December 12–19, 1996

book quarterly|how-to

Test Your Cat's Creative Intelligence

Burton Silver, photographs by Heather Busch, Ten Speed Press, $12.95

Have you ever wondered what lurks behind those glowing feline eyes? A mathematical whiz, a romantic dreamer, lust for a can of chunk white tuna?

Burton Silver and Heather Busch want you to know.

After their first collaboration, Why Cats Paint (Ten Speed Press), letters poured in from cat enthusiasts hungry for more information about artistically inclined cats. Silver and Busch, together with the Museum of Non-Primate Art (M.O.N.P.A.), created 18 "easy-to-use" test cards, a set of guidelines for scoring and a tail position chart, which, with minimal human intervention, can determine your cat's CQ (Creative Quotient).

Are my Mabel and Sam artistically inclined or aesthetically challenged? Have I been neglecting to check their litter tray patterns (test card no. 16) for symmetry or curved, complex forms?

I wanted to know. According to Silver, cat paintings go for a lot these days. Just look at Moitle, a sandy-colored long-haired kitten who sold her painting, Swinging Swallows, for $15,000 in '95. If Mabel or Sam had that kind of talent, all three of us could be fancy feasting.

I followed the instructions given by Silver and illustrated by Busch: clear the testing area of all distractions (including TVs, radios, catnip-laced toys); fold the book exactly in half and hold the relevant image as still as possible in front of the cat's face; invite an impartial observer to ensure correct reading of the feline's reactions; feed cat well at least three hours before test time so hunger responses to the cards are minimized (12-pound Sam is always well-fed); and don't give up too soon. (Researchers have found that highly creative cats are slow to respond at first.)

The results were not as easy to compile as I had hoped. I began with Mabel and test card no. 1, the two-dimensional recognition test in the image of a dog. Mabel was disinterested (a flat zero on the CQ scale). Sam's reaction was slow flight — he racked in a whole five points for that reaction.

With Sam in the lead, we progressed to card no. 2, the color composition test (six goldfish bowls, each containing orange and yellow fish arranged in different patterns). Mabel was more interested in the sharp corners of the book and a good scratch; Sam revealed himself to be left-brain dominated — he rubbed his head up against the symmetrical figure no. 1. Still, that response elicited no points.

The test ended with cards no. 3 and 4: the brain dominance test — with two birds, one facing left, the other facing right — and the inkblot test. Mabel was quickly becoming annoyed and seemed at first to be interested in the bird facing right (which means, says Silver, she is a non-artistic left-brained cat), but soon fixed her gaze on a fuzzball on the carpet. Sam couldn't keep his head still long enough for correct response measurement; he was wholly distracted by a scratching noise emanating from the litterbox.

The inkblot test (card no. 4) put an end to my dreams of feline creativity (not to mention that $15,000 payoff). Convinced all distractions were taken care of after I vacuumed the grass green carpet, Mabel shifted her attention to the shadows cast on the floor by the book. Like a defiant child, she wouldn't even take a glimpse. Sam was long gone, in the house somewhere sleeping.

The results: Mabel has a CQ of zero and Sam five. Looks like their menu will continue to be Cat Chow, not caviar.

To view cat paintings and find out more about M.O.N.P.A., check out their Web site at http://www.netlink.co.nz/~monpa/.

— Jennifer Darr