I watched a Ted Talk yesterday that reminded me of a conversation I had with my preschool- aged son. I don’t remember how the conversation began, but it focused on the question of whether our domestic felid ally had thoughts.
He opined that she did. It was also clear that she had feelings. I posited that she was not much different from us in that she could feel hungry, thirsty, tired, sleepy, excited and scared as well as safe.
What kinds of thoughts did she have? I suggested that she might have thoughts that we would capture in a single word like Mouse or Chase or Jump.
Cats are complex creatures that I think are self-aware and able to communicate with us and other species with their body language and behaviors. A meow, purr or a chirp help too.
Here’s the Ted Talk; I hope you like it.