People need to stop scaring cats with cucumbers, say animal behaviorists

Fox News ^ | November 20, 2015 | Michael Harthorne

[sparklite2]

The new viral craze is apparently scaring cats with cucumbers, because the Internet is a weird place and humans enjoy low-grade animal cruelty as long as it's adorable.

But National Geographic reports that we should all maybe not be scaring our cats with cucumbers. According to Upvoted, the first cat-scared-by-cucumber video appears to have been uploaded in May and went viral by July or so.

Countless others followed, to the point where Reddit has an entire Cucumbers Scaring Cats community. The idea behind these videos is that if you put a cucumber behind a cat, it'll freak out when it sees it.

[NativeSon]

If I structured my day around not scaring the cat, ... My Sister had a great cat that hated balloons, hated them to the point that was hysterical and that no one would intentionally bring a balloon in the house.

She found that cat as a stray and I recall, had it for 15 years

[gov_bean_ counter]

Our cat hates plastic shopping bags if we are holding them, but likes rattling them at three o’freaking clock in the morning...

[fatnotlazy]

“But why exactly are cats scared of cucumbers? Goldman says it’s simply a natural reaction to seeing an object where they aren’t used to seeing it.”

****

Not true of my little guy. He would examine the cucumber, sniff it, give me an indignant look and walk away.

[buwaya]

I used to scare ours with socks.
Throw a sock at them (a near miss) by surprise and it will probably do the same jump.

[Telepathic Intruder]

My fear of doctors is just as easily explained. Learned behavior.

[gov_bean_ counter]

Yep. Same fear rooted in deep mistrust.

[gov_bean_ counter]

Yesterday el gato disappeared around the time we have been giving him his meds. He didn't even have to see the syringe.

[bubbacluck]

I fear vegetables as well.

[USMCPOP]

“Pussies
Cucumbers

What not to laugh at?”

I never had a problem with them laughing at my cucumber.

[sparklite2]

LOL

When I lived in a singles apartment complex back in the sixties, we used to leave our front door open a lot. We were inside smoking some weed once and a cat strolled in. Someone thought it would be funny to blow some smoke into a paper bag and stick it over the cat’s head, which we proceeded to do. The cat put up a fight, pulling his head back out of the bag and running out the front door.

A few minutes later, the cat was back in the apartment trying to stick his head into the paper bag.

[Caipirabob]

Y’all are violatin’ it’s “safe area”...

[gov_bean_ counter]

Haha. I can see that happening...

[Rinnwald]

[lurk]

Are not cats created for this? Certainly dogs won’t do the job.

[Bobalu]

[KarlInOhio]

Your cat is suffering from what we vets haven't found a word for. Your cat badly needs to be confused.

Confuse-a-cat

[Rinnwald]

That cat jumped with only three feet on the ground. very nimble.

[Opinionated Blowhard]

That video is just plain bizarre.

[sparklite2]

Why it’s catastrophic!

[Jack Hydrazine]

SCARING CATS!! Be Prepared to Laugh!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CT3zf3ZBYC4