Cat

I'm not sure where this is from, or who made it (if you do, though, please let me know so I can give it proper attribution). But I think its hilarious and awesome. The image is particularly large, though, so I've placed it behind the fold. Click to enlarge:
Whether you're a dog, a cat, or a grad student who hasn't been home to shower for a few days, fleas are a major problem. They make skin itch. And NOTHING is worse than itchy skin. But... Do you know WHERE the fleas are? Where they like to hang out and guard their little flea eggs? Where's the best place for a flea to get a decent night's sleep, or a delicious snack? These are important questions. Lucky for us, Hsu, Hsu, and Wu of the Department of Entomology at National Taiwan University have the answers. And this paper, dear readers, is pure blogging GOLD. Now, if you wanted to find out…
Your humble narrator finds himself sick with a cold, so here's a post from the archives. There is considerable research on how children interact with other children and with adults, and how child development can be influenced by those interactions. But research on children's interactions with non-human animals seem to be limited. Given how ubiquitous pets are in the homes of children (at least, in WEIRD cultures), it is somewhat surprising that there hasn't been more work on the way pet ownership might affect child development. According to the US Humane Society: There are approximately 77.…
Apparently when something interests you, the best way to figure it out is to smack it really hard, and repeatedly. If you're a cat, at least. h/t @ferrisjabr
Do cats have self recognition? This video suggests they might not, at least in terms of passing the mirror recognition task. But, well, this isn't really the mirror recognition task. And the mirror recognition task may not be the best way to test self recognition in cats. But in any case, it's a pretty hilarious video of an (evil) cat. (via @ferrisjabr)
Happy Father's Day, everyone! I spent a lot of time today thinking back to why I started blogging in the first place, while I was at my parents house doing the other-than-science things that I love to do: playing with the dog, cooking, gardening. I realized that I've not done enough of that stuff lately. I've only been seriously doing the blog thing (in the current format) since January, and I've now been here at Scienceblogs around two months, so it was time to reflect. The transition from Wordpress obscurity to Scienceblogs prominence happened relatively quickly for me, and I think it's a…
Let me tell you a little story. When I was born my parents had two cats. One was named Garfield. The other...well, I don't remember what the other one was called. Not long after I was born, and little Jason was coughing up furballs, the doctors informed the parents that their little bundle of skin and hair was allergic to cats. It was then that teams were picked and lines were drawn. It was me or the cats. Luckily, the parents decided to keep me, and lose the cats. Imagine how much it would have sucked if they decided to keep the cats and lose me. I imagine if my younger brother had actually…
Today for Monday Pets, we're going to go old school and talk about vision. Vision is arguably our most (intentionally) utilized sensory system, so its pretty important to figure out how it works. And it's what David Hubel and Torsten Wiesel set out to investigate starting in the late 1950s. Ultimately, their work would get them a Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, in 1981. Basically, they took a bunch of cats, anesthetized them, and showed them patterns of light on a screen. Meanwhile, some microelectrodes were placed in various precisely determined spots in the cat's visual cortex, and…
tags: Fur Person, humor, funny, weird, behavior, cat, pets, animals, streaming video This short video is really amazing: it captures a cat standing on its hind legs to get a better view of what's happening outdoors.
tags: cat, pets, animals, stalking kitty, YouTube, parody, funny, humor, fucking hilarious, streaming video This amusing little video shows a kitty stalking the photographer as she peeks around a corner in the room with her camera. In nearly every shot we see, the cat is not moving, but is magically closer to the photographer than in the previous shot. The last few seconds are especially amusing.
While dogs can often be taught new tricks, cat-owners will be all too aware that it can be very difficult to persuade them to do something they don't want to do. Eddie Izzard summed it up best in his legendary Pavlov's cat sketch, where felines are quite capable of outfoxing (outcatting?) eminent Welsh-Russian psychologists. Real cats may be less devious, but only just - new research suggests that they are very skilled at getting their human owners to do their bidding. When they want food, domestic cats will often purr in a strangely plaintive way that their owners find difficult to ignore…
tags: miracle, christian cat, religion, Christian Cat Plays Amazing Grace, Edward Current, streaming video In this amazing video, we are given evidence that miracles truly do happen! This video captures the impossible: Edward's christian cat, Miss Delilah, performs a miracle on camera. You just have to believe it in your heart! [1:06]
Via CrapWeLike!
We just became aware of this. Sadly, now you are too. Selected bits from the KittyWigs.com FAQ: Question: Is this for real?Yes, yes, a thousand times yes! Kitty Wigs are a fun prop to be used to enhance playtime with your feline friends. They're especially fun for photo sessions. Question: Isn't this cruelty to animals? Actually, no. We see it as a way for you to spend more quality time with your pet. It's an opportunity for you to show your cat something new... Let's hope they learn to go for the jugular. pink passion and bashful blonde. the latter does not look amused. electric blue…
tags: pets, silly cat, streaming video This video proves that Japanese cats can be just as .. erm, "furry" as American cats. Oh, yeah, and they can be just as silly as American cats, too. In fact, with a cat like this as a pet, who needs a TV? [1:32].
* You are now free to be devoured by a cheetah * From the AP: ATLANTA - A Delta baggage worker got a bit of a fright when she opened a jetliner's cargo door and found a cheetah running loose amid the luggage. Delta spokeswoman Betsy Talton said Friday that two cheetahs were being flown in the cargo area of a passenger flight from Portland, Ore., to Atlanta a day earlier when one escaped from its cage. Talton said the airline summoned help from an Atlanta zoo but not before the Cheetah had devoured a stewardess and three others that had tried to use plane's restroom (Zooillogix may or may not…
After a recent heat wave in China's Sichuan province, local cats sprouted strange appendages resembling wings, as reported in the Bill Moyer's Journal of England, the Daily Mail. The Daily Mail claims to have spoken with genetic experts (i.e. Nigel in the mail room) who said that these growths come from "poor grooming, a genetic defect or a hereditary skin condition." Note: They also said that though the wings do contain bones, they do not not interfere with quality of the cats' lives. "Mutated ally cats are where our nation finds hope, where wings take dream." More pics below the fold…
Benny and his buddy Andy (no relation) are going camping this weekend. Benny sent this adorable video postcard to Andy to get him jazzed up about the festivities! See below the fold...