A team of researchers said that the number of neurons in the dog has twice as many as the cat brains.

The answer may be one of our most contentious debates. In fact, dogs come with twice the number of neurons in their cerebral cortexes than cats. That also means dogs may be about twice as intelligent as well.

Sure, this finding will be going to publish in the journal Frontiers in Neuroanatomy soon. A team of researchers from six different universities contributed to this research such as in the U.S, Denmark, Brazil, as well as South Africa.

Especially, one of these study’s authors has become neurologist Suzana Herculano-Houzel. The now Vanderbilt professor studied cognitive function in humans as well as animals during the past decade. For the most precise measurement, she has to count neurons found in the brain that has the purpose of transmitting messages.

According to her, you should take the brain. Then, turn it into a soup in order to find these neurons. She said we can estimate the number of neurons present thanks to the research of ending up with a lot of suspended nuclei from neuron cells.

Why use neurons?

According to Herculano-Houzel, Neurons are considered as the basic information processing units. Also, you can be able to discern the animal thanks to these units in the brain. In order to make her results-yielding brain soup, she had to use only a part of the brain that is called the cerebral cortex on the top of the brain’s other pieces. Actually, different parts of the brain process outside the stimuli such as the cerebral cortex, sight, and touch, as well as among other functions.

According to Herculano-Houzel, the cortex gives complexity and flexibility in the brains. In order to have an idea of the number of neurons dogs and cats, the team had to use three brains including one from a golden retriever, one from a cat, and one from a mixed-breed small dog. They have to use two brains because there are many different sizes of the canines.

In spite of varying in size of the dogs’ brains, there are about 500 million neurons. This is more than double the 250 million they have found in the cat’s brain.

Dog facial expressions change when humans watch them

Depending on the number of neurons found, the team speculated that dogs offer roughly the same intelligence as lions and raccoons. And, domestic cats have the same intelligence as bears. The fact is that humans include the highest number of neurons in our cerebral cortexes. In addition, orangutans and gorillas come with about eight to nine billion neurons. And, it’s about six to seven billion neurons for chimpanzees.

In fact, there are about 5.6 billion neurons in the most intelligent non-primate animals they have studied, elephants. But, they also include higher-than-typical neuron counts in the cerebellums that have the purpose of controlling motor skills. That’s why they can wield their hefty trunks.

The measure of intelligence

The researchers add scientific clout to a household debate about dogs and cats. They are considered as a larger effort in order to use neurons like one quantifiable measure of intelligence.

There are many controversial works to quantify intelligences that measured structural complexity as well as brain size.

According to Sarah Benson-Amram, a scientist at the University of Wyoming’s Animal Behavior, she has found some support in carnivorous animals that come to better problem solving. But, the fact is not that larger brain size universally will lead to higher intelligence.

Also, she said that we surely need more research on this topic if we want to definite the meaningful brain size across different animal groups. Then, we can determine a measure of intelligence thanks to it.

According to Herculano-Houzel, it’s just one when counting neurons. But, this may be considered as the most effective to date when it comes to measuring intelligence. Also, this is not your number of neurons. In fact, there are a number of animals with similar-sized brains. But, they don’t have the same numbers of neurons.

Are dogs smarter than cats?

Researchers at Vanderbilt University have found that dogs are smarter than cats. As noted above, dogs include twice as many neurons as cats.

Indeed, dogs can be able to do much more flexible and complex things with their lives than cats. Moreover, dogs love their people five times more than cats, according to The Vanderbilt study conducted by researchers for a BBC documentary.

The Vanderbilt researchers also have done some research about the brains of a ferret, raccoon, mongoose, lion, hyena, and brown bear aside from dogs and cats. And, they realized that domesticated animals as cat, dog, and the ferret don’t come with a significantly different ratio of brain size compared to wild animals such as hyenas, brown bears, and lions.

As a loyal and protective animal, the dog has become a human companion for more a long period of time. Especially, this is one of the first domesticated animals in history. In fact, dogs can be able to make us laugh more than cats. They also keep us active. Plus, they can reduce our chances of depression as well. This article will give you reasons why dogs make good pets. Check out to get more.

Dogs Make Us Laugh

In fact, people who get a dog to their home will laugh over the course of a day. Furthermore, people who have just dogs and both dogs and cats normally laugh more than the other two groups.

Dogs Are Loyal

Nowadays, there are a lot of domesticated house dog between 18,800 and 32,100 years ago. They are evolved from wolves. You know, Wolves actually live in packs and developing strong bonds between other members. That’s why today’s dogs are so loyal.

You are More Social with a Dog

According to a team of scientists at the Universities of Liverpool and Bristol in the UK, UK residents with dogs can be able to encounter other dogs as well as dog owners than ones with no dog. In addition, the average American tends to get a dog than the other common house pet like a cat.

Dogs can Keep Us Healthy

Dogs even can be able to prevent us from poor health. Indeed, when living in households with a dog, you can get a lower risk of developing some problems such as asthma and allergies caused by dust.

According to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. If you expose to dust from households that have dogs inside and outside, you can avoid allergens caused by an altered community of microbes in mice’s gut. The fact is that these microbes can help to prevent young children from developing allergens.

We are More Active with Dogs

Obesity is one of the most concerns today. That’s why you need to get regular exercise. The fact is that 60% of dog owners can meet federal criteria for regular moderate as well as vigorous exercise. Indeed, they have to take their dogs to walk regularly. The Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services showed that elderly people walking their pets will get a more regular exercise routine.

Dogs can Save Lives

In spite of not being a cat’s best friend, many lucky cats were saved by a blood transfusion from dogs. In fact, some dogs come with a universal blood-donor type that can be used to save the cat’s life. In addition, dogs can be able to help humans thanks to acting as an early warning system for patients with seizures as well. Trained dogs can help the patient prevent injury from falling down.

We can Get a Sense of Purpose from Dogs

Dogs are considered as a good companion for anyone, especially for the elderly. According to the Journal of Social Psychology, the elderly who have a dog normally feel more satisfied with their physical, social, and emotional state than other people without a dog.

We will Feel Happy with Dogs

Just by making eye contact with your dog, you can release the feel-good chemical that is called oxytocin. In fact, if you don’t look directly at your dog, you will get the lower oxytocin levels than making regular eye contact.

In addition, you will also be less depressed, have higher self-esteem, be happier, less lonely, and experience less perceived stress if you own a dog.

Responsibility

It is really a great experience when you own a dog. The thing you need is just the responsibility. Before actually buying a dog, you need to foster him for a few weeks. By this way, you can determine what kind of schedule you need to keep.

The benefits of owning a dog

It’s a great thing when you have a long walk with your furry friend on a fresh morning. You may not know that your dogs can be able to repay the love ten-fold when you give them. Dog owners will have lower blood pressure than others. Also, they have a stronger immune system to prevent sickness and bugs.

Children with a furry friend will get fewer days off school because of sickness. A dog is a great choice for those who stay alone. Dogs may be also fantastic fun. They are capable of making you laugh at the end of a hard day. In addition, you can also the valuable time to be with your faithful friend by walking with him.

Most importantly, you have to think very thoroughly before deciding to get a dog. This is a hard work because he will rely on you for many years later.