I noticed the speeds of these "timed" ferret races and wondered what the
differences would be, if the ferrets were honestly motivated (i.e., if the
ferrets actually knew that we *wanted* them to run their fastest), etc.  I
wondered this, because I recently happened to notice the length of time it
took Add-A-Kiss to chase Hershey from the back wall of my home (where he
had just exited an empty trash can) to the front wall of my house (behind
a cart used to store newspaper and Hershey's favorite hiding place)--a
distance of approximately 88 feet (there were a slight angles to their path
due to furniture, etc, so I can't be absolutely sure of the distance), in
about 5 seconds.  I'm not at all sure that I did the calculations
correctly, but I came up with a figure of about 12 miles per hour for these
two.
 
Now, I don't know if this is a typical "high speed" for Hershey, but I know
that Add-A-Kiss can run even faster, when it's all carpet.  The path that
the two of them ran over was carpet for the first 8 feet, linoleum for 35
feet and carpet again for the last 45 feet.  However, I've watched
Add-A-Kiss chase a mouse and move so fast that you couldn't actually "see"
her, rather, you just saw a blur of cinnamon fur!  Again, I wonder what the
results would be if the ferrets were honestly trying to run their fastest.
 
BTW, I noticed that my ferrets tend to run on the linoleum more often just
after their nails have been clipped, than they do when their nails have
grown for a while.  Maybe their soft little foot pads are better able to
grip the floor and give them more momentum when their nails don't get in
the way! :)
 
Todd and the (Extremely fast!) Fuzzbutt Rodeo Clowns!
 
---
mailto:[log in to unmask]
http://users.success.net/toddl/
[Posted in FML issue 2884]