Question about kittycats

I have some kittycats. They greet each other as you’d expect. They also fight with other neighborhood kittys. My point is that kittycats know when they see another kitty and react accordingly.
Sometimes I watch youtube videos with kittycats, lots of my shirts have kittys on them and I have kitty magazines. Whenever I show one of my kittys a youtube, picture, or piece of clothing with a kitty on it, I might as well be showing them a blank page. They show no interest. They act like they are blind and can’t see the kitty on the screen. You think they’d at least look and perhaps sniff the screen but they do nothing.
My question is why do kittys get excited when they see real life kittys but act like they can’t even see kitties presented on a screen or on paper?

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Because humans are visual, and cats are very scent based. Their noses are hundreds times stronger than ours.
In other words, the cats on the screen don’t smell.
Same thing if you show them a mouse, bird or other prey on the screen - they may look for a short time, but because there is no scent, they lose interest.
Similar to birds right outside a window perch the cats sit on. They are interested in the birds, but after awhile they are napping. Open the window (with a screen!) and the cats are much more intrigued.

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How are your kittycats fighting with other neighborhood cats? Is this during your morning walks with them around the block?

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That makes perfect sense, I totally understand now. Thank you.

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I tried that but they don’t follow at my pace so I end up dragging them along, which enrages the ladies in my neighborhood (retirement community). I know they are fighting because they made odd noises. A loud low wail like you’d expect from a 400 lb drunk hooker who sprained her ankle falling down and is now evaluating her life choices while she is confined to the ground.

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Have you considered hiring a cat trainer? Most are complete shams, but my aunt found a great one. Best advise, READ THE REVIEWS before you hire one. The unfortunate truth is that many get into the cat training business for the wrong reasons. I can’t go into much detail due to pending litigation but due diligence is key.

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The comment that cats are very scent focused is right. But they also do not have great vision up close. They are born to be stalkers, they need to be able to see the tiniest movements from far away. Nature has to compromise a bit, so they got less precise vision up close and rely on their whiskers to identify movement when things are near. So things like a magazine, which is up close, with no smell and no movement are not going to get the cat’s attention. I’ve found kittens might think an iPad and videos are interesting for a while, but as they age, it isn’t exciting anymore.

Cats are very territorial animals which may account for why yours react poorly to neighborhood animals. My cats don’t go further than the screen porch because I’m cheap and don’t want to pay vet bills for cat fights or choking on some little songbird. Cats are jerks.

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So cats have terrible vision for things in the same room as them? That really puts my mind at ease. I’ve done a lot of things in front of my kitties that I am not proud of. Now I realize that things nearby might be just a big blur to them? I always thought they were giving me a look of disapproval, like they were judging me and the things I’ve done. Wow, am I releaved, I can stop living life ashamed now around my kitties.

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Up close like whisker length away, so they likely caught the rest. But I think you may be confusing disapproval with apathy. Disapproval takes effort, whereas apathy is just cat BAU.

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like this?

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Although, according to some, they can’t see what you’re doing, they can still smell what you’re doing lol

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A laser pointer blows this theory out of the water.

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I don’t know. I’m a cow. Ask a cat.

Another issue is outdoor cats. Average life expectancy for an outdoor cat is 5 years. Indoor cats life expectancy is 15 years. If you love your cats and want to keep them around longer, keep them inside.

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