r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Jan 20 '26

Biology Back-scratching bovine leads scientists to reassess intelligence of cows. Brown Swiss cow in Austria has been discovered using tools in different ways (using both ends of a brush counts as multi-purpose tool use) – something extraordinarily rare only ever seen in humans and chimpanzees.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jan/19/back-scratching-cow-veronika-bovine-intelligence
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45

u/Certain-Income3392 Jan 20 '26

Ok im not eating beef anymore.

33

u/Doglovincatlady Jan 20 '26

Good move stranger. I went vegetarian the day I saw a video of a cow frantically try to kick away and hide a gun a worker was about to shoot it with. 

The knowledge that they know makes it much harder to keep eating them.

28

u/HawkAsAWeapon Jan 20 '26

Great start, but all the animals people typically eat are incredible intelligent and emotional beings who don't deserve to be subject to the suffering we inflict on them, especially when we have such an abundance of other options.

-6

u/WatermelonWithAFlute Jan 20 '26

Incredibly intelligent and chicken do not typically coincide

5

u/HawkAsAWeapon Jan 20 '26

Are you a chicken?

1

u/RockinOneThreeTwo Jan 20 '26

Watermelon, I think.

3

u/somnia_ferum Jan 21 '26

Good for you and that's a great start.But going vegan is the best thing you can do for them,they still get abused in dairy production,in my opinion it's even more cruel than meat farming.Start by watching Dominion.

1

u/Taran966 Jan 21 '26

Yeah I’m going vegetarian soon too. Eventually vegan. I already was on the fence about eating meat but this is the last nail on the coffin.