Cats Love Lasers
posted on july 1, 2003, tag: random
A few days ago I finally got replacement batteries for one of my old laser pointers, and since then we've been having all sorts of fun with our two cats. Apparently, cats want to kill lasers, but do not seem to understand that they are just dots of light. That's what makes this all so fun. Another nice thing is that the cats don't seem to understand that we are controlling the laser, so they will chase it infinitely and when you stop, they don't dislike you any less (although they do sit for about an hour looking for the laser).
Last night I decided the outside world must see our cats in the act—specifically Oscar, who has a habit of jumping quite high while attempting to destroy the stupid little red dot. I captured a few 30-second movies with my digital camera and then edited them quickly and poorly in iMovie. You can download this movie if you have QuickTime 6. It's definitely worth watching to see Oscar panting like a dog in the end (even if the movie in its entirety is of shitty quality and compression). Enjoy.
Requires QuickTime 6 (8.2MB)
If you don't want to stream it, you can download this ZIP file at 7.9MB.
Comments
There are 5 comments, comments are closed
Evan on 07/01/2003:
That is really wrong, but immensely entertaining. Cats are dumb, and funny! Keep up the good work.
Paige on 07/01/2003:
I especially loved Katia's gasps of delight and little bits of commentary like "We broke him!" It reminds me of exactly why she had to ride the little white "special" bus to school everyday.
Shawn on 07/01/2003:
The video tiling? Fantastic. Best part. Seriously.
Garrett on 07/01/2003:
Yes, I agree—I especially love the gasping being repeated over and over. Good stuff.
NAT KAT on 12/28/2003:
I too have noticed this strange behavior in cats. I am interested to know, from a scientific perspective, why laser lights make cats go nuts. If anyone knows, or can point me to a website which explains this phenomena, please e-mail me. My address is spacegurl598@aol.com