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How Does Home Technology Affect Your Pet?

  • Maureen Chambley
  • May 20
  • 2 min read

Updated: May 20

This image was captured moments after Sam spun away from the hummingbirds on TV to zero in on a bird visiting a feeder his loving owner had mounted on the outside of a window. I thought Sam was merely distracted but it may have had more to do with what he perceived.


A cat sitting on a bureau poised to pounce on a bird he sees outside the window.
Photo of Sam by Maureen Chambley

I wondered what cats (and dogs) actually see when looking at a TV screen and discovered pets do not “watch” TV with the same comprehension as their people. The visual systems of pets excel at motion detection, processing (way) more images per second than humans, meaning Sam can see the flicker designed to be invisible to the average human observer. What appears to us as a smooth image of hummingbirds feeding, appears to Sam as jerky images or a series of slides shown in rapid succession.


Does the flicker bother Sam? He wouldn’t say. Though there were times his exceptional hearing picked up sound that chased him into hiding.


Exceptionally keen hearing with an upper range between 45,000–85,000 Hz is Sam’s superpower, followed by the dog’s ability to accurately pinpoint the source of high-frequency sound up to 45,000 Hz. By comparison, the average human is deaf to frequencies above 20,000 Hz. To cats and dogs what we call ultrasound is just sound.


In a sample media room, researchers recorded the room’s ultrasonic baseline before adding the sound signatures of each household component. Turning on an LED table lamp raised the room’s baseline significantly, but turning on the 42-inch LCD TV — even before an image appeared — added the most. Source: CNET.com


Today’s homes have become a world of buzz, whines, and flicker that our pets can see and hear. From the smoke alarm affixed to the ceiling to the Apple watch on your wrist and every electronic gadget in between, pets are surrounded by flicker and noise. A consumer technology expert described the everyday reality for pets as adding a whiny disco ball.


Technology offers convenience and efficiency; pets offer constancy, unconditional love, and superb senses. Somewhere between these distinct worlds exists the need for quiet zones created for pets by the people who love them.


WHAT TO KNOW

  • High-frequency sound and flicker can cause distress in animals.

  • Give your pet a break by turning off lights and unplugging electronics when not in use. Or designate a quiet room free of devices (or unplugged) and lights off. Note: All artificial light flickers, LEDs most of all.

  • If your pet should become inexplicably weirded out, start by unplugging the most recent electronic appliance or device to identify a possible cause. Your pet will need time, understanding, and possibly a quiet refuge while adjusting to the new tech.

  • High-frequency sound is used in smart collars as aversion therapy, for example, by startling a barking dog. Smart flea and tick collars use ultrasonic frequencies to repel insects, with the unfortunate consequence the pet may feel more discouraged than the fleas. Choose pet tech wisely.

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