There were numerous studies in the past that tried to determine who's smarter between our two most favorite choices for pets. But this recent study looks particular interesting.
_https://theheartysoul.com/age-old-debate-science-says-dogs-smarter-cats/?utm_source=DKB&utm_content=62682-3QDS
Here's the link to the actual study.
It made me think about something else I heard from a colleague, a veterinary ophthalmologist. She was talking about the structure of the eye, and particularly the optic nerve. She said that there are differences between dogs and cats, and that it has to do with myelination. This, for example:
And myelin's function is main function is to speed the relay of electricity messages in the nervous system.
Don't know if these differences somehow affect dogs and cats intelligence, but who knows. In any case, I do belive that cats have intelligence, just of a different time. Perhaps more "instinctual" smarts.
_https://theheartysoul.com/age-old-debate-science-says-dogs-smarter-cats/?utm_source=DKB&utm_content=62682-3QDS
It’s long been debated which is smarter – dogs or cats? Those in the dog camp claim that the ability to be trained makes man’s best friend the brainiest, while fans of felines argue that a cat’s nonchalance, independence, and high standards make it far superior. Cats were once worshipped as gods, after all.
However, science seems to have brought new evidence to the debate, something that will bring smug satisfaction to every “dog person”.
It turns out that dogs have many more neurons in the cerebral cortex of their brains than cats. These special cells are associated with various signs of intelligence like thinking, planning, and complex behavior.
Published in the journal Frontiers in Neuroanatomy, the study didn’t just focus on our favorite pets. The international team of scientists looked at the brains of various carnivore species too. Interestingly, they found that only the smaller species – dogs and smaller – have higher densities of cortical neurons. Striped hyenas have fewer than dogs, for example, and brown bears have the same number as cats.
Meanwhile, raccoons, despite having small, cat-sized brains, have as many neurons as dogs, making them “comparable to primates in neuronal density”, and therefore rather smart. No wonder they can solve puzzles and are famed for being cunning thieves.
What’s more, domestication didn’t seem to have any effect on neuronal composition in the brains of the carnivores tested in the study.
“I believe the absolute number of neurons an animal has, especially in the cerebral cortex, determines the richness of their internal mental state and their ability to predict what is about to happen in their environment based on past experience,” said study author Suzana Herculano-Houzel of Vanderbilt University in a statement.
Here's the link to the actual study.
It made me think about something else I heard from a colleague, a veterinary ophthalmologist. She was talking about the structure of the eye, and particularly the optic nerve. She said that there are differences between dogs and cats, and that it has to do with myelination. This, for example:
The optic nerve enters the eye through the lamina cribrosa of the sclera. In cats the normal optic nerve loses its myelination as it enters the eye. In dogs the nerve retains some degree of myelination as it passes through the sclera and loses the myelin as it radiates into the nerve fiber layer of the retina. The shape of the optic nerve in cats is normally fairly circular, whereas in dogs the extent of myelination determines the shape—which may be quite irregular, especially in some breeds.
And myelin's function is main function is to speed the relay of electricity messages in the nervous system.
Don't know if these differences somehow affect dogs and cats intelligence, but who knows. In any case, I do belive that cats have intelligence, just of a different time. Perhaps more "instinctual" smarts.