Having a pet means a lot of unanswered questions. Do they really love us or are they playing us to ensure a steady flow of food? Do they miss us when we’re out? And what do they really think about the homes we’ve provided for them?
HomeAdvisor decided to have some fun with this last question. Of course, without a goldfish whisperer, it’s not easy to find out what they really think about our design choices. But we can take a look at how their eyes work and the impact that has on how our pets see our homes.
HomeAdvisor trawled through the latest scientific research to create visualizations showing how our pets might see our home.
How your dog sees your home
Ever hear the rumour that dogs see things in black and white? It isn’t true, but the world does look a lot more washed-out to them than we’re used to. They have only two types of “cone cells” in their eyes, while we have three, which helps us to see red, green and blue light.
Dogs can only see blue and yellow, so all that care you’ve put into your colour scheme will leave your dog slightly underwhelmed. They also have 20 to 40 per cent less visual acuity than us, but can see a wider field of vision at 240 degrees, helping them keep an eye on you when you least expect it.
How your cat sees your home
Cats can’t see quite as wide as dogs, but with 200 degrees of vision, that’s still more than us, which you’ll know if you’ve ever tried sneaking up on one. Cats can also see in the dark much better than we can, so our homes certainly look different to them at night. But, like dogs, they don’t perceive colours quite the same as we do.
How your goldfish sees your home
If you’ve ever wondered what your goldfish makes of your kitchen while he’s bobbing around in his bowl, you may be surprised at just how psychedelic it looks, no matter what your actual colour scheme is. While cats and dogs tone things down, for a goldfish everything is dialed right up and a bit blurry. Every day’s a party at home for your fish.
How your snake sees your home
If you have a pet snake, your home looks even more garish to them thanks to the infrared vision that some species have, which works a bit like thermal imaging. So, no matter how sophisticated your interior decor is, to a snake it looks like the colour scheme was picked by a five-year-old.
How your tarantula sees your home
We all have days when we wouldn’t want to be judged on how messy our homes are. The good news for tarantula owners is that their eyesight is so poor (despite having eight eyes) that they can hardly see the piles of laundry and toys. They mostly use the hairs on their legs to help them find their way around.
How your parrot sees your home
Parrots are not only so clever that they can “talk,” they also have excellent eyesight, seeing ultraviolet, blue, green and red colour ranges, as well as nearly 300 degrees of vision. So, you’d better hope your parrot approves of your new rug because she can see it perfectly.
How your chameleon sees your home
We know that colour is important to chameleons since many have the ability to change their own colour. So, it’s no surprise they are good at recognizing lots of colour. But they don’t see much contrast. They do, however, see 342 degrees, thanks to having their eyes on turrets.
Now that you know how your home looks to your pets, will you be making any changes to your decor to suit their eyesight?
