Cats Vs Cucumbers — A white cat displays an alarmed, tense posture while standing near a green cucumber on a wooden floor.

Cats Vs Cucumbers

2015Viral video seriesclassic

Published March 31, 2026

Also known as: Cats Scared of Cucumbers

Cats vs. Cucumbers is a viral video trend where cat owners secretly place cucumbers behind their unsuspecting pets and film the dramatic startle reactions. The format blew up on YouTube and Reddit in 2015, with compilation videos racking up millions of views. The trend also drew sharp criticism from animal behaviorists who argued the pranks could genuinely stress and injure cats.

cats animal memes prank memes pet video memes youtube viral

Overview

The setup is dead simple. A cat owner places a cucumber on the floor behind their cat while it's eating or otherwise distracted. When the cat turns around and spots the cucumber, it launches into the air or scrambles away in visible panic2. The videos capture that split-second of feline terror, and the mismatch between a harmless vegetable and a cat's full-body flight response made them wildly shareable.

The appeal partly comes from how it flips expectations about cats. They're known for poise and predatory confidence, so watching one go airborne over a piece of produce hits a specific comedic nerve.

Origin & Background

Platform
YouTube
Creator
Doki Doki
Date
2015

On May 10, 2015, YouTuber Doki Doki uploaded footage of a cat jumping high in the air after discovering a large green cucumber on the floor behind it. The video pulled in over 2.2 million views within six months. While similar prank videos featuring cats spooked by bananas and computer printers had circulated since as early as 2006, the cucumber format triggered far more viral interest3.

How It Spread

The meme jumped to Reddit on July 8, 2015, when a GIF of the Doki Doki video landed on /r/StartledCats, earning over 5,700 upvotes. By July 17, a dedicated /r/CucumbersScaringCats subreddit had been created3.

Media coverage built through the fall of 2015, with outlets seeking expert explanations for the behavior. The Cats vs. Cucumbers trend peaked in November when multiple compilation videos each earned millions of views within days.

On November 17, 2015, National Geographic published "People Are Scaring Their Cats with Cucumbers. They Shouldn't," featuring animal behaviorist Jill Goldman warning that the pranks could cause real harm1. The article itself went viral after being posted to /r/nottheonion, where it pulled in over 4,200 upvotes and 1,200 comments in 24 hours.

How to Use This Meme

The Cats vs. Cucumbers format typically follows this setup:

1

Wait until a cat is eating or focused on something else

2

Quietly place a cucumber on the floor directly behind the cat

3

Step back and record the moment the cat turns around

4

The startled leap or scramble is the payoff

Cultural Impact

Coverage from outlets like National Geographic turned a viral prank format into a genuine discussion about animal welfare. Goldman's warning framed the videos as harmful rather than harmless fun, and the NatGeo piece going viral on Reddit amplified that message1.

The science behind the reactions drew its own interest. Experts offered two main theories: the cucumber's elongated green shape may trigger an instinctive fear of snakes, or the sudden appearance of any unfamiliar object in a space the cat considers safe causes a generic startle response2. The second explanation gained traction as experts noted that cats react the same way to any unexpected object, not just cucumbers2. Even the Urban Dictionary entry for the meme calls it a "debunked myth," chalking the reaction up to surprise rather than any inherent fear of the vegetable4.

Fun Facts

Despite the meme's name, behaviorists say cats aren't afraid of cucumbers specifically. Any unexpected object placed behind an unsuspecting cat triggers the same panic response2.

Cats can actually eat cucumbers safely in small pieces when introduced calmly, making the vegetable both the source of their on-screen terror and a legitimate snack2.

The cucumber's elongated shape may trigger a hardwired snake-avoidance instinct, since cats evolved as predators constantly scanning for threats in their environment2.

The National Geographic article condemning the trend became its own viral moment, drawing over 1,200 comments on /r/nottheonion in a single day1.

Frequently Asked Questions