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Pet stress patch clues you in on Fido's emotional health
Let's face it, being a pet in the modern era is pretty tough -- our furry friends live under constant surveillance and face crippling self-esteem issues brought on by a society hell-bent on upgrading them, and even replacing them outright with videogames and robots. Adding to the list of products designed to relieve Fluffy from these terrible burdens, Japanese outfit Medical Life Care Giken claims to have invented a patch to measure the stress level of cats and dogs. Based on studies linking sweat production to stress, the pin-sized patch goes on your pet's paw and changes color based on how much sweat it detects, allowing you to schedule doggie-therapy sessions accordingly. While we're not certain why it took a multi-year partnership with researchers at Toyama University to develop a sweat-powered animal mood ring, we only hope that Giken is hard at work on the fish and turtle versions of this patch -- it's been looking mighty tense in that tank.[Via MedLaunches]
13.6 million Nintendogs are being neglected right now
Want to know the real reason why Nintendogs is one of the most "important" games? Because everybody has it. Nintendo is reporting that 13.6 million copies of the game have been sold worldwide. Compare that to Brain Age and its sequel, which sold a combined 12 million copies. We knew Nintendogs was massive, but we kind of didn't realize how massive. As we alluded to in the title, we wonder how many of those copies are still getting daily use.Another interesting tidbit from the financial report: Nintendo made 2.1 billion yen (about $17.5 million) last year from their non-video-game products, including playing cards. And before you ask, they probably did count Nintendogs as a video game.
Games blamed for decline in Aussie pet ownership
As a medium, video games have been blamed for a whole host of society's ills. Violence, obesity, and educational underachievement are just some of the high profile problems that have been laid on gaming's doorstep at one time or another. But now, video games are being portrayed as the cause of a much graver threat; namely, the decline in Australian pet ownership. As Australian Veterinary Association President Kersti Seksel told the Sydney Morning Herald (and any other outlet that would listen) today's kids "interact more by playing computer games and less by going out there and throwing the ball to a dog." Why is this a problem, exactly? According to Seksel, "We need to learn people skills, physical skills, and sitting in the lounge room with a computer doesn't teach you that." Leaving aside for a second the idea of learning "people skills" from playing with an animal, implying that game playing and pet ownership are somehow mutually exclusive is a little ridiculous. You might as well argue that reading books and talking on the phone are dangerous pastimes because they take away from time with poor, neglected Fido. Pet ownership usually takes up only a small part of a child's day, and singling out video games for distracting from that time strikes us as a little opportunistic. And while "you can't hug a computer," as the SMH article points out in the lede, you also don't have to take a computer out for walks. Man's best friend, indeed.
Assistance dogs relieve "ruff" times at the ATM
Throughout time, man's best friend has proven to possess an extraordinary capacity to provide helpful services. An unfortunate few become chauffeurs for lazy individuals, however many others provide invaluable aid to the disabled and wheelchair-bound. Assistance dogs have been known to perform tasks such as doing laundry and grocery shopping, but now they can totally rock the ATM as well. It all started with Endal, a ten-year-old Labrador Retriever assistance dog who took the liberty to nab his frustrated wheelchair-bound owner's card, money and receipt with his mouth -- a first for contributive canines. A charity that trains assistance dogs, Canine Partners, was quite inspired and has added an ATM regimen that teaches the helpful hounds to insert and remove cards, retrieve cash and receipts, and hand them to the owner who is responsible for entering their PIN number. Nothing in life is free, and a lot of stuff in life requires cash, therefore we can definitely conclude that this novel advancement is paws-down progressive.[Via Spluch]
Bio-Sense concocts bark-sensing alarm system: meet Doguard
We doubt inmates get the luxury of catching the latest episodes of Prison Break while under lock and key, but we also doubt they'd need a pre-fabbed drama to instill such thoughts in their brain. Bio-Sense Technologies has reportedly harnessed the power of software that "interprets barking" in order to alert humans sooner to when danger is approaching or something has gone awry. In tests performed by the firm, they found that in 350 various dogs, they all possessed a distinctive "alarm bark" that differed from any other yelp, and this distinction allows for an alarm system to be triggered whenever a canine unleashes said sound. Marketed primarily towards prisons and supply yards where intruders may often wander, the "Doguard" security system has been fairly successful since being installed in a high-security Israeli jail, and just a few false alarms have been set off thus far. Further improvements could actually monitor the dog's heart rate to further substantiate a true threat, and while the system can work when Rover's rolling solo, having multiple pups on guard tends to increase effectiveness. While we're not sure if these howling systems will ever make it into American joints, we hope none of you have to personally find out, anyway.
Chatterbowl: the talking dish for spoiled pets
We're not sure about this whole pet anxiety thing (our cats seem to do just fine without us, thanks), but apparently dogs are a different beast. With that in mind, an Arizona inventor has just announced the "Chatterbowl," a regular dog dish bowl (not at all like this one) that will let you record a message to comfort your dog (up to 10 seconds) every time he or she comes to grab a snack or get some water. The $20 bowl has been advertised on cable TV in Dallas and Houston for a few days now, but it will reportedly hit other markets across the US in the coming weeks. We're sure that once the MAKE folks get a hold of the Chatterbowl's electronics, they'll come up with something even more ridiculous.[Via Gizmag]
RoamEO GPS system tracks your pet
Apparently, keeping your pet indoors or ponying up for a fenced in a yard just isn't in style anymore, as the RoamEO GPS tracking system for pets joins the crowd of other locating devices, texting adornments, and inflatable collars that folks seem to prefer over the more traditional methods. This particular setup is geared to work on all roaming pets, but certainly has its limitations. While the GPS-enabled collar sends the exact location, movements, and velocity to your handheld tracking unit, your pet still turns MIA if it wanders more than a mile away. If you're fairly certain Fido isn't apt to stray all that far, you can setup a GPS fence that will send audible alerts if that perimeter is breached. This seems to be a decent system for multi-pet owners who have a tough time keeping things on a leash, as you can maintain a keen eye on three creatures simultaneously -- but it'll cost you $459 for the first one, and $149 for each additional collar. [Via The Raw Feed]
Rabid dogs feast on innocent electronic devices
Perhaps it's unfair to cast the canine in the role of the profusely slobbering, devil-eyed villain, but the gruesome fate that befell one man's DS Lite (yes, worse than a hinge cracking) certainly makes it seem as if the dog didn't care much for man's best electronic friend. Whether it was jealousy brought on by a cute Nintendogs puppy or simply the realization that glossy white plastic looks extremely delicious, the dog's actions were luckily undone by a call to Nintendo and a $50 repair fee. A few months back, a poor PSP experienced a similar gnashing, having been caught in the drooling mouth of an overly playful puppy. It's a grisly sight and serves as a warning to all those that would leave their precious electronics within jaw's reach. We're curious -- how many of you have come home to realize that your pet has somehow destroyed a piece of your gaming collection? And how many of you wuv your pets regardless of how many times they've chewed on your copy of Dead to Rights?[Via DS Fanboy]Read - DS Lite chew toyRead - PSP chew toy [Thanks, Weasler!]
Cats and dogs totally dig Macs
Christopher Phin over at his wildly optimistically named blog, Receding Hairline, has brought my attention to a brilliant Flickr group called "Cats love Macs." As the name implies, the photos all feature two elements: a cat and a Mac. With over 230 members, it's pretty clear that cats really do like Macs. There's plenty of space for canines in the similar group called "Dogs love Macs too!" Some highlights from the cat group include Mac owner's pets lounging on toasty iBooks and pawing at new MacBooks or even jumping on top of eMacs. Fortunately for the owners, no poo is involved at this point. Now, how about a "Humans love Macs" Flickr group?
Korean dog translation service gets premium upgrade
You probably thought it was pretty silly when you heard that Korea's second largest wireless carrier, KTF, began offering a service last year that can supposedly discern your dog's emotions from a few barks into the phone. Well the "doggy translation" service has proven so popular, that not only did the top Korean carrier roll out its own implementation, but SK Telecom is now offering a premium version of the service that seems to give users access to a sort of pet lovers' mobile community where they can query veterinarians, make a homepage for their little bundle of fur, or purchase pet-related items online at a discount. The core service will remain the same, continuing to offer two-way translation (yes, your voice can be converted into barks as well) for about 55 breeds of dogs, although cat lovers must continue to gauge their pet's mood by the intensity of his/her hissing and scratching.[Picture credit: Telecoms Korea]
