Is it a man or is it a dog? This woodland optical illusion is leaving people speechless

An optical illusion has left people baffled and confused as viewers have struggled to decipher what is truly in the image.

It’s said that a dog is a man’s best friend, but in this image, you can only see one or the other. But which one is it?

The picture is supposed to show a man with a backpack walking through snow-covered woods, but some just see a fluffy black poodle running in the foreground.

Twitter user @ClarkADavidson shared the image online, writing: “I totally saw a man running into the woods. Until I looked again. Do you see it?”

Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter

In response, someone commented: “This messes with my head. Once you see the dog you can’t not see it. First glance though, just the man.”

Another chipped in: “I’m a dog person, I will always see the dog first and really only want to see the dog. I see the man, but its a stretch for me.”

Luckily, someone revealed the trick to spotting the man amongst the snowy woods, who has a tendency to disappear quickly from view, saying: “It took me so long. I had to consciously work out that the man's head was actually the dogs tail before my tired ole brain saw the dog.”

Supposedly, where your eyes first focus on the picture is influenced by your current psychological state, in whether you see a dog approaching or a human escaping.

Some viewers have begun seeing even more dogs nestled in the branches - such as a smiling retriever and a flying terrier - or creepy faces lurking in the background of the scene.

Of course, perhaps if you’re simply a big dog person you might only be interested in spotting the fluffy canine.

One woman confessed: “I only see the dog... And I’ve been staring at the picture for a few minutes. I guess I’ve lived alone with my dogs for too long.”

Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.