He didn't react at all. I went on to chat about our other cats before Duke...Jenny and Dewey. It was really mind blowing...like a thought bubble just floated forward all of a sudden for him to think about a pet. Good question though. In the past, I've had problems with him denying the death of his mother, for example, although she died decades ago. We seem to be past that state now. But every day is different, so who knows.