Yes, this is in fact the cutest video you’re likely to see all day. This unfortunate feline wants to drink out of the kitchen sink faucet, but clearly, has developed a somewhat unorthodox method of doing so. Basically, dunk your head and lick the water off your chops:
But funny as this video is by itself, we here at DFE would be remiss if we simply posted a link to the video without an explanation. Yes, as you probably already guessed, there is in fact a reason for this cat’s strange behavior. And it has to do with the way that cats drink water normally.
We see a cat licking at a water bowl and most of us think we know what’s happening: the cat is dipping its tongue into the water and grabbing a little drop’s worth into its mouth. But that is in fact not at all what is happening. What is actually happening is a bit of tricky physics.
The cat in fact flicks its tongue in and out of the water to create a column of water that extends from the bowl to its mouth. This is in part because, unlike humans, cats mouths cannot produce suction. Instead, creating this column of water moving towards their mouths pits the inertia of the water heading towards them against gravity, which is pulling the water back down. As long as the cat is able to move their tongue faster than the gravitational pull wants to pull the water down, they’re able to drink. Thus cats achieve the same basic results as we do when using a straw, but without any surrounding vessel to provide lift.
So now, you can start your weekend.
