--- title: Is the Cat Going Up or Down the Stairs? description: Here is the answer to whether or not the cat is moving up or down the stairs canonical: https://time.com/3817284/cat-moving-going-up-down-stairs-photo/ author: Olivia B. Waxman article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-10T15:36:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:18:36.623Z og:title: Is the Cat Going Up or Down the Stairs in This Photo? og:description: It's #TheDress all over again og:url: https://time.com/3817284/cat-moving-going-up-down-stairs-photo/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Is the Cat Going Up or Down the Stairs in This Photo? twitter:description: It's #TheDress all over again twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # The Internet Can't Decide if This Cat Is Going Up or Down the Stairs > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=bfe17249-676d-428a-aacd-4a54af3e245d&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Apr 10, 2015 3:36 PM UTC  by [Olivia B. Waxman](https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Staff Writer Apr 10, 2015 3:36 PM UTC People on the Internet are discussing whether a cat is going up or down the stairs in this photo. This week’s debate seems to have been started by a post on [9gag.com](http://9gag.com/gag/azEP79x?ref=fbp), a photo and video sharing website. The headline “Forget about the golden dress” has generated nearly 3,700 comments at the time of publication. CBC points out that while the debate is fresh, [the photo](https://www.fay3.com/i2990424) is not new, and had been posted to website fay3.com in 2012. [Imgur users say](http://imgur.com/gallery/I56Uepu) it is going down the stairs, [Reddit users](http://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinteresting/comments/31h9pu/this%5Fcat%5Flooks%5Flike%5Fits%5Fgoing%5Fboth%5Fup%5Fand%5Fdown/) in this one thread seem torn, while some [Facebook users](https://www.facebook.com/9gag/photos/a.109041001839.105995.21785951839/10153360971076840) say up because of the way the feline’s tail is wagging. [BBC Trending](http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-32251712) thinks the answer lies in the direction of the brickwork on the walls. [_The Daily Mail_](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3032007/Forget-dress-s-CAT-Picture-shows-pet-walking-upstairs-downstairs.html) points out that another post on [9gag.com](http://9gag.com/gag/aKPWdqQ?ref=fbp) seems to argue the cat is going down the stairs. Other news outlets are reporting on the photo as if the buzz about it will become a viral sensation like “[#TheDress](http://time.com/3725528/dress-explainer-white-gold-blue-black-science/),” a debate on the Internet about whether a dress is white and gold or blue and black (the dress’s designer Roman Originals [said](http://time.com/3725863/the-dress-color-blue-black-white-gold-amazon-customer-reviews/) it was black and blue). ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3817284/cat-moving-going-up-down-stairs-photo/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3817284/cat-moving-going-up-down-stairs-photo/"},"headline":"The Internet Can't Decide if This Cat Is Going Up or Down the Stairs","datePublished":"2015-04-10T15:36:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:18:36.623Z","description":"It's #TheDress all over again","url":"https://time.com/3817284/cat-moving-going-up-down-stairs-photo/","keywords":["Newsfeed","viral"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. 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