Archive for the ‘beyond the yard’ Category

A few weeks ago Device Magazine posed an interesting question; does the Xbox 360 Kinect game, Kinectimals, send the wrong message to children about interacting with wild animals? The game lets players interact with virtual big cats, but unlike their real world counterparts these little creatures are Disneyifed. The Asiatic Cheetah cubs and Bornean Clouded Leopard kits are more than happy to come running to the front of the screen when they hear your voice, mimic your movements, jump around obstacle courses, and purr loudly when you virtually scratch behind their ears.

While I don’t think most of us have to worry about our children running up to a real African Lion on our day-to-day, I do wonder if the interactions the game teaches send the wrong message about how one should interact with any animal they aren’t familiar with. Watching the promo video for the game, I had visions of kids scampering up to strange dogs on the street and spinning around in circles expecting the pup to do the same only to get knocked over when the dog jumped on them – or worse. Am I being paranoid?

I’m not going to lie, I totally want to play this game, I just don’t know if I would let my kids.

With so many pet stories around the web each week it’s hard to keep up. Table Scraps is our weekly roundup of memorable pet news around the internet.

• Willie Nelson is seriously rad. Both horses and the Rolling Stones agree. (CMT News)
• Puppy sign language must be cute on a million levels. Imagine the “I love you” sign with a paw? (CBS News)
• Well, well gentlemen: It may be possible that by creating mouse sperm in a dish your own tiny swimmers get a second chance. (Nature News)
• I also believe that this sheep gave birth to this dog, but I also always vote with team “Dang, That’s Real Cute”.  (Jezebel)
• Smokey the Cat is ready to take on the Guinness World Record Book. May the purr be with you, friend. (NPR)
• So, for an entire day I honestly thought that a petite lap giraffe was an actual pet. I’m not proud…but I am disappointed. (Urlesque)

Image: tillwe

You might remember back in August, we posted news that the Yggdrasil Urban Wildlife Rescue Center — a wild animal shelter in Oakland that helps injured  squirrels, deer, possums, and other urban wildlife rehabilitate in a safe place — was facing eviction from its building and needed a new home. The good news is that it’s found a new property, in fact, one that’s just a few blocks down from its old digs. Donations from generous individuals and a grant helped during the transitional period, but the money is now running dry, and Yggdrasil will soon need more monetary help to move the animals, build new facilities and pens, and get the new Yggdrasil up and running. Read the rest of this entry »

If you live in Chicago and haven’t been to The Field Museum as of late, you’re missing out. Now through the middle of August an exhibit called, “The Horse” is up and open for viewing. The Windy City exhibit examines the relationship between equines and people and how our relationship has evolved throughout history. While you won’t see the statue above (but you can gallop over to Chicago’s Financial District to view it) you will get to see over 200 different breeds of horses and learn to appreciate exactly what it is about horses that have allowed us to rely on them for travel, agriculture, battle and as symbols of status. In addition, it’s a chance to learn more about equine therapy and what you can do to help protect horses in the wild today.

Just in case you need a reminder, The Field Museum is open every day (except Christmas) from 9am to 5pm, so mosey on over and let Pawesome know what you thought of the exhibit!

Image: John Picken