Evening star., 1948-12-18
This and That
By Charles E. Trace,pell
Television and cats
An interesting sIlbiect

IelevlSlon and cats
An interesting subject.
Silver. q big Persian, knows something
about it.
He perches on stool in his living room every
evening to watch the programs.
There can be no question of his interest
His big eyes watch every move
One evening. when the set was not turned on,
Silver sat in disapproving silence
HIS eyes plainly said, 'Why don't they move?'
1t'was only recently however, that he began
to take part in the program
There were birds being shown on the screen,
with chirps and other bird cries
Silver waited for few seconds, then walked
over to the set, and stood on his hind legs
One paw steadying himself he slapped at the
birds with the other!
No doubt this was what one should expect
Birds would do it. If any thing would.
There Is some question whether it was the
sounds or the birds or just their movement
Probably it was the combination.
Although all cats are supposed to see only
gray, not colors, the television images are in
black and white and combinations thereof
resulting in some good grays.
While nominally cats pay no attention at all
to still pictures of any sort, the motion picture
Is another matter.
Very little has been written in the reaction of
animals to the motion picture.
We have questioned many persons who own
all.
Certainly their dogs can see, too, but if they
do, evidently their owners know little about it.
Some good friend of dogs oueh5 to get up
pure canine program showing the things that
interest dogs.
A teievision program for cats, now
Silver and his friends would like that. In
the days to come some enterprising person
might put on mouse
That ought to lead to a riot, or something.
T.
Cats normally pay little or no attention to
themselves in the looking glass.
OF so cats we have known, only one looked at
herself in the mirror
The remainder paid no attention whatever,
after giving the glass good smell
The one cat that looked
Was female, of course, some will say, and
that was true
Old Blackie would admire herself from vari-
Gus angles walk around come back into view,
and then wash her face with satisfied air.
No cat pays any attention to photographs
or paintings, even of birds, fish or what have
you
Occasionally, cat will place paw on some
photograph in newspaper. but that is simply
because 1t is attracted by the blackness.
1t can see that easily enough.
Cats love newsprint, but solely for the crackly
| sound 1t makes and the feet of smoothness.
| spread on the floor. Often they will leave the
| softest cushions for this treat.
| Any sort of paper will do, of course. Het
that take the conceit out of newspapermanD
Any sort of paper, but the more it crinkles, the
| better to the feline mind.
Cats particularly like to be present at the
wrapping of Christmas presents.
This is great treat for them, although
| sometimes nuisance for the human element
in the scene. Dangling strings are the finest
cat toy. Where there is tying to be done, the
| household cat likes to be.
Households with a cat must expect to find
some Of the Christmas tree ornaments DAM
| aged, from time to time These glittering toys
| attract cats as we'll as humans.
We recall old yellow Quincy, who always
| looked forward to Christmas on account of the
tree. His eyes would glisten as he walked to.
| ward it.
| He would stand on his hind legs and slap al
| tree ornaments until not one was left
| That was what Christmas meant to him
How could it meap anything else to cat'
Sometimes 1t means little more to some
humans.