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Record yourself playing with your pet cat, and send the footage to researchers at UC Davis. Researchers in California are seeking courageous individuals to participate in an intense project: engaging in playtime with their felines. The goal of the study is to gain more insight into the dynamics between cat owners and their felines as well as what constitutes enjoyable playtime. Additionally, participants in the study will be entered to win a $50 gift card.
Researchers at the Animal Welfare Epidemiology Lab at the University of California, Davis, are conducting the study. In past projects, they’ve asked people about their cats’ appetite for bugs, whether their cats can easily socialize with others, and if they trim their furry friends nails.
The study will be conducted in two phases. In the first phase you will be asked to simply send in a video of them playing with their cat the way they typically would. In the second, the participants will be sent the same “standard” toy and they’ll be asked to move the toy in front of their cat with a specific motion. The explicit goal of the project is to study how cat owners interact with their cat while playing normally, as well as to compare how playful different cats are with a specific moving toy.
Any American over the age of 18 with at least one adult cat is eligible for the study. Volunteers will be enrolled to win one of three $50 Amazon gift cards, and everyone will get to keep the study toy. Interested people can sign up via the link here.