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Sure cats love to sit in cardboard boxes for security and warmth. But when the internet said they’ll also sit in tape squares and then even optical illusions of squares, I decided I have to test this out with my cat. And so should you. Here’s how to do it….and why this happens!
Experience surely says you shouldn’t trust everything you see on the internet. So when researchers at the City University of New York thought you could entice a cat with not just a 2 dimensional box (in a taped square) but even the illusion of one, I was cat-level sceptical. Yet a few years ago, the taped square had certainly worked for my cat and so many of yours. So, my lounge room became the science lab for this unlikely experiment.
I started with the taped square using thick masking tape in a 40cm sided square. I used a gym/yoga mat to ensure there was maximum contrast for Cricket’s eyes. And after an initial walk-past she did come back and plonk herself in the square where she seemed to be quite comfortable.
Then came the biggest test. The optical illusion of a square. Using a small bowl, I traced a circle outline on a white piece of paper then used the corner of another piece of paper to create the 90 degree cut out of the circle. Arrange these paper cut-outs in a square and you have what your eyes tell you is a blank square space within. But did it work for Cricket? Well……no. This was the closest I got. But considering out of all of the lounge room, she chose this spot says she still saw some significance in the comfort to it.
But Cricket is just one cat. And seems to know when she’s being tested. Does your cat sit in the taped square…or the illusion of a square? It’s a great home schooling challenge. You can see Cricket is still confused by this whole 'illusion' thing...
