Why can a cat look in the mirror and not be freaked out?

Most cats like Catgut, know it is only their reflection…

Actually, many kittens and some cats do react as if seeing another animals (see 0:48).

Self Awareness is used to categorize animal intelligence. The most advanced (some apes, dolphins, elephants) show signs of recognizing themselves in mirrors.

Because, like humans, animals are able to learn.
Kittens do freak out with mirrors. Soon enough they realize it’s just them.

I’m sure baby humans do the same thing.

They do, but it’s mostly kittens, and they usullay grow out of it.

Maybe the cat sees something we do not. The fourteenth dimension could be just beyond that mirror. One of its.. other lives… could be dancing in parallel.

I guess my dearly departed Velvet was either extraordinarily intelligent or really really stupid-not sure which.

Even at 18 yrs. old, she would get into an avid game of chase-tail when catching a glimpse of her moving tail in the black reflective surface of the bottom of the TV stand.

To be fair to her, it’s not as if it was the same TV stand reflection she had been dealing with for many years. We had just recently moved here so it was a novelty for her and it was really funny to watch.

You don’t usually see a cat of that age with those antics and at least it gave her some exercise.

I see a cat freaking out , when i had cats they all freaked out when they saw themselves in the mirror . They think its another cat invading their space

I posted a similar question about my dog. He reacts to his reflection in a large glass doorway, as if he were seeing another dog. When it catches him off guard he barks angrily. On the other hand, when I make him sit in front of a full-length mirror and try to get him to focus on his reflection, there is little to no response.

My neighbor swears that her cat can recognize herself in any mirror. My best theory so far is that cats have a degree of depth perception that some dogs don’t have due to the placement of their eyes. My dog, for instance, reacts to his reflection only when he can see through the doorway glass as well as his refection. When it is just his reflection, he doesn’t seem to see himself. I wonder if dogs with front-set eyes will react more like a cat?