Cat's memory can last ten years or more. Cats have long-term memory, which has been confirmed by many pet experts. Not just cats, many mammals have memories of sound, space, and scenes.
The cat's cerebral cortex area is about 83 square centimeters, and the human brain is roughly 2500 square centimeters. Although the cat's brain is much smaller than a human's, the function is indeed quite complete.
Regarding how cats remember things around and form memory, the most acceptable theory is the theory of neural combination.
The theory of neural combination believes that in the cat's brain, each neuron is interconnected, and each neuron will store part of the memory.
When the neurons in the cat's brain are correct or stimulated by some external things and pictures, the cat will remember the previous memory.
There are two types of memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory. Short-term memory allows a small amount of information to maintain activation in the brain and be used for brain use in a short period of time.
Short-term memory refers to the solidification of their recent behavior in their minds, usually only ten seconds to ten minutes.
In a test of food, the cat's short-term memory lasted for 16 hours, and the dog was only 5 minutes, which shows that the cat's long-term memory is stronger.
Before cats were domesticated, they did not rely on group hunting like dogs, and they were more accustomed to hunting alone.
They need to rely on their own memories to remember the routes of hunting, various odors, and sounds to determine whether there will be threats and whether they can successfully prey.
At the same time, they also need to formulate the return route. Therefore, they have evolved strong short-term memory capabilities.
Long-term memory is after short-term memory is reinforced through the temporary connection of nerves. The method or step of long-term doing something belongs to long-term programmatic memories.
For example, when the owner trains the cat, if it succeeds in the instructions issued by the owner, it will be praised. This memory can be maintained for several months or even years.
For kittens, the first 2-7 weeks are the most important period for establishing their memory foundation. Curiosity and the willingness to explore all things have created extensive and beautiful memories for kittens in the early days of life.
However, cats' memory gradually declines with age, thus suffering from a disease similar to human Alzheimer's disease. This is because the cat's brain itself degenerates, resulting in a reduction in cognitive function.
Cats with this disease will be difficult to move around, and it is easy to lose direction. Cat's agility will also decrease, and the reflection will become slow.
Under normal circumstances, cats will not easily forget the owner who lived together.
There was a test in Japan. In the test, the cat and the owner were separated for three years for some special reasons, but when the cat suddenly heard the owner's voice, he still recognized the owner's voice and responded.
Therefore, don't simply think that cats don't know anything, and easily abandon them or replace them, which will bring them a lot of psychological trauma.