The memory of cats is different from ours, for example, they can precisely remember a route to return home but are not able to memorize certain things that are much simpler. So, do cats have good memories?
In this article, I tell you everything about the memory of the cat, and you will see that it will be very useful for you to understand it better.
Do cats have a good memory?
Memory is complex, there is long-term memory and short-term memory, visual memory and olfactory memory, to take these few examples. To give you a baseline of cats’ ability to memorize, they have over 300 million neurons like dogs have 160 million, making their memory more efficient.
For short-term memory, cats have a very good one for the last 16 hours, but their long-term memory will only keep what is vital for their survival, they are poorly equipped to remember distant memories.
Its memory allows it to recognize danger, feed, and trust the right people, and its long-term memory is pretty much only useful for performing this function.
Besides, cats don’t remember almost anything that happened more than 3 years ago. They will only remember people who marked them or dangers they experienced, for example.
Their memory process
Cats will remember what happened in the last 16 hours with precision, but beyond that only what was important will be retained in its brain. For example, if he heard a loud noise outside, like a shrill alarm, he will remember it and avoid going there for a while.
Conversely, everyday things, like the fact that you are sweeping, will slip out of his memory because these details are of no use to him to survive.
The intensity of the emotions he feels in a certain context will influence his ability to memorize what happened at that moment.
His memory declines with age
As for all animals and even us, memory is stronger at the very beginning of its life because it allows it to learn the world and it declines with age when the fundamentals have been acquired.
It is during the first months that they retain the most things and that you can teach them as many things as possible so that they behave well in the future.
From the age of 12, his memory will become really bad and only the most basic things will be retained by his brain.
Spatial memory is his strong point
If your cat finds the house easily, it is because it has a very advanced spatial memory, which is what allows it to remember which places are dangerous in the wild; to locate useful places and to be able to return to his fold.
Whether hunting or protecting themselves, their spatial memory is fundamental to their survival.
The olfactory memory is also very developed
Cats have a very developed sense of smell which they use for many things, such as hunting or recognizing a person in detail. So his memory is necessarily more developed on this side.
Sometimes you can see it sniffing outside, often to sniff out prey but also to remember if the territory is safe or not.
Other types of memory are much worse
The other types of memory of the cat are much less developed because they are not fundamental to him. Only memories that are of great help to him will be preserved for a long time.
Only what allows him to live normally and survive is kept in memory, the rest is useless and therefore forgotten by his brain very quickly.
Do cats have a good memory: The final word
Cats’ memory is neither good nor bad, it is just fully adapted to survive and adapt. Their short-term and olfactory memory are very good, but the others much less so.
Cats will mostly remember people, animals, and strong events as well as habits in their life, such as what time you feed them.