More than 1,000 people have pledged nearly $30,000 (£20,700) to help fund a product that will allow humans to lick their pet cats.
The "Licki Brush", a soft silicone device, is held in a pet-owner's mouth and used to brush their animal to help develop a bond.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The idea comes from Jason O'Mara, an electrical engineer from Oregon, who needs at least $36,500 (£25,300) in pledges by 27 June for the project to go ahead.
With 25 days to go, 1,154 backers have already promised $29,983 on Kickstarter, all in hope of receiving a brush when they are ready in ship in January 2017.
"Have you ever wanted to lick your cat? Now you can. Without the furballs," says O'Mara, a self-declared cat entertainment enthusiast.
[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"content_original","fid":"95574","attributes":{"class":"media-image"}}]]
"We have designed Licki brush to bring you and your cat closer. By using Licki with your cat on a regular basis, you'll develop a more intimate and bonded relationship, much like a mama cat bonds with her young."
The brush is not just for cats. The team has tested Licki on "several friendly dogs and rabbits" who apparently "basked in the delight of their owner's grooming".
O'Mara and his wife, Tara, previously created SHRU, a cat toy that mimics the erratic movement and sound of a small animal.
-
Nasa’s new dark matter mapUnder the Radar High-resolution images may help scientists understand the ‘gravitational scaffolding into which everything else falls and is built into galaxies’
-
Is the US about to lose its measles elimination status?Today's Big Question Cases are skyrocketing
-
‘No one is exempt from responsibility, and especially not elite sport circuits’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Israel retrieves final hostage’s body from GazaSpeed Read The 24-year-old police officer was killed during the initial Hamas attack
-
China’s Xi targets top general in growing purgeSpeed Read Zhang Youxia is being investigated over ‘grave violations’ of the law
-
Panama and Canada are negotiating over a crucial copper mineIn the Spotlight Panama is set to make a final decision on the mine this summer
-
Why Greenland’s natural resources are nearly impossible to mineThe Explainer The country’s natural landscape makes the task extremely difficult
-
Iran cuts internet as protests escalateSpeed Reada Government buildings across the country have been set on fire
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
How Bulgaria’s government fell amid mass protestsThe Explainer The country’s prime minister resigned as part of the fallout
-
Femicide: Italy’s newest crimeThe Explainer Landmark law to criminalise murder of a woman as an ‘act of hatred’ or ‘subjugation’ but critics say Italy is still deeply patriarchal
