ON SOUND DISCRIMINATION BY CATS 



W. T. SHEPHERD, Ph.D., 



Waynesburg College 



This paper is a report of experiments which were made on cats, 

 to ascertain their ability to discriminate sounds; viz. : differences 

 of musical notes of different pitch, and differences of intensities 

 of " noise." If an animal forms an association between a certain 

 musical note and food, so that he reacts in a definite manner to 

 that note in order to obtain food, and does not so react to other 

 notes, we may infer that he discriminates that note from the 

 other notes. In a similar manner a cat may give evidence that 

 it distinguishes one " noise " from another " noise " of a different 

 intensity. 



Kalischer 1 has reported experiments with dogs on auditory 

 discrimination, in which his animals showed ability to discrimi- 

 nate pitch. His method was to sound a certain note on an organ, 

 or on an harmonium, whereat the dog should react in a definite 

 manner, such as by springing up and snapping at a piece of meat 

 which the experimenter held out in his hand. Selionyi, - using 

 the " Pawlow method " on dogs, obtained evidence of discrimi- 

 nation by them of the tones of an organ, of organ pipes, and of 

 the sounds of two whistles. Selionyi, as well as Kalischer, was 

 chiefly interested in sound discrimination from a physiological 

 standpoint. In experiments on auditory discrimination in 

 raccoons made by the present writer, reported by Cole, 3 evidence 

 of discrimination of musical pitch by these animals was obtained. 

 In experiments which I made in 1909 on auditory discrimination 

 in Rhesus monkeys, satisfactory evidence of discrimination by 

 the latter animals of pitch, and also of " noise," was obtained. 4 

 Johnson, 5 in tests on sound discrimination in dogs, lately made at 



i Kalischer, O., Eine neue Horprufungsmethode bei Hunden. Sitz. d. Kgl. Ak. 

 d. Wiss., X, 1907, 204 ff. 



« Selionyi, G. P., Contribution to the study of the reactions of the dog to auditory 

 stimuli. St. Petersburg, 1907. 



3 Cole, L. W., Concerning the intelligence of raccoons. Jour. Cornp. Neur. and 

 Psy., 17: 236. 



* Shepherd, W. T., Some Mental Processes of the Rhesus Monkey. Psy. Rev. 

 Mon. Sup. No. 52, 1910, 26 ff. 



» Not published at this writing, Dec. 17, 1912. 



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