Before “Pizzacat” became a name that pizza restaurants, memes, and countless internet accounts could borrow, there was @the_pizzacat—the original Pizzacat.
The story goes back to around 2011–2012, when creators Mat and Jacquelyn began making the Pizzacat images featuring their tabby cat, Pizza. What started as a funny Photoshop concept quickly spread across Tumblr and Pinterest before moving onto Instagram and becoming a genuine internet meme phenomenon. Bored Panda later interviewed the creators and featured a collection of their original Pizzacat memes, crediting the images to the_pizzacat.
The Pizzacat wasn't just another cat meme. It became its own little internet universe. There were original memes, videos, music, merchandise, and even the Pizzacatapp, an iOS photo-editing app that let users add Pizzacat and his friends to their own pictures. Vogue.com recognized the app as one of its Top 5 Instagram embellishment apps, describing it specifically as an app for people who followed the @the_pizzacat sensation.
The Pizzacat also made the jump from internet culture to television, with the Pizzacat team documenting its appearance on the cable television show Epic Meal Empire. The official Pizzacat site lists the show alongside Vogue.com and other major appearances as part of the Pizzacat's history.
And this isn't simply a modern account claiming to be “the original.” The historical trail goes back more than a decade. The Pizzacat's own Tumblr described itself as “the original Pizzacat—the one that started it all,” while GIPHY identifies @the_pizzacat as “The original Pizzacat.”
That history matters because, naturally, once something becomes popular on the internet, imitators appear. Over the years, pizza restaurants and other businesses have used the name or concept of “Pizzacat” to market themselves, seemingly hoping to capture some of the recognition attached to the original. But a restaurant putting a cat on a pizza box doesn't make it the Pizzacat. The original Pizzacat has no affiliation with pizza restaurants; the official site explicitly states that pizza places using the concept are simply copying the Pizzacat.
So let's set the record straight: there is one original Pizzacat. Before the restaurant knockoffs, before the imitators, before everyone decided that putting a cat and a slice of pizza together was a business strategy, there was @the_pizzacat—the meme, the cat, the app, the merchandise, the television appearance, and the internet history.
The copycats may sell pizza.
But @the_pizzacat was there first.
this is the official pizzacat logo. all other logos are not the actual pizzacat logo.
