Cows can tell humans apart, new study finds

Cows are not necessarily known for their intelligence, but that less-than-stellar reputation is beginning to change. A 13-year-old pet cow in Austria named Veronika uses brooms to scratch her back, which qualifies as a form of tool use. Tool use is considered a general marker for intelligence in animals. The domestic cow species that live in close contact with humans are also highly social animals, another sign of intelligence. 

New research finds that one domestic species of cow (Bos taurus taurus) can recognize humans and distinguish between them. The cows show a visual preference for new human faces and can match a known handler’s voice to their face. The findings are detailed in a small study published today in the journal PLOS One.

To see whether cows can discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar faces, the team collected data from 32 Prim’Holstein cows. This breed originated in Holland and is the most common dairy cow breed in France. In one single lactation, they can generate about 22,000 pounds of milk. 

The team played videos of familiar and unfamiliar male faces with the sound off for the cows, and measured how long the animals looked at the video. Specifically, the team was looking for cross-modal recognition, or the cognitive ability to recognize objects presented in two different sensory settings. 

They also played videos of both familiar and unfamiliar human faces, while broadcasting audio corresponding to one of the two men. Each man also said the same sentence. The team measured the animals’ heart rates as they watched the videos, to see if the bovines responded to the videos emotionally. 

The cows were not afraid of the videos without sound and stared at the unfamiliar faces longer. According to the team, the staring shows that the animals can distinguish between an unknown and known face. 

When researchers paired the videos with sound, the cows spent more time staring at the video when the voice matched the face. This shows that the cows can pair a face with the voice that they know. Captive big cats can also do this with their handlers. 

Based on their heart rate, neither the familiar or unfamiliar voices appeared to affect the cows’ emotional response. 

The team notes that a video and sound recording are not a full interaction with a human, but these results indicate that cows can tell the difference between familiar and unfamiliar people, and they can tell humans apart by face and voice. To better understand the animals and their welfare, future studies could examine how cows interact with specific people.

 

2025 PopSci Best of What’s New

The 50 most important innovations of the year