Cat Vs. Washing Machine (My Poor Cat Part II)

Mark Wilson — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:20:00 EDT

A while back, my luddite cat had a run-in with an R/C dragonfly. It left her jaded and frightened of the device, so much that we topped our Christmas tree with it to keep her ornament attacking at bay. It was remarkably effective. Since then we've relocated to an apartment and she has a new nemesis...the washing machine.

I think it's the spin cycle. The tiny water-efficient unit rotates with incredible speed, making a sound that's somewhere between a pneumatic drill and a jet engine launch. During the first load of laundry we washed, Anya (the cat) stood three feet away trembling in fear.

She's a tough cat, so it's a bit disturbing to see her scared.

Anya raised one paw, ready to smack the mechanical beast down if necessary. We couldn't approach her to assuage her fears with pets/snuggles. She was busy in a battle for her/our lives.

Since that evening, it's gotten better, but only a little. Frequently, she sits in front of the washer when it's not in use, studying the slumbering beast for any weakness and knowledge of what makes it tick.

It's just a lousy situation, as there's no good solution here. (Imagine that conversation with our landlord. "You have to buy our cat new laundry equipment, sorry.") We have to give it time—time for our very loved pet to become less and less intimidated by an electronic device that doesn't even know she exists. Because there's simply no way to tell an animal that inanimate objects mean them no harm.

And while it's kind of funny for a moment or two, eventually you start to feel like a real jerk for keeping such electronics around. Has anyone out there had similar issues with their pets and gadgets?

My Cat Vs. The Dragonfly, The Battle to End All Battles

Mark Wilson — Sun, 04 Mar 2007 18:02:02 EST

Let me give you a little background on my cat. She may look innocent, and on many accounts she is. But there are grown men in this world who fear her, as if she is a full-grown lion prepared to maim those who do not refill her water dish with the proper alacrity. (To be fair, half of that description is true).

So when I received my review unit Wow Wee/Flytech R/C Dragonfly, I knew just who to test it on. Surely Anya (my cat) would be leaping through the air, clawing with maximum kitten power to destroy this home intruder. The subtle flapping of wings would be too much for her to resist, and besides, the unit comes with a replacement pair.

So what happened?

In short, Anya was traumatized. She ran from the room and would have nothing to do with the toy from then on. (And caught the typo...it's there forever now).

As for the Dragonfly, in the five minutes I've spent with my unit (that came out wrong but I refuse to rephrase myself), I haven't gotten it to fly properly. Given other reviews out there, I'm sure it's user error. But also given that I was once a strong R/C car enthusiast, I'm shocked at my ineptitude.

And cool feature to note: the Dragonfly is charged directly from the remote control in about 20 minutes for a reported 7 minutes of flight. It's a good idea, be it presumably heavy on AA usage. – Mark Wilson

Gizmodo: anya

Cat Vs. Washing Machine (My Poor Cat Part II)

My Cat Vs. The Dragonfly, The Battle to End All Battles