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Path: utzoo!utcsri!greg
From: greg@utcsri.UUCP (Gregory Smith)
Newsgroups: net.pets,net.auto
Subject: Re: cats sitting on cars
Message-ID: <2437@utcsri.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 31-Mar-86 13:52:49 EST
Article-I.D.: utcsri.2437
Posted: Mon Mar 31 13:52:49 1986
Date-Received: Mon, 31-Mar-86 15:41:59 EST
References: <1334@lll-crg.ARpA> <4334@dartvax.UUCP> <1021@felix.UUCP>
Reply-To: greg@utcsri.UUCP (Gregory Smith)
Distribution: net
Organization: CSRI, University of Toronto
Lines: 30
Summary: 

In article <1021@felix.UUCP> daver@felix.UUCP (Dave Richards) writes:
>As to the original problem, the best thing I can think of would be to hook up
>a static electicity generator to the vehicle while unattended.  This would
>give the cat a slight shock as it initially touched the car and would probab-
>ly discourage future attempts.  Before all you cat lovers get excited, I'm
>talking about the same shock you get when you touch a doorknob after walking
>across nylon carpeting on a dry day.  We're not talking about frying kitties.
>
>P.S.  If you seriously try hooking a static electricity generator to your

... car, it won't bother kitty a bit. At no time will Whiskers be
simultaneously in contact with the ground and the car. I realize that
the suggestion was half in jest, but you would be suprised what people
will go ahead and do anyway. Microwave hamsters, etc.

P.S. The cat will indeed receive a slight shock as it is charged up to the
potential of the car, but cats ( being small ) have a very low capacitance
( as measured from an isolated cat to a sufficiently distant ground ) and
in order to give the cat an effective jolt, you would probably need a voltage
high enough to be dangerous to grounded humans. Having written all this, I
realize that a cat climbing into the engine compartment ( rather than
jumping on the hood ) *would* usually be touching both ground and car.
In any case, DON'T bother. A car cover that reached the ground would solve
both problems. It would probably cost more and be more trouble, but think
of the other advantages: No bird doody, no sun fading, kids leaning on car
with their trendy 53-zipper jeans >:-( etc.
-- 
"If you aren't making any mistakes, you aren't doing anything".
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Greg Smith     University of Toronto      UUCP: ..utzoo!utcsri!greg