AGAIN!

January 31, 2012 10:05 AM

Some cats just like to be flung
posted by The Whelk (67 comments total)

That cat knows what it wants. Excellent.
posted by OnTheLastCastle at 10:09 AM on January 31, 2012

I can jump six feet with the can opener's assistance!
posted by jeffburdges at 10:09 AM on January 31, 2012 [59 favorites]

I hereby declare this adorable.
posted by rtha at 10:11 AM on January 31, 2012 [3 favorites]

These humans seem to be housebroken and everyth OMG THEY ARE OPERATING THE CAMERA ARENT THEY?! ADORABLE!
posted by Foci for Analysis at 10:12 AM on January 31, 2012

good use of the shinyshinyshorts tag but I think this post is missing the ijustmovedin(6monthsago)andhaven'thadachancetopickupanyfurnitureyet
posted by 2bucksplus at 10:13 AM on January 31, 2012 [5 favorites]

Congratulations. You are on the internet.
posted by shakespeherian at 10:18 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

Is her name Tiddles?
posted by octothorpe at 10:20 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

I'm flying!

Wait, no I'm not.

I'm flying!

Wait, no I'm not.

I'm flying!

Ooh, shiny!
posted by LN at 10:23 AM on January 31, 2012 [6 favorites]

human catapult
posted by mannequito at 10:25 AM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

When I get home today, I might have to do a test on our cats (well, one of them - one is too old, and the other is too wobbly) to see if this is a thing they have been missing all their lives.
posted by rtha at 10:26 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

I am trying very, very, very, very, very hard not to make a

RICK

RICK

comment.
posted by Madamina at 10:29 AM on January 31, 2012 [8 favorites]

Did they name him Hermes because of this, or is he just eponysterical cat?
posted by tivalasvegas at 10:29 AM on January 31, 2012 [3 favorites]

I belive I can fly Rick

I belive I can touch the sky
posted by The Whelk at 10:31 AM on January 31, 2012 [14 favorites]

Is it possible that all of the cats I've ever had were just desperate to fly, and I never knew? Did I deny them this kind of joy? I feel terrible!

Er, that's probably not the reaction most people are having to this video....
posted by tzikeh at 10:31 AM on January 31, 2012

As an unstoppable killing machine, I could totally pounce this far on my own, by my humans like to feel useful.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 10:32 AM on January 31, 2012 [8 favorites]

*but
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 10:33 AM on January 31, 2012

Is her name Tiddles?

Icarpuss.
posted by shakespeherian at 10:36 AM on January 31, 2012 [6 favorites]

While we're on the subject of flinging animals. [Google translation for those too lazy to do it themselves: "this is a game that appeals to Homar .... seems strange but like so much"]
posted by Pyry at 10:37 AM on January 31, 2012

ZZZzzzzzzzzzzz....
posted by Seekerofsplendor at 10:40 AM on January 31, 2012

I shudder to think how they discovered this.
posted by Maisie at 10:43 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

My cat likes this. I am super rough with her. I shake her head, throw her on the bed, pet her with my foot. She's heathy and happy and comes back for more. She's always been this way.
posted by cjorgensen at 10:46 AM on January 31, 2012

Heh. The cat's called Hermes.
posted by MuffinMan at 10:48 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

this post is missing the extremely vital WHEEEE tag
posted by elizardbits at 10:48 AM on January 31, 2012 [13 favorites]

I just tried this with Zuzu and I think I threw out my lower back.
posted by mudpuppie at 10:49 AM on January 31, 2012

My new kitten taught herself how to throw her toys.

Really. Throw them.

This means I've now had to get accustomed to sitting in front of the computer and seeing cat toys arc past the monitor, while a rambunctious black kitten dashes after them, just like the cat in this video dashes back to his human – ears perked forward, tail in "happy joy!!!" exclamation point position.
posted by fraula at 10:50 AM on January 31, 2012 [20 favorites]

fraula: Video. Youtube. Now.
posted by LordSludge at 10:53 AM on January 31, 2012 [12 favorites]

Every cat I've owned loves loves it when you bundle them up in a sheet and swing them around. Ecstatic purring ensues. I think it just blows their minds.
posted by emjaybee at 10:55 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

This calls for a new sport of cat horseshoes. Or cat bocce. We just need a way to convince them to stay where they land.
posted by Wemmick at 10:58 AM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

Ameowlia Furheart.
posted by argonauta at 10:59 AM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

Also for maximum human visual enjoyment, kitteh should really be in a cape and tights. Unfortunately I see the potential for grave injuries related to the betightening of the cat.
posted by elizardbits at 11:00 AM on January 31, 2012

Every cat I've owned loves loves it when you bundle them up in a sheet and swing them around.

We discovered inadvertently that we have one who likes to be swung back and forth in a shopping bag. She crawled into one once and one of our kids picked it up and rocked her. I expected that she'd jump out immediately but she stayed right there. Now if you put a shopping bag on its side on the floor she goes right in and looks up expectantly, sits still for the ride, and if we reach in we can feel her purring.

Nothing near the joy that the cat in that video expressed, though. I never saw anything like that from a cat. You'd almost think it was a dog.
posted by dlugoczaj at 11:00 AM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

The flinging is fairly standard but the excited "pick me up again!" gestures are awesome.
posted by DU at 11:04 AM on January 31, 2012 [6 favorites]

We had a cat, Pixel, who loved to be held upside down and thrown up a flight of stairs so he landed neatly on his feet. Pic here.
posted by Confess, Fletch at 11:06 AM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

I had a pet rat that used to love this (on a smaller scale, of course). Heck, if I could be so easily and safely flung and land comfortably, *I* would love this game!
posted by The otter lady at 11:09 AM on January 31, 2012

I am so thankful for the internet and cats. I really, truly am.

That kitty is SO happy.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 11:10 AM on January 31, 2012 [8 favorites]

Subject: A 12 pound bowling ball of a Maine Coon that's been squatting at my place since last winter.

Method: First trial I grabbed him from his ledge, then walked to bedroom and flung approximately 8 feet. Subsequent trials a clear exit back to open window was on one side of the bed and I was on the other.

Result: Confused look, gradually switch from shock absorbing stance to standing up straight, purring, excitedly walking back to me.

Number of trials: about 8.

Possible Bias: Dude purrs like a mad men whenever he gets fed, and possibly thought I was giving him a 2nd lunch.

Conclusions: More trials need to be done, possibly multicenter study with numerous investigators to minimize p value and maximize statistical strength. However preliminary results are promising.
posted by midmarch snowman at 11:13 AM on January 31, 2012 [4 favorites]

Some cats just like to be spanked.
posted by stifford at 11:16 AM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

I used to toss my cat in the air, but I was always afraid to let it go, so I'd sort of toss it up until it got that zero G moment at the top of the arc and cradle it, then let it fall while I was still holding it. It used to get this strange look of pleasure on its face while at the top. So I figured it just liked being held up high. I would hold it above my head and that just did not get the same reaction. Man, I had no idea what it was enjoying. Now I feel bad. My kitty is long dead and I'd give about anything to toss it up in the air one more time.
posted by charlie don't surf at 11:19 AM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

RICK

RICK

THROW ME THROUGH THAT WINDOW, RICK

THEN I CAN RUN AWAY AND NEVER COME BACK
posted by Sys Rq at 11:20 AM on January 31, 2012

My new kitten taught herself how to throw her toys.

fraula, my dog regularly throws squeaky bulbs (that he extracts from squeaky toys) in the air using his paws, and catches them in his mouth.

The average stuffed toy lasts 5 minutes, but once he's performed surgery, the squeaky bulb can live a day or two.
posted by IAmBroom at 11:23 AM on January 31, 2012

Every ferret I've ever had loved this game. Throw. Land on bed. Jump off. Run to me and scamper up leg. Throw. Repeat ad infinitum.

The problem was that they liked the reverse of this game as well. As in: Jump on bed when Mr. and Mrs. slkinsey are having private times. Get tossed off. Jump back on. Get tossed off. IT'S A GAME!!! Jump back on. (etc.)
posted by slkinsey at 11:29 AM on January 31, 2012 [4 favorites]

Once, I was walking around in Montreal, and came across some park with a pond in it. And there was this guy there, with a dog, who he would pick up and hurl into the lake. And then the dog would swim to the side and climb out and shake off and run up to the guy and look at him excitedly, like this cat. But this wasn't a cat-sized dog. It was like a retriever or something. So you know how it's fun to throw the biggest rock you can lift off of a cliff into the ocean? That's the kind of splash the dog made.

That was 10 years ago, but every time I remember that scene my day gets a bit better. Both the dog and the human were clearly having such a phenomenally great time, and I can't help but smile thinking of it.
posted by aubilenon at 11:33 AM on January 31, 2012 [8 favorites]

This move was actually in a book of "cat exercises" that my dad was given by his now-wife a couple years ago. I'm pretty sure it was included as a kind of last resort for owners of overweight cats that couldn't be tempted with string or laser pointers or whatever else. The idea being, I think, that any self-respecting cat will at least tense up in order to land on its feet, which is almost like exercise.

So I took one of our cats, Hector (lifting from the knees—he was about 21 pounds at the time) and gave him a gentle toss toward a pile of couch cushions a yard or two away.

That cat landed splayed out on his side like some grand orange, hairy odalisque, looked up and sniffed a couple times, totally unfazed, and then slept for the next six hours in that very spot.

Cats!
posted by wreckingball at 11:41 AM on January 31, 2012 [31 favorites]

I'm pretty sure it was included as a kind of last resort for owners of overweight cats that couldn't be tempted with string or laser pointers or whatever else.

There is no such thing. Cats are genetically programmed to chase lasers. True story.
posted by dry white toast at 12:01 PM on January 31, 2012

you misunderstood wreckingball, that was actually a book written by cats to ensure that their owners get a bit of exercise.
posted by mannequito at 12:05 PM on January 31, 2012 [3 favorites]

I think we all remember a time when someone flung us on the bed as a kid. It was fun.

The first thing I did when I got to Vegas last summer was to jump on the bed in pure glee and happiness. Yea I'm 40 so what of it?
posted by stormpooper at 12:08 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

I want to see a throw triple salcat.
posted by Dr. Zira at 12:30 PM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

Well with this video out they will never be able to adopt a cat again.
posted by dibblda at 12:54 PM on January 31, 2012 [8 favorites]

When the working day is done, oh, cats just wanna be flung.
posted by dubold at 12:58 PM on January 31, 2012 [11 favorites]

that video gave steve martin a sad.
posted by LouieLoco at 1:26 PM on January 31, 2012

It's funnier to me if you imagine the cat is actually angry, and running back to its owner thinking "FLING ME, HUH? I KILL YOU! I KILL YOU!"
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 1:49 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

Every cat I've owned loves loves it when you bundle them up in a sheet and swing them around. Ecstatic purring ensues. I think it just blows their minds.

To be a total buzzkill, cats also purr when they're in distress/hurt/near death. There are some theories that purring releases endorphins that reduce pain, or that it's a throwback to kittenhood with a 'find me, mom!' response.

However, cats are also total weirdos who like weird things. I had one who liked to sleep in the microwave.
posted by whitneyarner at 1:56 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

Oh, no way. I have a cat who loves this, and we even call it Cat Flinging.
posted by puddinghead at 2:15 PM on January 31, 2012

However, cats are also total weirdos who like weird things.

Proof.
posted by PareidoliaticBoy at 2:17 PM on January 31, 2012 [6 favorites]

You've all got it wrong. Obviously this is a case of Stockholm Syndrome in the case of the cat. As evidence I present to you the fact that the room has no furniture except the bed, no curtains, just the bed and the restraints for the cat. The room is untidy, because the man has been too occupied with the ransom calls to tidy. The cat has obviously tried to escape its captors, and has been flung onto the bed for its punishment. Because the katnappers were amused and laughing at its obvious distress, the cat is attempting to placate them and ingrate itself. This is a clear cut case of cat abuse piled on top of the original kidnapping. I demand you stop laughing and help this poor animal.
posted by BlueHorse at 2:29 PM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

I think we all remember a time when someone flung us on the bed as a kid. It was fun.
posted by argonauta at 2:29 PM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

I have two cats who like to bite me and attack me with their sharp fists whenever I get near enough to them to try anything fun and interesting like this.
posted by tumid dahlia at 2:50 PM on January 31, 2012

To be a total buzzkill, cats also purr when they're in distress/hurt/near death. There are some theories that purring releases endorphins that reduce pain, or that it's a throwback to kittenhood with a 'find me, mom!' response.

Yes, I've had sick cats that did that. However, we start verrry slowly with the cat and give them multiple opportunities to get out...they never show any signs of fear or struggle or do any wailing, unlike, say, when I try to cut mats out of their fur or give them medicine. So I'm pretty sure those are happy purrs.
posted by emjaybee at 2:55 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

I have two cats who like to bite me and attack me with their sharp fists whenever I get near enough to them to try anything fun and interesting like this.

Leash one of them to the other, and then break out a laser pointer.

You may get a scratch. But I guarantee you that hilarity will ensue.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 3:44 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

This is just further proof to me that every cat is unique. Consider this one, who, having caught his prey, heads upstairs to hide it.
posted by kinnakeet at 5:13 PM on January 31, 2012 [13 favorites]

We discovered a game with our cat, called "pick up Shoops". Our cat is called Shoops, obviously.

You just pick her up round her belly and ribs with both hands, and lift her up steadily to head height, with her totally limp with straight legs. And then put her down again. And she stands there until you do it again. And again. And when you get bored of it, she'll butt her head on your leg, and miaow, and look up at you, then resume the position for pick up Shoops to continue.

Cats are weird.
posted by ArkhanJG at 6:35 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

Okay, so I did an experimental toss with our most toss-able cat. I tossed him on the bed. He looked surprised to be there. Then he looked at me. Then he hopped off the bed. Then he walked out of the room.

Guess I know what he thinks about it.
posted by rtha at 6:51 PM on January 31, 2012

There's no way I'd try this with Baby (who is afraid of everything and everyone, and has a noticeable negative reaction to the sound of plastic shopping bags, which makes me think something awful must have happened to her once), but Gazpacho has the standard kitten "Holy crap, what was THAT!" enthusiasm about everything, combined with being, well, kinda dumb. Something tells me there's a test flight in her near future.
posted by Ghidorah at 11:04 PM on January 31, 2012

My old housemate used to do this with his toddler and a Love Sack beanbag chair. She'd run up to her dad, yell "ONETWOTHREEFIVEGO!" and he would toss her a couple feet onto the beanbag. Giggles, then running back to dad, then "ONETWOTHREEFIVEGO!" Every once in a while he'd try to get her to calm down enough to include the "four," but she wasn't having any of it.

And of course I was the anxious person in the corner who was terrified that she'd break, but apparently toddlers are sturdier than this childless worrywart can believe.
posted by vytae at 11:39 PM on January 31, 2012 [2 favorites]

Children bounce, vytae. Drunks and children. Sober adults? They break.
posted by Ghidorah at 11:45 PM on January 31, 2012 [1 favorite]

The flinging is fairly standard but the excited "pick me up again!" gestures are awesome.

Especially the electric tail thing.

Also, that's the nice thing about cats. They get bored quickly. If that was a dog, you'd have to keep doing it until one of you died of exhaustion.
posted by gjc at 5:02 AM on February 1, 2012 [1 favorite]

@embjaybee Every cat I've owned loves loves it when you bundle them up in a sheet and swing them around. Ecstatic purring ensues. I think it just blows their minds.

I'd do that, but my lounge is so small, there isn't room to swing a cat in.
posted by salmacis at 8:47 AM on February 1, 2012 [2 favorites]