Swiss cow becomes first to use tools like chimpanzees do

A Swiss Brown cow named Veronika has done something scientists thought only apes could do: pick up a tool and use it purposefully. She grabs sticks and brushes to scratch her back, choosing different ends depending on the job—bristles for her broad back, smooth wood for softer spots lower down. It's the kind of flexible, multi-purpose tool use that researchers have only reliably documented in chimpanzees and humans.

Veronika isn't part of a research facility or zoo. She lives with organic farmer and baker Witgar Wiegele in Switzerland, who's kept her as a companion for over a decade. Wiegele noticed years ago that she'd pick up sticks to scratch herself, but the behavior didn't reach scientists until he recorded it on video and shared it with cognitive biologist Professor Alice Auersperg at the University of Vienna.

"When I saw the footage, it was immediately clear that this was not accidental," Auersperg said. "This was a meaningful example of tool use in a species that is rarely considered from a cognitive perspective." She and colleague Dr. Antonio Osuna-Mascaró then ran controlled trials, presenting Veronika with a deck brush in random positions on the ground. What they found was striking: her choices were consistent and functionally appropriate every time.

How Veronika Adapts Her Technique

When scratching her back—a broad, firm area—Veronika uses the bristled end with wide, forceful strokes. Switch to her lower body, where skin is more sensitive, and she flips to the smooth wooden handle, using slower, more controlled movements. She's not just grabbing a tool; she's matching her technique to the task. This kind of adaptive behavior, where an animal uses the same tool in different ways for different purposes, is rare in the animal kingdom.

The researchers, whose work appeared in Current Biology, think Veronika's circumstances created the right conditions for this behavior to emerge. She's lived a long life, had daily contact with humans, and had access to a rich physical environment full of objects to explore. That combination seems to matter.

The bigger question now is whether Veronika is truly unique, or whether similar cases have simply gone unnoticed. Auersperg and Osuna-Mascaró are inviting farmers and caretakers to reach out if they've observed cows or bulls using tools purposefully. The team wants to understand which environmental and social factors allow these kinds of innovative behaviors to develop in livestock species—knowledge that could reshape how we think about animal cognition in species we've long assumed were less clever than they actually are.