Music for dogs, television for cats

Lou Reed has lost his fucking mind:

It’s a dog’s life. Well, it was on Saturday when the forecourt of the Sydney Opera House came alive with the sound of high pitched music and howling dogs at the world’s first concert performed for dogs.

The concert was the brain child of acclaimed U.S. music artist Laurie Anderson and rock legend husband Lou Reed. Anderson wrote the 20-minute piece “Music for Dogs” describing it as “an inter-species social gathering on a scale never seen before in Australia”.

“It was really so fantastic. All the dogs were really grooving on the music. They really seemed to enjoy themself,” Anderson told Reuters.

Big dogs, small dogs, dogs dressed up for the occasion and even a 15-year-old arthritic dog, whose owner pushed him in a makeshift dog wheelchair, attended the world’s first ever outdoor performance staged for dogs.

Reading this, it’s pretty hard not to be reminded of Robert Mitchum in Scrooged

Preston: Do you know how many cats there are in this country?

_Frank: N-N…no, mmm…I don’t have…no.

Preston: Twenty-seven million. D’you know how many dogs?

Frank: In America…?

Preston: Forty-eight million. We spend four billion on pet food alone.

Frank: Four…!?

Preston: I have a study which shows that cats and dogs are beginning to watch television. If these scientists are right, we should > start programming right now. Within years, they could become steady viewers.

Frank: Programming…for cats?

Preston: Walk with me, Frank. I’m not saying build a whole show around animals. All I’m suggesting is we occasionally throw in a little pet appeal. Some birds, a squirrel…

Frank: Mice?

Preston: Mice, exactly. You remember Kojak and the lollipops? What about a cop that dangles string? That’s his gimmick. Lots of quick, random actions.