Question: Is it true that fish have a memory of only 3 seconds? Also, is it possible for a cat and a dog to be friends?

Kevin Mahon answered on 13 Jun 2012:

It is definately possible for cats and dogs to get along – under the right circumstances of course! It is firstly, very dependent on the temperment of both the cat and the dog, and their experiences. Any cat/dog that has had bad experiences with the other species previously will have a hard time getting along.

But if they have never experienced the other before and their first encounter doesn’t result in the cat getting scared or the dog getting aggressive, there is the potential for them to get along. I’ve heard many, many stories from cat and dog owners of cats and dogs living under one roof and even playing!

As far as fish having a memory of 3 seconds (I assume you mean goldfish?) that’s a myth I’m afraid. Studies have shown they actually have memories of uo to 5 months! They showed this by training them to react to certain sounds, then returning at later dates to see if they still reacted the same.

Fish, much like reptiles, have been the unfortunate victims of being labelled as ‘stupid’ due to long standing theories regarding their brains. Time and time again though this stigma is being proved wrong – colleagues in the University of St. Andrews have shown minnow (type of fish) to be of equal intelligence to lab rats!