Heatwave 2 has hit the UK and the mercury in the writing den is making its way past 30 degrees Celsius at 10 a.m. Not to worry, I’ve discovered a new way to keep cool… splooting.
Sploot is not a word I have encountered before. According to the entry in dictionary.com ‘Sploot is slang for the pose an animal, especially cats and dogs and other four-legged pets, make when they lie on their stomachs, with hind legs stretched out back and flat.’
Splooting is something animals have done for centuries and is a mechanism they use to cool their body temperature. The pose is best done on a cool surface like a tiled or wooden floor. The fun doesn’t stop there. There are different kind of sploots.
- The Full Sploot: as previously described.
- The Side Sploot: When one hind leg sticks out to the side while the other leg is tucked in.
- The Half Sploot: When one back leg sticks straight out and the other is tucked underneath the belly.
Chaos on the streets of New York
Even the squirrels in New York have got in on the act. The city’s parks department has urged residents not to panic at the large numbers of squirrels splooting on pavements. The department tweeted, ‘Don’t worry…On hot days, squirrels keep cool by splooting (stretching out) on cool surfaces to reduce body heat.’
If you want to know more about the sploot phenomenon, you can visit Jason Galaxy, at the Cat Daddy Dictionary, who answers the burning question, ‘What is Sploot?’; or Alicia over at, The Simple Swan, writing about the ‘Elegance of Splooting.’
While I have been preparing this post, the temperature has shifted up a few more degrees, so I am off to find myself an ice cold floor. Have you discovered any great word or crazes this week? I would love to know. Have a great weekend and happy splooting.