Did mask keep Alameda cat from recognizing friendly neighbor?
The reason I ask is a neighbors cat often visits me in my backyard, where I dont wear a mask. A few weeks ago I was out walking with a mask on, and the cat didnt seem to recognize me. Robert Rieder, Alameda  DEAR ROBERT: The mask might have confused her, but its doubtful because cats dont rely on facial recognition. There have been a handful of studies that looked at the ways cats and dogs identify their human companions, friends and foes. Dogs use their senses of smell and hearing, but they also rely heavily on picking out the faces in a crowd. Cats, on the other paw, seem to find us mostly unremarkable. In one study, 54 percent of cats were able to identify their owners by their faces, but 91 percent could recognize the faces of other cats. Researchers attribute the difference in cats and dogs to evolution. Dogs were domesticated much earlier than cats, and they learned to read human expressions as part of their survival skills. If they wanted to be welcomed around the campfire and fed regularly, they needed to know whether humans were pleased to have them around. Cats didnt have that same experience and didnt have a need to read human faces. Their domestication came primarily through the rats that hung around the humans. The rats attracted the cats, and people started encouraging the felines to stick around to deal with the rodents, creating the complicated cat-human relationship we now have. All these generations later, our pets still retain these traits. Dogs react and respond to our faces and body movements, while cats are less inclined to do so. While cats might recognize faces, they rely more on how we smell and sound. The mask obscured half your face, but its more likely it muffled your voice and kept you a man of slight mystery to the cat. It might also have failed to recognize you because you werent in your usual place, the backyard. For more wildlife, garden and backyard topics, sign up for our new, free Flora+Fauna newsletter. He was in the news until late April with weekly updates, but nothing since. Kurt, San Jose  DEAR KURT: The intrepid young wolf that made his way across three major highways, traveling from near Portland, Oregon, to San Luis Obispo County, hasnt been heard from since early April. His tracking collar stopped emitting pings on April 5, which means officials havent been able to locate or track him. Ask the lawyer That could mean that he was killed, but its also possible the collar has malfunctioned or the batteries have died. The collar has a device that would have detected if the wolf failed to move for eight hours, an indication he had died, but no such message has been received, bolstering the belief that OR-93 is alive. There also have been reported sightings since the collar went dark, including some distant photographs of animals that might be a wolf, but could also be a coyote or a dog. Still, we hold onto hope. Use this form to submit questions. Photos should be mailed separately to jmorris@bayareanewsgroup.com.