What is that flap of skin that hangs off cats in the flank area? What is it’s purpose? Even skinny cats have it.
You mean the beer gut or the place where the beer gut will (should) go?
Ha ha! No, I mean that flap that hangs down and flops around, especially when they’re trotting! I’ve seen it on all types/sizes/shapes of cats. Here’s a pic showing it:
http://www.animal-photography.com/image/AP-0IDZG8/keywords.html
Right in front of his hind leg.
Seriously. That’s the cat’s beer gut. It’s more pronounced in neutered cats because they’ve got nothing better to do than swill beer.
I once heard it called a ‘jump pouch’ … a flap that allows a very large range of movement for leaping / twisting / turning.
star
You mean - like what men get?
“Seriously. That’s the cat’s beer gut. It’s more pronounced in neutered cats because they’ve got nothing better to do than swill beer.”
Try telling that to my five, very active females!
“I once heard it called a ‘jump pouch’ … a flap that allows a very large range of movement for leaping / twisting / turning.”
Ahhhhhh, now THIS would make sense to me. Big cats (tigers, lions, etc) also have it, so it makes a lot of sense.
It is for giving more extension room for the hind legs - even big cats have that, tigers in particular. Most of my cats have it to a greater or lesser degree and the one with the least loose skin is the fattest of them and my pigeon hunter has the largest as he climbs a lot…
Thanks, sk_pacer and ShotenStar! My boyfriend keeps saying it’s from being fat, but since my cats aren’t fat, yet still have that flap, I wanted to know what it did so I could tell him!
Ahhh, that’s interesting. All my girls have it, and I find it especially interesting re:the size of the flap versus the activity level of the cat. Buffy’s the most active, and I’d say she’s got the flappiest one. Molly’s not fat, but she’s big and not as active, and hers is moderate. Willow’s our skinny little scardy-cat, and hers is moderate (she may not be too active, but she’s got to have the ability to push off and fly 6 feet in the air when a random cloth on the floor sneaks up in front of her)
[QUOTE=JumpQH;5899872]
“Seriously. That’s the cat’s beer gut. It’s more pronounced in neutered cats because they’ve got nothing better to do than swill beer.”
Try telling that to my five, very active females!
“I once heard it called a ‘jump pouch’ … a flap that allows a very large range of movement for leaping / twisting / turning.”
Ahhhhhh, now THIS would make sense to me. Big cats (tigers, lions, etc) also have it, so it makes a lot of sense.[/QUOTE]
No reason the “beer flap/jump gut” can’t do double duty.
Now as a fat storage spot, I think that would be a good place for a cat to put it, biomechanically speaking. I also think a hunting animal might need a place to carry around some fat… that didn’t also cramp his/her style.
Interesting thread!
I’ve noticed a bigger “beer flap/jump gut” (thanks, mvp!) on some of the neutered cats at the barn.
I never knew it was a useful part of a cat’s anatomy. I learn something every day!
Years ago I heard an Aussie call it a “wibble”.
[QUOTE=mvp;5900576]
No reason the “beer flap/jump gut” can’t do double duty.
Now as a fat storage spot, I think that would be a good place for a cat to put it, biomechanically speaking. I also think a hunting animal might need a place to carry around some fat… that didn’t also crap his/her style.[/QUOTE]
I HOPE extra fat wouldn’t “crap” his/her style! Sorry, I just couldn’t resist, MVP! 
My old, slightly senile kitty (Rest in peace) had the best flap ever! She was a healthy weight, not an once of extra fat, but in her old age the skin hung almost to the floor (a good 6-8 inches of loose skin) When she was being silly, she’d scurry away and her ‘skirt’ would swing from side to side. So cute!
We always called it the “pooch”. One of my parents’ cats HATES when you touch it. So we dare each other to “poke the pooch” and see what happens. :lol:
[QUOTE=JumpQH;5901674]
I HOPE extra fat wouldn’t “crap” his/her style! Sorry, I just couldn’t resist, MVP! :)[/QUOTE]
An honest mistake/not my usual potty mouth. Fixed it.
Not cute, but a sign that you are neglecting your cat’s need for plastic surgery. What’s wrong with you?
Um, but, do you have pictures? A video would be exploitative. You don’t need to go that far.
I call it the “cat udder” LOL
We’ve got a 16 year old cat who has always been a slight little thing…no cat udder on him ever. We did have a 18 pound Maine Coon Cat who was practically born with a cat udder. Man that thing would swing all over the place in the rare instance Boats would run. :lol:
[QUOTE=EquusArtist;5904719]
I call it the “cat udder” LOL
We’ve got a 16 year old cat who has always been a slight little thing…no cat udder on him ever. We did have a 18 pound Maine Coon Cat who was practically born with a cat udder. Man that thing would swing all over the place in the rare instance Boats would run. :lol:[/QUOTE]
Have you noticed that cats will choose a crappy little rushed trot as their “get from point A to point B” ground-covering gait of choice? They don’t canter. They certainly don’t lope. They don’t offer a lofty trot. But sometimes you can see a long, relaxed daisy-cutter gait on a cat. Usually the cat needs to be going somewhere distant and believe he is unobserved.
Cats can’t deliver the kind of suspension we value in horses. Totally different design, even with homologous bits of anatomy. To the extent that a cat has a suspensory apparatus, for example, it’s mainly muscle rather than ligamentous.
I bring all this up because the swinging beer gut is the part of the crappy trot that makes me throw up in my mouth a little bit. I’d be grateful if someone would start breeding for some pretty-moving cats. Someone else should specialize in training cats to trot in hand. Just to prove that it can be done. Thanks for your service.
My mom’s cat has a very, er, pronounced flap.
My father has dubbed him, forevermore, as “Mr. Udders.”
:lol:
