Find the Cat #168: 8x8 Grid Puzzle (Medium)
mediumTap a square: ✕ (ruled out) → 🐱 (cat) → clear
Can you place all 8 cats? One per row, one per column, one per color -- and keep them at least one square apart in every direction.
- One cat in every row and every column.
- One cat in every color region.
- Cats can’t touch — not even diagonally.
Step-by-step solution
Squares are written as R<row>C<column>, counting from the top-left. Cross out the squares listed, and place a cat wherever a step says so.
- The Green region has only one open square left: R5C5. Put a cat there.
- The Teal region has only one open square left: R1C4. Put a cat there.
- The Purple region has only one open square left: R3C3. Put a cat there.
- Wherever the cat in the Yellow region ends up, it rules out R2C7, R4C7, R6C8, R7C6, R7C8 and R8C7. Cross those squares out.
- Wherever the cat in the Blue region ends up, it rules out R7C7, R8C1 and R8C2. Cross those squares out.
- The Yellow region has only one open square left: R6C7. Put a cat there.
- The Pink region has only one open square left: R2C1. Put a cat there.
- The Red region has only one open square left: R7C2. Put a cat there.
- The Orange region has only one open square left: R4C8. Put a cat there.
- The Blue region has only one open square left: R8C6. Put a cat there.
About this puzzle
Where to start: the Green region is a single square, so its cat is already decided. Its 8 color regions range from 1 square (Green) to 15 squares. It can be solved in 10 deduction steps using "wherever it goes" eliminations.
A useful habit is to mark squares you have ruled out. Tap a square once for a cross and twice for a cat -- crosses cost nothing and make later deductions much easier to spot.
Every puzzle on this site has exactly one solution that can be reached by pure deduction. If you find yourself guessing, look again for a region or line with only a few open squares left.