According to cognitive psychology, your short-term memory is about 30 seconds. Most research studies involving cats indicate that their short-term memory is about 16 hours. Perhaps your cat knows where you left your glasses! But how good is cats’ long-term memory, and, specifically, how long do cats remember their previous owners, litter mates, or other cats? To get all the answers, we met with Janet Cutler, Ph.D., our Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist here at Cat-World. Let’s start by looking at cats’ memory of people and how long cats remember people (most specifically how long cats remember their owners).
Do cats remember people and their previous owners?
Yes, we know that cats are both capable of missing previous owners and remembering homes and families. However, whether or not they do, and for how long, depends on several circumstances:
- At what age were they separated from previous owners or home?
- How long were they with the previous owners?
- Were their experiences in the previous home positive ones?
An eight-week old kitten coming from its birth home will likely not remember. However, an older cat having to be rehomed due to the death of a long-time owner will most likely recall (and grieve) for that person. Additionally, your cat has a great capacity to remember you, particularly if you’ve left a strong impression on them.
How long can cats remember their owners?
Dr. Janet Cutler stated, *We don’t have many interesting facts about cat memory as there just isn’t much research yet. We do know, however, that long-term memory plays a crucial role in a cat’s behavior. Due to associative memory, cats can store data for years. It’s important that those memories be positive ones that will benefit both your kitty and you!”
Inspiring videos show cats can remember their owners for weeks, months, and even years. If you’ve any doubt about your cat missing and remembering you, check out these 3 short – but heartwarming – videos:
Joyful Meeting Cat and Owner: After 21 days, this cat gives a very warm welcome – kissing and licking her owner abundantly!
Cat Welcomes Home Soldier: after months of not seeing her owner, this cat quickly jumps on him for a hug!
How long do cats remember their previous owners? Looking at “big cats” can provide a clue. Christian the Lion remembered his previous owners after a year in the wild:
Do cats remember other cats?
Yes. “Cats often recognize and remember other household cats by their smell,” says Dr. Cutler. Interestingly, this can be misleading: “if one of your cats leaves the home for a period of time, for example to go to the veterinarian for an overnight stay, you may have noticed that your cats act like they don’t remember each other at all! This is sometimes termed non-recognition aggression in cats, and can happen when the smell of a cat doesn’t match up with the cat they are familiar with.”
How do cats remember people and other cats?
Janet Cutler, Ph.D., and Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, has this to say: “We don’t yet know a lot about how exactly cats remember people, as science is lacking in this area. Research with dogs is just beginning, and likely that in cats isn’t too far behind.” So what do we know?
- Cats use all of their senses to remember people. “A cat’s sense of smell is quite good, and it’s reasonable to assume that smell might be important to their memory of us. Cats have 5 to 10 times more skin cells in their nose than we do, and also have the ability to perform a flehmen response, which is when they inhale with their mouth open and their top lip curled up. This action allows scents and pheromones into their vomeronasal organ (a sense organ located in the soft tissue of the nasal septum of the nasal cavity just above the roof of the mouth), which heightens the intensity of a smell.
- Cat eyes and ears recall memories: Cats also likely remember our voices and what we look like. Cats have been shown to recognize their owner’s voice compared to a stranger, and some cats have been shown to be able to tell when an image of a familiar person on a screen doesn’t match up to a recorded voice that is played alongside it,” says Cutler. A cat will also recognize the unique body language of an individual–and should they lick you skin, that taste will also identify you.
- Cultivating strong emotions helps a cat remember: Dr. Cutler adds emotions to the list. “Memory in cats, as it is with other mammals, is often strongest when associated with stronger emotions. Strong positive emotions with members of their human family should therefore last a considerable amount of time, we just don’t yet have the science to back up what we have observed with our cats.
We also know that mammals are more likely to remember things that have strong emotions tied to them, so the happier you make your cat and more positive memories they have of you, the more they will likely remember you.”
What else does science tell us about a cat’s memory?
Janet Cutler, Ph.D. adds: “One study has looked at working memory, or short-term memory, in cats with a wooden object. The cat could see the object being hidden behind one of four boxes, and then the cat was allowed to go find it after a certain period of time. (The cat had been trained to find it before the experiment started.) The ability of the cat to remember where the wooden object had been hidden declined rapidly within 30 seconds.
Cats remember food for a longer time: When it comes to food, however, memories seem to last a bit longer. Another study looked at exploring information about the ‘what’ and ‘where’ in cat memory. Cats were led to four containers, two of which had food, one had a nonedible object (a hairpin), and one was empty. The cats were allowed to eat from one and were then removed. All of the containers were removed and new, empty containers were put in their place. After a period of time (approximately 15 minutes), they were allowed back in, and cats were more likely to go to the second container where there had last been uneaten food. This shows that cats have a memory for what was in a particular area and where that place was.
We assume that cats developed a good ability to remember based on their need to hunt for food–remembering areas where prey are plentiful would be important to our domesticated cats’ earlier relatives.” Cats are excellent at remembering the things that are important to cats!
Keeping them sharp
Once a cat reaches age 15, there is a 50% chance they will lose some cognitive function. You can help lessen this chance by challenging them with games and interactive toys. Keep your cat’s mind in condition by exposing them to new things. There is usually much more happening outdoors than within their four walls, so if you can’t take them out on occasion, set up a birdfeeder near a window perch, or better yet build a catio.
They are what they eat. A healthy diet will also go a long way in helping your cat to retain his cognitive abilities. Foods rich in omega-three fatty acids and antioxidants are especially beneficial.
Taking the steps now to afford you kitty optimal mental and physical health will benefit both of you in the long run. And just think of the memories you’ll make!
FAQs
Are cats capable of missing previous owners? Do they remember their old homes and families?
Studies on whether or not a cat misses their previous owner are contradictory. Anecdotally, we know that cats are both capable of missing previous owners and remembering homes and families. However, whether or not they do depends on many circumstances (including age at separation and length of time with previous owners). New owners sometimes take depression or aggression as a sign that a cat misses its previous owner, however, those emotions are most likely due to the stress of a new environment.
Do cats dream about their owners?
Science has shown us that people dream when they enter the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) stage of sleep. We also know that cats experience REM sleep. Although it’s impossible to tell what they are dreaming about, we can assume that they do dream, and most likely dream about their awake experiences—perhaps even their humans!
What’s the difference between cat memory and human memory?
It is important to note that cats store memories differently than humans do; they remember by responding to external events and stimuli. This is called associative memory, and it allows the cat to remember based on their feelings toward a certain person or situation. What they see, hear, or smell helps them recall whether or not the memory was a positive or negative one.
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