Necessity, who is the mother of invention...

JustJo · 08-16-2010, 01:44 PM

Plato said it first, but I'm sure most of us have been in the position of needing something enough to fake it, make it, mickey mouse it...whatever the situation called for.

Let's hear your stories....

I'll start... I'm moving, and will be driving 1 teenager, 1 small dog and 4 cranky cats for 1300 miles, starting Thursday. If I put the cats in carriers one will drool herself to death from panic, and the other 3 will never speak to me again.

I got the idea to get one of those divider things that keeps dogs in the back of the SUV, right? Great idea...except they don't make them for regular cars and they don't make them for cats...so the spaces are way too wide to enclose the kitties. (And they also cost way too much, but that's another issue!)

With basically no time to figure out how to keep the kitties in the back seat, but free to roam, stretch and annoy each other...I headed to Home Depot. Gardening section....deer netting!

It's lightweight, flexible, plastic...and won't scratch my car when we stretch it across behind the front seats and slam the back doors on it to hold it in place. Might look a little weird, but hey....for $14 I'm all set! Now all I need to do is find my pinking shears to trim what's left hanging outside!

suebee · 08-16-2010, 03:36 PM

Any of you who have birds know how horrendously expensive toys and accesories are for them. A simple chew-perch can run upwards of $50 for a large parrot. We go to the beach and get driftwood for perches and chewing: mother nature has bleached them clean, and they are free! We go to yard sales and flea markets for fisher price toys: toy pianos amuse the parrots to no end, and stuffed toys are great for cuddling and ripping apart....I mean, dispersing one's frustrations.

The same goes for dog toys. A stuffed toy for a dog can run $7 and up, and one of my dogs rips them to shreds - sometimes within minutes. (even though she cherishes the remains until we take them away) So we get stuffed toys - again, at yard sales. Sometimes they're only pennies apiece.

I think it's a matter of quality of life for the animals, so if I can't afford the manufactured stuff, I'll find a way to give them what they need.

lipstixgal · 08-16-2010, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by suebee

Any of you who have birds know how horrendously expensive toys and accesories are for them. A simple chew-perch can run upwards of $50 for a large parrot. We go to the beach and get driftwood for perches and chewing: mother nature has bleached them clean, and they are free! We go to yard sales and flea markets for fisher price toys: toy pianos amuse the parrots to no end, and stuffed toys are great for cuddling and ripping apart....I mean, dispersing one's frustrations.

The same goes for dog toys. A stuffed toy for a dog can run $7 and up, and one of my dogs rips them to shreds - sometimes within minutes. (even though she cherishes the remains until we take them away) So we get stuffed toys - again, at yard sales. Sometimes they're only pennies apiece.

I think it's a matter of quality of life for the animals, so if I can't afford the manufactured stuff, I'll find a way to give them what they need.

I didn't know that garage sales had stuffed animals my dog just tears it apart until I take it away and the stuffing is all over the place so not happy with that...dog toys cost like 7 to 10 dollars at petsmart, thanks for the advice...

suebee · 08-16-2010, 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lipstixgal

I didn't know that garage sales had stuffed animals my dog just tears it apart until I take it away and the stuffing is all over the place so not happy with that...dog toys cost like 7 to 10 dollars at petsmart, thanks for the advice...

They actually make unstuffed toys for dogs now. You KNOW who ever thought of that had a dog!

EnderD_503 · 08-16-2010, 08:55 PM

Needed heavier dumbbells when the heaviest dumbbells I had access to over that particular weekend were only two 30 lbs dumbbells. So I duct taped some twenties to them...it looked ridiculous and was awkward as fuck, but worked ok for the time. Also tried duct taping plates to dumbbells to make them heavier.

I thought I was the inventor of this "brilliant" idea, but I read an article the other day by a prominent trainer and it turns out I'm not the first one that had this dilemma at some point in life, and who also resorted to duct taping dumbbells or plates to dumbbells or kettlebells... I don't feel so crazy now

So yes, necessity is, indeed, the mother of invention...doesn't mean it'll look pretty though lol

08-16-2010, 01:44 PM	#1
JustJo Infamous Member How Do You Identify?: pushy broad Preferred Pronoun?: she Relationship Status: Follow your heart; it knows things your mind cannot explain. Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Southeast corner Posts: 5,633 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 24,417 Thanked 25,406 Times in 4,660 Posts Rep Power: 21474857	Necessity, who is the mother of invention... Plato said it first, but I'm sure most of us have been in the position of needing something enough to fake it, make it, mickey mouse it...whatever the situation called for. Let's hear your stories.... I'll start... I'm moving, and will be driving 1 teenager, 1 small dog and 4 cranky cats for 1300 miles, starting Thursday. If I put the cats in carriers one will drool herself to death from panic, and the other 3 will never speak to me again. I got the idea to get one of those divider things that keeps dogs in the back of the SUV, right? Great idea...except they don't make them for regular cars and they don't make them for cats...so the spaces are way too wide to enclose the kitties. (And they also cost way too much, but that's another issue!) With basically no time to figure out how to keep the kitties in the back seat, but free to roam, stretch and annoy each other...I headed to Home Depot. Gardening section....deer netting! It's lightweight, flexible, plastic...and won't scratch my car when we stretch it across behind the front seats and slam the back doors on it to hold it in place. Might look a little weird, but hey....for $14 I'm all set! Now all I need to do is find my pinking shears to trim what's left hanging outside! __________________ I'm not tall enough to ride emotional roller coasters

08-16-2010, 03:36 PM	#2
suebee Member How Do You Identify?: TOWANDA! Preferred Pronoun?: Queen Bee Relationship Status: Good 'n married. Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Eastern Canada. But if I make a wrong turn at the lights I get stopped by a border guard. Posts: 1,499 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 2,355 Thanked 2,756 Times in 820 Posts Rep Power: 16450092	Any of you who have birds know how horrendously expensive toys and accesories are for them. A simple chew-perch can run upwards of $50 for a large parrot. We go to the beach and get driftwood for perches and chewing: mother nature has bleached them clean, and they are free! We go to yard sales and flea markets for fisher price toys: toy pianos amuse the parrots to no end, and stuffed toys are great for cuddling and ripping apart....I mean, dispersing one's frustrations. The same goes for dog toys. A stuffed toy for a dog can run $7 and up, and one of my dogs rips them to shreds - sometimes within minutes. (even though she cherishes the remains until we take them away) So we get stuffed toys - again, at yard sales. Sometimes they're only pennies apiece. I think it's a matter of quality of life for the animals, so if I can't afford the manufactured stuff, I'll find a way to give them what they need. __________________ "Compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full breadth and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind." -Albert Schweitzer

08-16-2010, 08:55 PM	#5
EnderD_503 Member How Do You Identify?: Queer, trans guy, butch Preferred Pronoun?: Male pronouns Relationship Status: Relationship Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Canada Posts: 1,329 My Photo Gallery Thanks: 4,090 Thanked 3,878 Times in 1,022 Posts Rep Power: 21474853	Needed heavier dumbbells when the heaviest dumbbells I had access to over that particular weekend were only two 30 lbs dumbbells. So I duct taped some twenties to them...it looked ridiculous and was awkward as fuck, but worked ok for the time. Also tried duct taping plates to dumbbells to make them heavier. I thought I was the inventor of this "brilliant" idea, but I read an article the other day by a prominent trainer and it turns out I'm not the first one that had this dilemma at some point in life, and who also resorted to duct taping dumbbells or plates to dumbbells or kettlebells... I don't feel so crazy now So yes, necessity is, indeed, the mother of invention...doesn't mean it'll look pretty though lol