A new study shows that goats possess a higher level of intelligence than previously thought. Researchers found that domesticated animals can determine whether people are happy or sad simply by listening to the tone of our voice.
Researchers suggest that goats have developed the ability to perceive our vocal signals as a result of long-term interaction with humans that has lasted for 10,000 years. In addition to sound signals, goats also understand physical gestures and can distinguish a smile from an angry facial expression.
“This study provides the first evidence that goats can differentiate signals conveyed by the human voice, particularly emotional tone,” noted the study's author, Professor Alan McElligott from City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK). “These results complement the limited data indicating that livestock, like companion animals, are sensitive to human emotional signals.”
What the Scientists Found
It has long been known that goats can distinguish emotional nuances in sounds made by other goats, and experts sought to determine whether this ability extends to human speech.
The experiments were conducted at Buttercups Sanctuary For Goats, located in Boughton Monchelsea, Kent, England. The study involved 27 goats, both males and females, who were familiar with human voices and interactions.
Researchers played recordings of people saying the phrase “Hey, look here” in either a cheerful or angry tone through a speaker in the enclosure.
As expected, most of the goats (18) paid attention to the speaker when the voice changed. Moreover, they looked longer in the direction of the speaker when the intonation suddenly changed.
Dr. Marianna Mason from the University of Roehampton explains: “Goats looked significantly longer after the emotional change in the reproduced voice, suggesting that these animals noticed the difference in the conveyed emotions and reacted to it.” This indicates that goats are capable of perceiving “changes in emotional content” in human voices.
The research team notes that not all goats reacted to the emotional changes, which may be related to individual differences in their cognitive abilities.
Furthermore, the scientists did not observe significant physiological changes in the goats, such as increased heart rate, after the voice changed. However, they believe that goats understand what the two different types of voices mean, rather than just distinguishing between them.
