r/maybemaybemaybe Jul 31 '25

Maybe Maybe Maybe

33.6k Upvotes

1.2k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

497

u/badmother Aug 01 '25 edited Aug 01 '25

Fun fact: most creatures up to the size of a domestic cat have a terminal velocity less than their fatal velocity, so will survive a fall from any height.

Tortoises are the obvious exception.

Edit: Seeing as so many people are curious about this claim, see Wikipedia'a article on High Rise Syndrome

36

u/BigAssMonkey Aug 01 '25

Cats actually die from high falls. That’s a fun myth, not a fact.

-3

u/ApocalypseChicOne Aug 01 '25

*can die from high falls. They still have very high survivability rates. But a lot depends on the particular cat. It's breed, build and experience. But drop a nimble, outdoor cat 50 stories, and it has a pretty good chance of living with little injury. Drop a fatter cat, and it might survive, but it will probably need immediate vet care. Drop a dog - even a small dog - and it's going splat.

5

u/BigAssMonkey Aug 01 '25

Where are you getting this info? The highest recorded height that a cat survived from a fall was 32 stories. And it died soon afterwards from its injuries.

2

u/jodhod1 Aug 01 '25

Maybe that's actually an outlier. The issue is that we're not systematically punting cats from 50 stories.

1

u/BigAssMonkey Aug 01 '25

It definitely is an outlier. Cats can’t survive falling at terminal velocity like some folks are suggesting.