How does an animal know it's hiding?

I believe it is instinctive. Natural selection would have favored the ones that were good at it.

To rephrase: the question is not “What causes an animal to hide?” but “How does it know when it is successfully hidden?” Is there any awareness of the point of view of another creature and what it can see?

When the cat decides to go hide, what tells him that he has accomplished it?—especially when he can still see out through some small opening, so it isn’t that he has hidden “the world” from himself.

Animals that are well camouflaged by their coloring and hide by holding completely still have a natural advantage and may not need to be as good at physical concealment. I’m wondering about the ones that don’t have that.

When my SO’s dog wants to stay inside or has done something naughty to which she does not wish to pay the consequences, she hides behind the kitchen table where she is well out of reach (you have to pull the chairs out and crouch on all fours to crawl toward her and since she is not a small dog, pulling her out after reaching her can be tricky.) Maybe animals are not aware of our perception, but they seek areas where they instinctively believe will be more difficult for other creatures to have access?

It’s all about making themselves as small a target as possible, like when a dog startles a cat & it has no reaction time to run for cover.
The cat will crouch right down on it’s belly, even in a wide open space when it’s clear this is inadequate as far as concealing itself is concerned.
This suggests that it’s not so much that they feel “hidden” but that the inherent feeling of security this posture brings is enough to bring them some feeling of comfort.

What tells him he is well hidden is that he is not eaten.

It is actually just instinct. It’s a fear thing which is negative so I think the only cure is pawsitive reinforcement <sorry I couldn’t help myself, that is if you want to cure it..

Fight or flight was first described by Walter Bradford Cannon and is a physiological reaction that occurs in response to a perceived harmful event, attack, or threat to survival. His theory states that animals react to threats with a general discharge of the sympathetic nervous system, priming the animal for fighting or fleeing.[3] More specifically, the adrenal medulla produces a hormonal cascade that results in the secretion of catecholamines, especially.

The Center for Wildlife describes fight or flight when in confrontations with wild animals such as bears and that human injury often occurs when any animal responds to a perceived threat with instinctive “fight or flight behavior”. You can find that quote below with a link to the page:

”Many wild land visitors mistakenly believe that there are specific gestures and warning signals wild animals make that will give people time to retreat to safety. Wild animals (including bears, deer, elk, alligators, wild hogs, squirrels and raccoons) are individualistic and unpredictable. Animals that ignore you, look calm, or appear friendly may suddenly and without warning charge or strike out. Human injury often occurs when any animal responds to a perceived threat with instinctive fight or flight behavior.” People get injured simply because they are too close and in the animals way. A car horn, barking dog or excited child can trigger an animal into fight or flight behavior.

” how do animals know enough about the point of view of another creature—an onlooker—to know when they’re hidden and when they’re not? ”

In your cat’s case a limited theory of mind, somewhat realizing the intentionality ( or suspected intentionality ) of the thing being hidden from. Also some object permanence; knowing something is there after seeing it and then having the object obscured. Instinct is not opposed to learning and taking cover may be a part of the adaptive characteristic of the organism, but some learn to do it better than others. Even cats can think in their fashion.

Primates have a much better theory of mind that includes self awareness that adds a whole other layer to intentionality perception. .

Thanks, @Neodarwinian, for understanding and answering my question. I suppose a cat, as a predator, also has some relevant experience at seeking prey that’s trying to hide. The idea of object permanence does seem to apply to cats.

Little children sometimes play “hide and seek” by covering their own eyes and then saying “You can’t see me.” A little later, they learn more about identifying with someone else’s point of view, and this informs what it means to be hidden. Still, it’s a common sight gag in comedic movies to see a person or animal cowering in fear with his head concealed and all the rest of him showing. It takes some sophistication of mind to recognize yourself as an object in another’s perception—to see yourself as others see you, one might say.

It’s a known fact that you can calm animals down by limiting their field of vision (this is why animal carriers often have small windows, rather than big ones), and you cover a horse’s eyes if you want to take it out of a burning building. I’ve seen my dog do this all by herself. If she was stressed, she’d climb in my lap and put her nose down in the crook of my elbow and hide her eyes.

@ucme “The cat will crouch right down on it’s belly, even in a wide open space when it’s clear this is inadequate as far as concealing itself is concerned.” Or maybe by crouching it’s setting itself up to be able to spring.

@snowberry Not in the context I meant, you seem to have described a hostile reaction, one which would see the cat making itself bigger, more threatening.

This is probably totally irrelevant but I just finished taking care of my neighbor’s cat, Teddy. That involved showing up once a day to check on food, water and litter.

On day 1, I found him sleeping on the bed in the comma position. I sat down next to him and tried to scritch his head. He moved around so he was directly behind me and out of eye contact. I turned towards him and he repeated the performance, twice more, apparently believing that he was invisible when I couldn’t see the whites of his eyes.

On day 2, I couldn’t find him anywhere

On day 3, after really staring hard in the living room with the shades drawn, I finally spotted his eyes, barely slits, under a chair in the shadows. When I turned to face him, he shut his eyes, and being totally black, he essentially disappeared.

Don’t ask me what he was thinking, but the behavior was clear. “I am not here, any evidence to the contrary.” His demeanor seemed bored and condescending rather than aggressive.

I think a big part of it is “can I see the sky?”

Find a place where nothing can pounce on you from above. Even worms will apparently panic and dig down when you turn over the soil with shovel.

How do animals “know” that? I do not know.

@Jeruba

” I suppose a cat, as a predator, also has some relevant experience at seeking prey that’s trying to hide. The idea of object permanence ”

Exactly. If the cat was seeking prey and the prey went behind a bush the cat would not break off the stalk but would realize they prey would appear again. Dogs are better at this and can use object permanence over a broader list of actions but cats do very well with stalking prey using object permanence if needed.

That is why their theory of mind is limited and not as advanced as primate theory of mind. Dogs and cats think that the object they are hiding from does not have object permanence ( in a manner of speaking, using think! ) and they are somewhat correct as to vacuums per se. Studies are just beginning to revel the minds of some other advanced mammals aside from primates and much is yet to be known here.

Most animals including cats aren’t color blind. They may see different wavelengths but probably can tell when their coats blend well in an environment.

Also adaptation. My cat will alter her behavior in response to changes in mine. The change can be almost immediate. She sees me packing a bag and she vaults for the door. Even though in many other situations she will come back when I call or shake her treats on this point she won’t.

If she goes for a walk with me I won’t use a leash but let her walk beside me. She is aware I get impatient about smells she still will smell but when I get close enough to pick her up she runs back on path.

Recently I put her in her place when I don’t want her on my lap. I tell her no and push her away she tests the boundary and knows how far I will let her go.

As far as hiding spots she tries various ones. When I figure out certain ones she will find another and so on.

Sometimes she has the vantage point to see my reactions and where I look but she can definately hear me.

Another strategy or tool is being small, silent and still. Naturally she seeks enclosed spaces and never picks mid level places instead preferring ones above my head bc this is her tactical and personal preference but occasionally hiding at foot level.

I cannot know. But I’d wager the hiding prey has a different criteria than the hiding predator.