Ball! Ball! Ball! Ball!
April 12, 2008 8:55 PM Subscribe
Jerry the Dachshund + Ball Machine = Quality Entertainment SLYT. That is all.
Excellent use of the totallykickass tag.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:59 PM on April 12, 2008
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:59 PM on April 12, 2008
I've had this one saved in my favorites folder for awhile, so I'll favorite it here too. It never fails to entertain. I love the way the dog acts excited each time. It never gets old for him. So cute!
posted by amyms at 9:16 PM on April 12, 2008
posted by amyms at 9:16 PM on April 12, 2008
My friend in high school had a dachsund. I don't see how one can't be cheered up at the sight of those little guys. Even if you're lousy with teenage angst, an energetic dachtsund can't not brighten your day. Better than Paxil.
posted by Kronoss at 9:35 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by Kronoss at 9:35 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
It would be even more entertaining to occasionally replace the balls with other things, like doggy treats or small cats.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 9:41 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 9:41 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
it's the triumphant story of one impossibly lazy man, as told through his robot, robot dog, and a worn-out Penn #5
posted by kickback at 9:41 PM on April 12, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by kickback at 9:41 PM on April 12, 2008 [2 favorites]
This completely made my night.
posted by mewithoutyou at 9:41 PM on April 12, 2008
posted by mewithoutyou at 9:41 PM on April 12, 2008
He's happy because he doesn't realize that what he's doing is just like real life, except that it doesn't make humans happy.
Lucky dog.
posted by Dipsomaniac at 9:50 PM on April 12, 2008 [2 favorites]
Lucky dog.
posted by Dipsomaniac at 9:50 PM on April 12, 2008 [2 favorites]
That's pretty good, but how would Jerry do on Dog Swap?
posted by shucksitsjeremy at 9:58 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
posted by shucksitsjeremy at 9:58 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
That's quality engineering right there. I loved the part where Jerry was all "glarg, glarg, glarg, screw you, I'm having my own party right here with the tennis ball," but finally gave in and dropped the ball back into the chute.
posted by freshwater_pr0n at 10:14 PM on April 12, 2008
posted by freshwater_pr0n at 10:14 PM on April 12, 2008
Imagine the sadistic thrills a cat would have with a machine like that, hurling stunned mice and baby hummingbirds against a wall, over and over and over and over and over...
posted by maryh at 10:15 PM on April 12, 2008
posted by maryh at 10:15 PM on April 12, 2008
If you want a picture of the future, imagine a dachsund loading a tennis ball launcher -- forever.
posted by lore at 11:01 PM on April 12, 2008 [23 favorites]
posted by lore at 11:01 PM on April 12, 2008 [23 favorites]
In his notes, the guy said it took him 2 years, on and off, to build the machine, including adding safety features to protect the dog and his son, and that the dog actually played with it a total of about 3 times. Somehow, I don't think it was the dog's toy.
If he'd have wanted to keep the dog happily engaged, he would have brought home a floppy cardboard box and some Liv-A-Snaps.
posted by paulsc at 11:29 PM on April 12, 2008
If he'd have wanted to keep the dog happily engaged, he would have brought home a floppy cardboard box and some Liv-A-Snaps.
posted by paulsc at 11:29 PM on April 12, 2008
So when the machines take over, our pets won't even care?
God, what a depressing link.
posted by homunculus at 11:33 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
God, what a depressing link.
posted by homunculus at 11:33 PM on April 12, 2008 [1 favorite]
that's a happy dog. i love the way it's wagging its whole back end.
posted by rmd1023 at 5:45 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by rmd1023 at 5:45 AM on April 13, 2008
Awesome.
But also, many moving parts+small children+small animals=X*risk? It makes me slightly nervous. I guess at least for the video there's obviously an adult around. But by the nature of the machine, I'm guessing that's not always the case.
posted by gauchodaspampas at 5:59 AM on April 13, 2008
But also, many moving parts+small children+small animals=X*risk? It makes me slightly nervous. I guess at least for the video there's obviously an adult around. But by the nature of the machine, I'm guessing that's not always the case.
posted by gauchodaspampas at 5:59 AM on April 13, 2008
Dog + kid + robot
What's not to love? Awesome post, thank you!
posted by Zinger at 7:26 AM on April 13, 2008
What's not to love? Awesome post, thank you!
posted by Zinger at 7:26 AM on April 13, 2008
OMG this makes me miss the three dachsunds I've had. Weenie dogs rule! Also that baby is the cutest EVAR with the cooing and giggling.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 7:42 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 7:42 AM on April 13, 2008
That. Is. Awesome! I wish I had the smarts and know-how to pull off something like this. On the other hand I wouldn't have developed such amazing arm strength from throwing my dog her ball approximately fifteen BILLION times.
posted by LeeJay at 8:15 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by LeeJay at 8:15 AM on April 13, 2008
When I was little my dad and I would theorize about how long our dog would play fetch, if we were to continue throwing his ball until he stopped chasing it. Results were inconclusive, because we always got bored before he did. This machine was the missing part of our experiment!
posted by danb at 8:21 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by danb at 8:21 AM on April 13, 2008
Minor adjustment to fully simulate the playing-ball-with-the-dog experience: programming it so that it will randomly raise the launcher, pull back the firing mechanism, but not launch the ball. Optimally, it would have a secondary firing mechanism that will just shoot blanks so the full sound of a ball launch is made.
Psyching out the dog every now and then with a fake throw and doing the whole "What? What? Where's-the-ball?!" is half the fun.
posted by CKmtl at 9:26 AM on April 13, 2008 [1 favorite]
Psyching out the dog every now and then with a fake throw and doing the whole "What? What? Where's-the-ball?!" is half the fun.
posted by CKmtl at 9:26 AM on April 13, 2008 [1 favorite]
Awesome -- jerry rox!
posted by fourcheesemac at 9:48 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by fourcheesemac at 9:48 AM on April 13, 2008
Who cares about the dog? That is one awesome ball-throwing robot!
posted by GuyZero at 9:52 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by GuyZero at 9:52 AM on April 13, 2008
Not a double post, but it was linked in comments in previous post(s). Cute nonetheless.
posted by joeclark at 11:00 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by joeclark at 11:00 AM on April 13, 2008
I've seen a lot of dachshunds in my time, and none of them enjoy playing fetch as much as this one does. I love my dachshunds, but I wish they'd play fetch every now and then.
posted by lilac girl at 11:49 AM on April 13, 2008
posted by lilac girl at 11:49 AM on April 13, 2008
See lilac girl, you and I are in the exact opposite boat. I've happily left my weiner dog totally unenlightened to the joy of ball-chasing on purpose. I figure she finds so many other things joyful that it's okay if I bypass becoming her ball-throwing slave. Also, I feel better knowing if someone else throws a ball to their dog that I don't have to worry about her suddenly disappearing to get it.
That said, she sure loves chasing dogs that are chasing balls. :)
posted by miss lynnster at 12:11 PM on April 13, 2008
That said, she sure loves chasing dogs that are chasing balls. :)
posted by miss lynnster at 12:11 PM on April 13, 2008
lilac girl:I've seen a lot of dachshunds in my time, and none of them enjoy playing fetch as much as this one does. I love my dachshunds, but I wish they'd play fetch every now and then.
My brother's daschund looks at me cockeyed and wonders why I'd throw a perfectly good ball.
posted by dr_dank at 12:35 PM on April 13, 2008
My brother's daschund looks at me cockeyed and wonders why I'd throw a perfectly good ball.
posted by dr_dank at 12:35 PM on April 13, 2008
Well, this isn't a wiener dog but it is a dog entertaining himself.
posted by paddysat at 1:18 PM on April 13, 2008
posted by paddysat at 1:18 PM on April 13, 2008
If that dog is anything like mine, they'll need to turn the robot off in order to prevent him from running his little legs completely off. No sense of moderation. Like a goldfish with unlimited food.
Aside: is it just me, or have dax-mixes suddenly hit the market? They're everywhere, and some of them look damn strange.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 1:20 PM on April 13, 2008
Aside: is it just me, or have dax-mixes suddenly hit the market? They're everywhere, and some of them look damn strange.
posted by Durn Bronzefist at 1:20 PM on April 13, 2008
I love you, Jerry.
posted by the littlest brussels sprout at 4:47 PM on April 13, 2008
posted by the littlest brussels sprout at 4:47 PM on April 13, 2008
The dachshund-corgi-lab mix I had as a kid used to take his tennis ball to the top of the basement stairs, drop it, and chase it down. The memory of the jingly plunking sound he made as he hurled himself after his toy still makes me smile.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 5:55 PM on April 13, 2008
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 5:55 PM on April 13, 2008
My god, what happened to the cynical Slack? I've watched this twice already. That dog looks so damn happy!
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 5:57 PM on April 13, 2008
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 5:57 PM on April 13, 2008
Our dachshund is utter crap at ball-throwing games, as she can never seem to find the ball once it's thrown (and this was even before her eyesight started going downhill). Our cats, on the other hand...wow, I can only imagine. I'm picturing balls of yarn pulled out of my bookcase and fired all over the house.
posted by bitter-girl.com at 8:52 AM on April 14, 2008
posted by bitter-girl.com at 8:52 AM on April 14, 2008
Huh. And my dog had to satisfy his my-humans-are-worn-out-but-I'm-not ball fetching by dropping the ball at the top of the driveway and running to the bottom to fetch it. If only we'd thought to learn robotics instead!
posted by notashroom at 2:28 PM on April 14, 2008
posted by notashroom at 2:28 PM on April 14, 2008
My dog needs no robot; she'll happily toss her toys up in the air herself and then go running after them.
posted by Arturus at 3:00 PM on April 14, 2008
posted by Arturus at 3:00 PM on April 14, 2008
Homunculus, I dare say I've been waiting my whole life to see that. Thank you.
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 8:43 PM on April 15, 2008
posted by palmcorder_yajna at 8:43 PM on April 15, 2008
« Older Prohibido. Caution. | FontStruct is a free online truetype font-building... Newer »
This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
posted by Dave Faris at 8:57 PM on April 12, 2008