fully aware of certain times and even days of the week. There is a story of a cat in Germany who every Monday at 19:45 would leave home to follow the playing in a bingo-hall through a window and come home directly at about 22:00

when the game was over. It never mistook the day of the week or the time and it was also the only day when the cat didn’t leave the house at about 17-18. Part of the story is that the cat was not fed at the bingo-hall: it was just sitting outside a closed window following the game. One must assume that there are also signals connected to certain days of the week, for example the collection of rubbish and the like. It is all these signals from the environment that enable the cat to know and be offended if we are a few minutes late coming home from work.
Even though there is nothing mystical about the cat’s sense of time, one must be surprised at just how sharp senses the cat has. In the wild it can be of great importance that things happen at the same times: for example the predators’ active periods of the day are very close to their preys’. In the case of the domestic cat the active periods are in the hours around morning and evening sunset. In the middle of the night they will usually be sleeping.

The thought process

Many people don’t realize how intelligent cats really are. Newer research has shown that the cat’s brain is similar to ours - with the only difference that the cat has no speech center and that there is not much room for memory, at least it seems to be other things it remembers.
Humans have always wanted to raise high over animals and make something special of ourselves but it is becoming increasingly difficult. Earlier it was seen as proof of superior human intelligence that we used tools, but then it was discovered that chimpanzees for example also do this (some ant species even have husbandry). Then it was decided that only humans could think abstract thoughts, but also this claim has been proved wrong. Even though the researchers are split in two groups, the research is very active and it is claimed the first evidence that different animal species can also think abstract has been found. It is still so new that it has not been possible to find material about this subject.
The interested cat owner would never doubt that their furry friend is capable of a lot of brain activity. The cat’s sense of humor, the “tyranny of love” it practices, and it’s ability to “figure

it out” seems impossible without abstract thinking, so it will be interesting to learn what conclusions the researchers come to.
The problem of intelligence is also complicated because it is a matter of definition.
If we assume intelligence is the ability to solve problems without trying out several theories first, only by combining experience, memory, and new sensual impressions, the answer would up until recently have been a clear: No, the cat is not intelligent.
In the meantime several lab studies are being reported that indicate that the cat is extraordinarily intelligent. An American researcher tells about a cat that first learned to move boxes, then was shut into a room where there was a string with a slice of liver attached hanging from the ceiling. The slice of liver was hanging so low that the cat could just reach it by jumping up and pulling it off the string. Now the liver was hung so high that the cat could not reach it, but a little bit away there was a box. After several vain attempts at jumping up to reach the liver the cat went over to a corner and started washing itself, a quite usual thing to do when frustrated, embarrassed or insecure. Suddenly in the middle of the washing the cat stiffened and stared concentrated at the liver after which it went over and moved the box under the liver, jumped up on the box and got the treat that way.
In another research project it has been found that cats have a very good memory - better than dogs, rhesus monkeys and orangutans - also when it comes to remembering combinations of rather complicated strings of thought and problem solving.
As a cat owner it is tempting to comment: what did I say?