My cat doesn't like other cats. She doesn't really like anyone that isn't part of our family. So when she sees other cats she will aggressively try and chase them out of her area. She will also do the same to dogs, if she thinks she can take them on (she is a medium-large cat). She used to occasionally go after her own image in a mirror, until she basically gets bored or realizes that the 'other cat' is behind a barrier she can't cross. Nowadays, she appears to have either given up, or realized on some level it is her (I know cats don't have mirror recognition).
However, when presented with the image of a cat, like one on the side of a food bag that is the same size as her, she completely ignores it. I would get it if she dismissed it once she realized it wasn't moving, doesn't smell like a cat, and therefore is not alive (aka, not a threat), but she doesn't even acknowledge it. And the image on the bag isn't of a cat in a field or obscured at all. It's Hill's Science cat food, which is basically a white bag with a forward facing, unobstructed cat on it the same size as an actual cat.
Her completely ignoring it makes me wonder how well she can actually see it. Can she see the details at all, or is it just a dark blur on a white background? I've seen videos of cats playing games on tablets and other 2D surfaces, but those games again feature moving objects on the screen. Given that cats generally have excellent vision for hunting, how well can they see 2D, static images? And if she can see it, do cats really have the cognitive ability to dismiss an image so quickly?
