A Michael Broad Blog
Like others, in online videos I have seen cats look in a mirror at themselves. Almost always they see another cat. However, I have seen a video in which it seemed that the cat did recognise themselves and had decided to check if they were indeed looking at themselves by raising their forelegs to …
I’d like any viewers to tell me in a comment what is wrong with this AI created picture of a kitten playing with his shadow which has been thrown onto a wall. It is a very fine picture but the computer which created it, DALL-E 3, has made a fundamental mistake which points to …
A cat has no concept of its own death and so it cannot anticipate it, no matter how ill it feels. – Dr Desmond Morris If an old domestic cat left to their own devices falls ill, they don’t think that they are dying. They feel pain and discomfort and what it means …
My opinion is that domestic cats do not have a sense of humour. I explain why in this article. Firstly let’s define “sense of humour”. It is a “person’s ability to perceive humour or appreciate a joke.” Note that the definition only applies to people! That doesn’t mean conclusively that cats can’t have a …
Do domestic cats think of us as (a) surrogate mothers or “pseudoparents” (b) equals (c) kittens (d) giant superior cats or (e) unspecified, reasonably benevolent creatures who provide for them? Or none of these? Or, all five at various times and under various circumstances? Do cats relate to us in one way? Are they …
No, cats do not fear death. The reason is straightforward. Cats are not self-aware by which I mean self-conscious. Some people will dispute that statement. I’ll proceed though. As they are not self-aware when they are in pain or discomfort due to a chronic illness which is killing them or a sudden trauma and …
The mirror test is when you look in the mirror and recognise yourself. You are self-aware. Cats can’t do it. Some people are saying these videos prove that cats are self-aware. I don’t see it that way myself. As I understand it (and the videos are initially a bit baffling) these are videos made …
The answer is no because cats aren’t self-conscious (self-aware), period. I could leave it there because anything else is strictly unnecessary. However, the question is really on the topic of whether cats feel embarrassed by a lion cut. And once again the answer is no. Embarrassment relies on the ability to be self-aware. You …
