If you recognize these 24 prehistoric cat memes, it's probably time for your daily fiber supplement - LOLcats edition

Blake Seidel • Managing Editor & Brand Manager

Aug 20, 2026 6:15 AM EDT

The internet doesn't make cat memes like it used to. But we do.

The landscape of the internet has changed quite a bit since I was a kid, to say the least. Gone are the days of the 5-minute loading time while your dial-up modem connected you to the internet, when we made the original memes on Microsoft Paint or the early versions of Photoshop, before YouTube was even a seed of an idea in someone's brain. Now anyone with a phone has immediate access to the internet, and memes are a dime a dozen. It's so easy to make them that the internet is literally saturated with them, and they've lost a bit of the soul they had when they were first created.

It's natural that the internet today looks completely different from what it looked like 20+ years ago. Technology advanced, and so did our tastes. No one has the attention span to watch hours of Nyan Cat racing through his pixelated universe or the patience to hear the Hamster Dance play over and over again while scrolling. But there is a big part of me that misses the human element that went into the creation of all of these early memes of the internet. They weren't purrfect, they weren't tailored for viral success - they were just silly and caught on because they were ridiculous.

So for all you aging millennials or folks born in the 1990s or earlier, I brought back some nostalgic cat memes that you might recognize that I feel really encompass the taste of the early internet. They would fail horribly if I posted them on social media, but for you true fans, they might transport you back to those days on your family computer and clogging your phone line, all for the sake of a little harmless fun on the World Wide Web.

And if you recognize some of them, it's time for your 40+ multivitamin and your daily stretches so you don't accidentally throw out your back.

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01
Gotta catch 'em all!

via lolcats
02
She said so

via lolcats
On the other hand, though, not much has changed. Cats still rule the internet, and you can still find your safe havens to enjoy yourself with the carefree fun we used to have back in the 2000s. You just have to know where to go! We, here at I Can Has Cheezburger, pride ourselves on being one of those safe havens for you. No AI, no terrible news stories meant to make you scared - just the wholesome, silly fun that everyone needs to survive this crazy world.
03
A classic

via lolcats
04
Let's Hear It For The Fat Cats Who Love Themselves!

From HowdyCuz
05
I'm self cleaning!

From cataff
06
Grumpy smile

From AaronRW
07
Extreme vetting

From Suzi_sMom
08
Back when cat memes had a little spice to them

via lolcats
09
Remove it and try again

From cataff
10
When will we learn?

via lolcats
11
This trend

via lolcats
12
Your wife is havin' a baby? First get a big box and line it with towels

From cataff
13
Zero brain cells required

via lolcats
14
Miss goggie

From AaronRW
15
They don't make cat memes like they used to

via lolcats
16
When ur hooman gives you broccoli instead of tuna

via lolcats
17
Kuppykakes Prep: Nu Clazz /Danzin iz Fun

From katkabob
18
Govern the ungovernable

via lolcats
19
full powers

From cataff
20
Hovercat

via lolcats
21
And finally, some classics we know you can't live without

via Grumpy Cat
22
What is she going to do with 50 watermelons?

via DragontheDuck
23
Me after 1 flight of stairs

via neatcustompatches
24
Fluids everywhere

via @aliahgeyes