Optical Delusion

Yes, we’ve all seen those cute videos of cats attacking iPad apps, but what if you don’t want to get an expensive tablet just to keep your kitty entertained? Just get a copy of an optical illusion that looks like it’s moving.




Cheap entertainment, Daniel C.

You already voted!

19 thoughts on “Optical Delusion

  1. Alice Shortcake April 10, 2017 / 3:01 pm

    That’s the first time I’ve seen an animal responding to, and then trying to eat, an optical illusion.

  2. Smartypants April 10, 2017 / 3:27 pm

    I love this! Was going to submit it but got distracted by server stuff. Daniel, thanks for sending it in.

    1. Handsome cat.
    2. Love ani-pals with human names
    3. What Alice Shortcake said – how interesting to see that he perceives it like we would: “It’s moving, I swear! I saw it!” – and peeking underneath…!
    4. I love when he cuts to the chase and just starts eating it!

    • Starfish April 10, 2017 / 4:03 pm

      Happy to! I’m surprised I was the only sender-inner, given how popular it is on the ‘tube.

      And I agree about ani-pals with people names! And that determined look.

      • Murray C April 10, 2017 / 4:14 pm

        I agree wholeheartedly – i was amazed that the image had an effect. But I am perplexed by the human name aspect – where is the name mentioned? Listened to the fellow filming and couldn’t discern any name.

        • Smartypants April 10, 2017 / 4:54 pm

          Oops, my mistake – that info was on the other site. His name is Peter ๐Ÿ˜€

          This reminds me of that video a few months ago, with the orangutan watching the magic trick. I’d love to see kitty try some other brain teasers.

  3. Emsthemonster April 10, 2017 / 3:58 pm

    My dinner should also be an optical illusion, preferably a low-calorie version.
    Especially now that my kitchen is under construction and I cannot cook ๐Ÿ™

  4. allein ? April 10, 2017 / 4:06 pm

    I need to get a copy of this next time I go to my parents’ house. I wanna see if their kitties respond.

  5. Gigi The cat lady April 10, 2017 / 4:18 pm

    I wonder if it works for all cats or if it’s like cat nip and it only works for some.

  6. Faye April 10, 2017 / 4:52 pm

    Sorry to say but there is a huge flaw in the experiment. Human needs to offer cat a blank sheet of paper as a control. My cat acts the same way for any sheet of paper I put on the floor.

    It would be interesting to see if the cat interacted or stared at the optical illusion more than a blank sheet of paper.

    • allein ? April 10, 2017 / 4:54 pm

      Thanks for the tip. I’m gonna try it on the cats next Sunday. I shall report my findings. ๐Ÿ™‚

      • Faye April 10, 2017 / 9:59 pm

        I’m very interested in the outcome.

        • allein ? April 10, 2017 / 10:08 pm

          I’ll see if I can get good video.

    • Ricky's Mom April 10, 2017 / 4:57 pm

      You beat me to it, Faye. I had two cats that behaved the same way with any sheet of paper; moreover, I would not describe that behavior as mesmerized. Mesmerized is what cats become with completely-invisible-to-the-human-eye spots on the ceilingโ€”or the wall. They can stare, unmoving, at those for hours on end.

    • Blue Footed Booby April 10, 2017 / 8:46 pm

      I’ve tried it on cats that lie on blank paper, not smack it. They’re really seeing the illusion.

      Also, note that the optical illusion produces the…illusion of motion at the peripheries of vision as you move your eyes across the image. Look at how the cat is changing smack target, like he keeps seeing something out of the corner of his eye.

      Really, this shouldn’t be surprising. Yawns are contagious between humans and cats, so clearly we share certain quirks of neural wiring. It makes sense that we process images in similar ways too, even if we understand what we see on a completely different level.

      • Faye April 10, 2017 / 10:00 pm

        Well said.

  7. Clairdelune April 10, 2017 / 5:04 pm

    WHERE can I get one of those sheets?!?!?! My kitty is bored with all her toys, she would love this!

    • allein ? April 10, 2017 / 5:06 pm

      Do a google image search for optical illusion pictures and you’ll find lots.

      • Blue Footed Booby April 10, 2017 / 8:48 pm

        First time I saw that, I saved it and opened the image in paint to make sure it wasn’t just an animated gif with the wrong file extension.

        • allein ? April 10, 2017 / 9:35 pm

          I know, right?

Comments are closed.