Okay, just when I think I've become immune to the wonders of Cat-dom, something shows up to amaze me further...The Moscow Cats Theatre! Here are a couple of Youtube clips:
And here's one from a local news feed, I think. You can see the cats up close. The paw-stand at the end is amazing!
Now, I have to confess to some mixed feelings here...My first thought upon seeing this for the first time was "Oh. My. God. How do they get the cats to do that?!?" I worried about draconian training methods. But then I looked closely at the cats as they performed and as they interacted with Yuri. They certainly don't show any signs of fear or apprehension, or even the hyper-alert mode that cats go into in uncertain situations. They are clean and well fed. According to most reviews I've read, the show travels with a vet. The thing that comforted me most was the tail-up attitude on some of the performing cats. I don't see that on Maddie or Ivy unless they are happy with life.
Now, I don't know much about this organization. If you find that they mistreat cats, share the info with me and I'll take this down. So far though, I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt and be astounded by the ability of our feline masters to train their humans.
I remember seeing a wonderful animal show that included three or four cats -- at Sea World in San Diego about 12 years ago. It was marvelous, and the animals seemed to be having great fun! (And you can bet that Sea World couldn't have gotten away with mistreating any of the animals.) It certainly can be done!
Thanks for the video clips!
Posted by: Marilynn | August 19, 2007 at 01:29 PM