Around the age of a year, Pixel’s mother started to realize that he was a little more expressive than typical cats. His gorgeous smile was very contagious, and he always appeared to be smiling. Along with smiling, he also appeared to enjoy taking pictures, which made for the perfect mix.

“[He] would smile and make other hilarious faces whenever I tried to take photos of him,” Alyson Kalhagen, Pixel’s mom, told The Dodo. “At first, I wanted to sort of showcase his more elegant, ‘fancy’ side, so I wasn’t going for the funny expressions at all, but I decided that I may as well start sharing his silly photos too, and that sort of got us to where we are now.”

Everyone fell in love with Pixel immediately away as Kalhagen began posting pictures of his gorgeous smile online. Now that Pixel is well-known online for his silly smile, he can participate in more picture sessions, which he adores.

While the general consensus is that Pixel is perfect, everyone has a slightly different reaction to him and his smile, and his mom loves seeing the joy, and sometimes confusion, he brings to people across the world.

“People react to Pixel in a variety of ways, but they frequently remark, ‘He’s so ugly he’s cute!’ or “He resembles a bat!” Although some individuals find his expressions to be frightening or unnerving, the replies are generally good, Kalhagen added. He is merely a highly expressive cat who wants a taste of chicken, despite some people believing he is demonic or possessed.

Of course, none of this is known to Pixel. He is unaware that others like his smile and think he resembles a cuddly little bat. He only knows that he enjoys smiling for the camera, getting goodies, and doing it for the people he loves. That’s all he truly needs.