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Severe-Cookie693 t1_iv2czud wrote

Reply to comment by newbikesong in Paintballs to be shot at Dutch wolves in bid to make them less tame by FeedTheOx

What does the mirror test actually test?

I've made eye contact with my pets in the mirror, they didn't get freaked out that there where 2 of me.

Dogs also don't go by vision as much as smell.

The test is also based on ego, which is not the same thing as intelligence.

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newbikesong t1_iv2f1ft wrote

You put a paint or some other patch onto the animal's forehead and show them a mirror. If they realize themselves in the mirror, they will touch themselves in that spot.

Very few animals seem to notice themselves in mirrors. Great apes including humans, elephants, dolphins, some birds and very few fish.

Dogs never pass the test. We tend to humanize them but they are not really smart animals. They seem to have no capacity of conceptualization.

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