"Idle hands are the devil's tools." Chaucer must have owned a cat. As I sit here typing, my own tailed mischief maker is running about in that crazed state all cat owners are acquainted with at one time or another, touching anything and everything at lightspeed.
Cats are prone to be at their worst behaviour when bored (I share the same trait). So its important as a pet owner to provide attention and affection when at home, but also provide means of play and stimulation when you're away doing those trivial bipedal activities which our feline friends think wastes valuable "me! me!" time.
They're called "kitty rips" when they go racing around like that.
My roommates dog used to do it; I called them "pug sprints!"
I miss my fellow Angelenos! Since the launch party, I've moved to Houston...
My cat refuses to play with this thing! I've had it for over a year, but the only way she'll play with it is if I put food in there.
When our kittens, StopThat and his brother, NoDamnit, get to going, we call it a Wallenda, as in flying Wallenda. Half Wallenda is not too bad but a full Wallenda often involves the sound of breaking glass. This toy looks cute but ... perhaps not equal to the boys.
How funny, I've always called that crazy behavior the "zoomies" for both cats and dogs.
We refer to the crazed cat state as "cuckoo-bananas". We always get a kick out of seeing their tails poofed up in excitement...the show in our living room is always better than the ones on TV :D
I once heard someone call it "cat rodeo" and that's what I've called it ever since
My mother's miniature poodle absolutely adores this. He likes to fetch some of his small balls (raquetball size) and drop them in the holes & try to figure out how to get them out. A golf ball is great as it's a little heavier and he has a little harder time getting it out. Even better is a small ball that makes noise or light when rolling around. The box itself is too heavy for him to lift/tilt over, although he can push it around a bit on the carpet.