View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Gallery
View Video
View Video
Cat Cams Expose the Secret Lives of House Cats
Do you know what your cat does when it goes catting about town? According to KUSA-TV, now you can find out.
University of Georgia researcher Kerri Anne Loyd has crafted a small, three-ounce camera that can be attached to the collars of house cats that are allowed outdoors. This cat's-eye view has given most feline owners quite a surprise.
Amy Watts of Athena, Ga. discovered that her cat spends most of his day roaming the sewers near their home. Watts' other furry friend, Archie, had a whole other family he visited. The camera caught the tabby spending quailty time with a family at a neighboring house before slyly slinking back to be with his official owner.
RELATED: See more awesome animal photos on Pinterest. Follow PawNation now!
So far, Loyd has captured over 2,000 hours of footage from 60 cats, including shots of felines meeting opossums, bothering chickens, climbing roofs and hunting. The researcher said that it was more than curiosity that started her on this project. Loyd is looking to make owners more aware of the dangers an outdoor cat can encounter.
Roughly 80 percent of camera-equipped cats encountered a risky situation at least once a week. Risky or not, about 100 percent of the feline's owners were shocked by their cats' secret lives. For Watts, the news hit especially hard. After watching Archie with his other family, she said she feels like a scorned wife on a daytime talk show.
University of Georgia researcher Kerri Anne Loyd has crafted a small, three-ounce camera that can be attached to the collars of house cats that are allowed outdoors. This cat's-eye view has given most feline owners quite a surprise.
Amy Watts of Athena, Ga. discovered that her cat spends most of his day roaming the sewers near their home. Watts' other furry friend, Archie, had a whole other family he visited. The camera caught the tabby spending quailty time with a family at a neighboring house before slyly slinking back to be with his official owner.
RELATED: See more awesome animal photos on Pinterest. Follow PawNation now!
So far, Loyd has captured over 2,000 hours of footage from 60 cats, including shots of felines meeting opossums, bothering chickens, climbing roofs and hunting. The researcher said that it was more than curiosity that started her on this project. Loyd is looking to make owners more aware of the dangers an outdoor cat can encounter.
Roughly 80 percent of camera-equipped cats encountered a risky situation at least once a week. Risky or not, about 100 percent of the feline's owners were shocked by their cats' secret lives. For Watts, the news hit especially hard. After watching Archie with his other family, she said she feels like a scorned wife on a daytime talk show.
Ask the Cat Expert: Answers Behind Crazy Cat Behaviors:
You Say.…?
- button.wow
- button.lol
- button.aww
- button.poop
Add a Comment
26 Comments
by law cats are allowed to roam freely........ they were put on this earth to control rodents and they do it well.... and luckily our self sufficiient little furry friends decide they like us enough to live with us. i think most people can make the judgement as to wether or not their cats can go outside or be indoors only. i for one would hate to keep them only indoors but i don't live on a street w/heavy traffic nor do i have a big coyote problem. so remember we have free will to decide..try not to judge others
May 19 2012 at 1:57 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI've spoken with cat owners about keeping their pets on their property, citing their pets' health, loss of wildlife due to their "play" kills, and their defecation in others' yards. The owners couldn't step beyond the traditional view that it would be cruel to limit their pets. Though a neighbor's cats were killed by contracting a virus, their second set of pet cats were left to wander outdoors with identical consequences. Is the complete footage of the cat "interacting" with the neighbors' pet chickens and unlucky wildlife available? Cats don't "play a little' with small mammals, birds and reptiles. They kill these creatures most of the time. Cats have pretty much cleared out our area.
May 17 2012 at 12:59 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyNot many cats running free in our area. We do have some rather fat and well fed looking coyotes though, Between the coyotes, foxes, wolves, and mt lions, nature has done her job to take care of people who refuse to keep their cats indoors. Seems like nature has ways to maintain a healthy balance of animals in the wild. It has resulted in a very nice assortment of birds at our feeder too.
May 17 2012 at 12:15 AM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI would love to see what my cat and Golden Retriever do INSIDE of my house……
May 16 2012 at 11:32 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyDidn't the neighbors see the giant new CAMERA hanging off Archie's neck or did they just think it was some new bling????? HMMMM... makes one wonder...
May 16 2012 at 11:00 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHey hawkgirl93, Cats and Dogs are two completely different animals. How can you say you can relate? Instead you just want to complain. Here is an idea, call the cops next time!!!! Keep calling every single time. If you are not doing this or do not want to do this than you should stop complaining!
May 16 2012 at 10:39 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyHmmm I can relate except now! I am dealing with peoples annoying DOGS!!!!! my three boys are indoor because I can no longer allow them out so instead of annoying cats how about you Dog owners keep your DOGS out of others yards!
May 16 2012 at 10:19 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyMaybe instead of threatening to harm these cats, you should go and talk to the owners. Too often people will harm the animals for things like this without ever holding the owners responsible. I guess it is easier to take it out on the ones that cannot fight back than to take a chance on confronting a person who may get hostile over the situation.
May 16 2012 at 8:52 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyI hate that my neighbors cats think my back yard garden is their private litter box, my little Yorkies green sod grass play place is their private rolling and pooping yard and that they don't really run when my dogs come outside. Sooner or later it will come down to my protecting my own private property (my babies!) and I guarantee the CATS WILL LOSE! CAT OWNERS, KEEP YOUR CATS AWAY FROM OTHER PEOPLE'S YARDS! I am just about ready to explode at the thought of my little pups losing an eye or worse to a stupid cat.
May 16 2012 at 8:33 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyYou're upset that cats are smarter and can beat up your silly dogs?
May 17 2012 at 7:11 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyAnimal abuse is -never- the answer. I highly doubt that your "babies" are going to lose an eye unless they attack the cats first. I understand wanting to protect your yard and your pets from invaders... SO, why don't you use your brain instead of threatening defenseless animals who don't know any better.
May 21 2013 at 8:42 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyThey're animals. To them everywhere is home and a place to play and poop. That is the way they were made. Why don't you build a fence or secure the one you have if you have one? Or you can put something that is repellent to the cats sense of smell but not to yours or your dogs. You can order predator urine and sprinkle it around the edge of your lawn and the cat will get the point that these are property lines. They don't understand human version of property lines. There are a zillion other options.
Threatening an animal is... well, it's frankly just sick and you should get yourself checked out. People who harm or even threaten to harm animals are usually mentally ill. " I guarantee the CATS WILL LOSE! " Of course. They're smaller and you're an apex predator. So what? In what universe do you believe that makes you feel tough because against you the cat is practically defenseless? Those cats are someone's babies too probably.
I understand it can be frustrating. I'm frustrated about a raccoon problem caused by a neighbor feeding a horde of them. I would never hurt one though. Find an intelligent way to resolve the situation with out hurting them.
There's a stray cat that kept coming around. So you know what I did? I fed it, gave it fresh water and affection and taught it some manners based on positive reinforcement. You know what someone else did? They shot him with a BB gun and now the poor thing has a BB permanently lodged in his paw. (the vet said it would cause more harm to remove it since he's an stray and more chance of infection. Yes, I took the stray to the vet.) Which one of us do you think feels better about themselves and which one of us now has the reward of the company of an awesome new friend? Which one of us has better karma do you think? I'll tell you what though, had I known who did it... I would have called the police on them for animal abuse. So you need to chill out and respect that this earth belongs to the animals as well. You think because you paid for that bit of dirt you own it? Maybe as far as human society goes. You just need to learn how to mark your territory better. Its not the cats fault you can't figure it out. Look up your options rather than whining and threatening innocent creatures. -end rant
I wish my neighbors would keep their cats OUT OF MY YARD! i have tiny yorkies who are in danger of losing an eye or worse each time i let them out into their own, fenced small play yard. i do not like that my next door neighbors cat thinks my garden is their own private poop box, my green sod grass for my dogs is their rolling place and where they leave fleas and poops also. sooner or later it will come down to my protecting my own property (my baby dogs!) and i guarantee the cats will lose! KEEP YOUR CATS OUT OF MY YARD!
May 16 2012 at 8:31 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplySharon, you are a moron. Your dogs aren't going to lose an eye unless they go yipping after the cats and the cats feel threatened. Do you know anything about animals at all?
May 16 2012 at 11:13 PM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyOh my God. Cat poop! And fleas! Are you aware that fleas are equal opportunity parasites? The cats aren't leaving them there. Your dogs are picking them up in your green sod. God help your poor dogs because you have not one clue. I'm sure their poop doesn't stink.