YouTuber Liam Thompson from Aukland, New Zealand, has amassed over 1.86 million subscribers making zany short videos. Often, the 21-year-old posts videos with his labradoodle Max and senior cat Frodo, who is 20 this year (2021).
For an example of Thompson’s cheerful videos, he once presented Max with a pile of a million pieces of dog food to mark reaching as many subscribers. In other viral videos, he taught Max to bow for and pet Frodo, the cat.
Liam Thompson Creates a Train for Frodo
When Frodo was 18, Thompson tried to make life easier for him as he was slowing down. So, he created a train “public transport system” since “he hates walking.” Prior efforts involved turning a Roomba into a platform for Frodo, but it wasn’t very efficient since it had a mind of its own. Then, the always imaginative Thompson devised a robotic system that followed a track of colorful tape.
Images: Screenshots via YouTube/Liam Thompson
The carriage was stationed at Frodo’s bed and followed three “rails” of differently-colored tape on the floor.
- A blue “rail” of tape went to Thompson’s room.
- The green rail went to Frodo’s food bowl.
- And the red rail went to the door outside.
“These are literally the only three places Frodo ever goes,” Thompson explains.
Previously, Thompson hand-constructed a wooden “carriage” to carry Frodo with style. To complete the look, he painted it a lovely royal purple for “his lordship.”
“Not perfectly straight but perfectly made from the heart,” he says.
After placing Frodo in his purple chariot, the train set out along the tape track.
“Be free!” Thompson said as Frodo calmly rode along at a slow pace. As if to humor his silly human, Frodo obliged with eating from his bowl upon arrival. Then, an overjoyed Thompson enjoys sweet success for his efforts.
See the video below:
Liam Thompson Builds an Elevator for Frodo
More recently, the New Zealander was back to inventing clever ways to help Frodo and humor his international fanbase. Now, Frodo is 20-years-old, “like Dumbledore/Gandalf territory,” he says.
Frodo and his sunny spot
Every day, the orange kitty is in the habit of going down a steep stairway. From there, the cat goes to his favorite area beside the pool to sun himself as he takes a nap. So, Thompson set out to help Frodo get safely down the stairs.
Once again, an exuberant Thompson is back to wood construction, this time incorporating sliding door rails and an electric hoist mechanism. After improvising a roughed-out prototype, he sets out to perfect it, especially the safety of the design.
After days of safety testing with Jimbo, the stuffed animal, sanding, and painting (with blue paint this time), he’s got a usable “elevator” for Frodo to try. Sure enough, it works like a charm.
After the kitty rides slowly to the bottom, he exits his blue cart and once again humors Thompson, going straight to his favorite poolside sunning spot.
“This is the greatest day of my life!” says an ecstatic Thompson. “If you ask me, my friends, that is a great success.”
Next, Frodo returns for his trip back up, and his servant is waiting excitedly to operate the elevator.
“I am absolutely fizzing right now,” says a very pleased Thomspon.
Now, if only he had a robot lift attendant, always at the ready! Oh well, it’s all in fun, and these two are having plenty of it. We all enjoyed going along for the cute ride with Frodo.
See Frodo’s elevator:
