i like my data furry: The Fat Cat Throwdown!

OK, everyone, please cue up (just in your head, no turntable required) the opening bars of The Final Countdown.

Chill out on the first verse but when ya get to the chorus, sing…

IT’S THE FAT CAT THROWDOWN!*

Thx. Now we’re ready to begin.

Mommy, mommy, my friends on Facebook said my cat wasn’t large! True enough, that is the impetus behind the Fat Cat Throwdown, in which I aim to prove to the world that Derrick is indeed..uh…kinda big.

Here’s how this contest would play out, pitting my own cats against each other as an example. Criteria? I tried to include measurements that wouldn’t be impacted by a cat’s weight (i.e. girth), and basically whatever parts of the body I could get my measuring tape around before Derrick ran off.

* We’re not talking poundage here, so Fat Cat Throwdown is indeed a misnomer. I can’t help it…rhyme trumps reason every time!

From base of neck to base of tail
Derrick: 17 inches
Bing: 15 inches

Distance from belly to the ground
Derrick: 9 inches
Bing: 6 inches

Tail
Derrick: 13 ¼ inches
Bing: 2 ½ inches (not a typo, just fashionably bobbed per mother nature)

Height (measured from ground up, while cat is standing, from midpoint of cat)
Derrick: 13 inches
Bing: 10 inches

And the winner? Why, everyone gets a prize in the Pune-iverse! Henceforth, Bing will reign for a year as Low Rider 2010. All hail Derrick, the ruling Whitey Mammoth. And your kitty? Submit his or her numbers in the comments box, if you dare! : )

P.S. I don’t think I’ve ever listened to Final Countdown in its entirety.