title checks out
Well, what can I say?
Just when you think you’ve seen everything, here’s a shaved watermelon…
It appears to be trying to remove detergent that someone has squirted on it. Rather cruel.
Bubblecar said:
It appears to be trying to remove detergent that someone has squirted on it. Rather cruel.
Posibly. But how and why is it standing upright, quite still?
It’s always cute when animals immitate humans. More so in this case because the rat has a reputation for being unclean. In the TV series “72 cutest animals” the rat was placed at position 72.
dv said:
Bubblecar said:
It appears to be trying to remove detergent that someone has squirted on it. Rather cruel.
Posibly. But how and why is it standing upright, quite still?
Didn’t you have pet rats as a child?
Damn I thought the Russians might have released the video of Trump.
Peak Warming Man said:
Damn I thought the Russians might have released the video of Trump.
*snort *
kii said:
dv said:
Bubblecar said:
It appears to be trying to remove detergent that someone has squirted on it. Rather cruel.
Posibly. But how and why is it standing upright, quite still?
Didn’t you have pet rats as a child?
That would be a no.
people go mad for the water rats at the zoo.. and yet, if I were to put a rat in their handbags suddenly I’m the bad guy
Arts said:
people go mad for the water rats at the zoo.. and yet, if I were to put a rat in their handbags suddenly I’m the bad guy
Where did you find a zoo with water rats? And are we talking European voles or Australian rakali?
mollwollfumble said:
Arts said:
people go mad for the water rats at the zoo.. and yet, if I were to put a rat in their handbags suddenly I’m the bad guy
Where did you find a zoo with water rats? And are we talking European voles or Australian rakali?
the zoo I volunteer at has water rats – rakali
Hydromys chrysogaster
kii said:
dv said:
Bubblecar said:
It appears to be trying to remove detergent that someone has squirted on it. Rather cruel.
Posibly. But how and why is it standing upright, quite still?
Didn’t you have pet rats as a child?
Loouxury!
Hey Arts, talking about Zoos and such, does your zoo have and special stuff in place for people with sub-optimal vision? I’ve got a mate who is rapidly going blind – came home from his last visit to the Melbourne zoo with his head fizzing with ideas.
Rule 303 said:
Hey Arts, talking about Zoos and such, does your zoo have and special stuff in place for people with sub-optimal vision? I’ve got a mate who is rapidly going blind – came home from his last visit to the Melbourne zoo with his head fizzing with ideas.
we have elephants and rhinos…
seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.
Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:
Hey Arts, talking about Zoos and such, does your zoo have and special stuff in place for people with sub-optimal vision? I’ve got a mate who is rapidly going blind – came home from his last visit to the Melbourne zoo with his head fizzing with ideas.
we have elephants and rhinos…
seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
Get three blind people to touch different parts of an elephant and ask them what animal is it
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:
Hey Arts, talking about Zoos and such, does your zoo have and special stuff in place for people with sub-optimal vision? I’ve got a mate who is rapidly going blind – came home from his last visit to the Melbourne zoo with his head fizzing with ideas.
we have elephants and rhinos…
seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
In Europe I saw perfume gardens. The plants were arranged so their perfumes led people around.
There isn’t really much you could do for blind people at the zoo, I mean it’s primarily a visual experience. The other senses not so much, they could hear the gibbons I suppose, and maybe touch a few cute/non-bitey animals. Apart from that maybe they could smell small piles of shit from various animals.
Tamb said:
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:
Hey Arts, talking about Zoos and such, does your zoo have and special stuff in place for people with sub-optimal vision? I’ve got a mate who is rapidly going blind – came home from his last visit to the Melbourne zoo with his head fizzing with ideas.
we have elephants and rhinos…
seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
In Europe I saw perfume gardens. The plants were arranged so their perfumes led people around.
that is pretty groovy. Our gardens are ‘arranged’ by section.. so there are mostly asian jungle plants in the asian section, african plants in the african section etc of course, the original founder of the zoo was mad for palm trees and had all his mates send seed which he cultivated, so sometimes you have a weird palms tree in among the ‘area’ plantings, but for history’s sake they remain, along with some of the massive kick ass trees planted where removal would be a really stupid idea.
The ferret likes showers she has a shower with me and I give her a wash at the same time
Arts said:
seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
Holding sounds like a great idea!
He came up with a range of stuff:
High-contrast path edgings and signage
Audio information
Strobe light / audio emergency systems that show direction to exit
Low-vision visitor centre within the zoo
His vision is currently OK for independent living, but he walked into a ‘prohibited’ area because he couldn’t read the sign. That started him thinking about emergency / evacuation procedures, the influence of Type II Diabetes on the design of public spaces… and so on.
Tamb said:
In Europe I saw perfume gardens. The plants were arranged so their perfumes led people around.
Yeah wow. That’s pretty interesting.
party_pants said:
There isn’t really much you could do for blind people at the zoo, I mean it’s primarily a visual experience. The other senses not so much, they could hear the gibbons I suppose, and maybe touch a few cute/non-bitey animals. Apart from that maybe they could smell small piles of shit from various animals.
There’s a broad range of vision between ‘normal’ and ‘blind’.
Rule 303 said:
Arts said:seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
Holding sounds like a great idea!
He came up with a range of stuff:
High-contrast path edgings and signage
Audio information
Strobe light / audio emergency systems that show direction to exit
Low-vision visitor centre within the zooHis vision is currently OK for independent living, but he walked into a ‘prohibited’ area because he couldn’t read the sign. That started him thinking about emergency / evacuation procedures, the influence of Type II Diabetes on the design of public spaces… and so on.
actually we do have some audio information running at certain stations. The giraffe hut, and a couple of stations around the zoo with various audio (along with accompanying visual) information. I will try to remember to go into one and close my eyes and see if the audio is stand alone.
We also have an area where you can touch some of the daily things used for animal care (like behaviour enrichment activities) and there are smell boxes there too (with scents that we would use for behaviour enrichment – including a poo smell)
The paths are generally set for an immersion experience, but we do have docents there every day, so guiding is possible.
And there are many display areas around the zoo that can be used by the vision impaired. For example – we have models of animals set around the place (like the komodo dragon, Galapagos tortoises, asian otters etc) , models of hands of the orang utans for comparison, stuff like that.
we also have ‘touch tables’ where there are animal furs, skulls, various other artifacts that visitors can actually hold.
on thinking about it For a visual impaired experience I actually think we are doing ok
I have led around a completely blind person before and did a lot of descriptive things, we had an experience where they got to hold a bobtail, touch an echindna and wallaby etc… It takes a lot of preplanning to bring in a guide dog and there are certain areas they can’t go into, but it’s been done before and is not impossible.
I’d like to see some sort of headset that narrates signage as well… not just for the visually impaired, but in different languages too.. but that all costs money and repairs etc
I mean rats sometimes go half-upright to grab something or fight, with their tail behind them for balance, but a) it’s not bolt upright like this and b) their tail would go out behind them for balance and c) it’s only for short periods and d) they are constantly bobbing and weaving. They don’t just stand upright like a soldier at attention for long periods.
And look at its head … is this even a rat?
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:
Arts said:seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
Holding sounds like a great idea!
He came up with a range of stuff:
High-contrast path edgings and signage
Audio information
Strobe light / audio emergency systems that show direction to exit
Low-vision visitor centre within the zooHis vision is currently OK for independent living, but he walked into a ‘prohibited’ area because he couldn’t read the sign. That started him thinking about emergency / evacuation procedures, the influence of Type II Diabetes on the design of public spaces… and so on.
actually we do have some audio information running at certain stations. The giraffe hut, and a couple of stations around the zoo with various audio (along with accompanying visual) information. I will try to remember to go into one and close my eyes and see if the audio is stand alone.
We also have an area where you can touch some of the daily things used for animal care (like behaviour enrichment activities) and there are smell boxes there too (with scents that we would use for behaviour enrichment – including a poo smell)The paths are generally set for an immersion experience, but we do have docents there every day, so guiding is possible.
And there are many display areas around the zoo that can be used by the vision impaired. For example – we have models of animals set around the place (like the komodo dragon, Galapagos tortoises, asian otters etc) , models of hands of the orang utans for comparison, stuff like that.
we also have ‘touch tables’ where there are animal furs, skulls, various other artifacts that visitors can actually hold.
on thinking about it For a visual impaired experience I actually think we are doing ok
I have led around a completely blind person before and did a lot of descriptive things, we had an experience where they got to hold a bobtail, touch an echindna and wallaby etc… It takes a lot of preplanning to bring in a guide dog and there are certain areas they can’t go into, but it’s been done before and is not impossible.
I’d like to see some sort of headset that narrates signage as well… not just for the visually impaired, but in different languages too.. but that all costs money and repairs etc
Had a quick look and it appears that Google translates signs in English to other languages
mollwollfumble said:
Arts said:
people go mad for the water rats at the zoo.. and yet, if I were to put a rat in their handbags suddenly I’m the bad guy
Where did you find a zoo with water rats? And are we talking European voles or Australian rakali?
I’ve seen native water rats at Dubbo Zoo. They do not have their own display, but rather share the Spider Monkey mote with the turtles. I presume they can also be found throughout the rest of the zoo where there is water.
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:
Arts said:seriously though, I think the best we have is some braille on some of the signage (really only the more recent ones)
but I’d be interested to hear some ideas, because I know they would consider widening their visitor experiences.Also there are a couple of ‘experiences’ where you can hold/touch certain species.. but they are additional to just visiting and walking around the zoo
Holding sounds like a great idea!
He came up with a range of stuff:
High-contrast path edgings and signage
Audio information
Strobe light / audio emergency systems that show direction to exit
Low-vision visitor centre within the zooHis vision is currently OK for independent living, but he walked into a ‘prohibited’ area because he couldn’t read the sign. That started him thinking about emergency / evacuation procedures, the influence of Type II Diabetes on the design of public spaces… and so on.
actually we do have some audio information running at certain stations. The giraffe hut, and a couple of stations around the zoo with various audio (along with accompanying visual) information. I will try to remember to go into one and close my eyes and see if the audio is stand alone.
We also have an area where you can touch some of the daily things used for animal care (like behaviour enrichment activities) and there are smell boxes there too (with scents that we would use for behaviour enrichment – including a poo smell)The paths are generally set for an immersion experience, but we do have docents there every day, so guiding is possible.
And there are many display areas around the zoo that can be used by the vision impaired. For example – we have models of animals set around the place (like the komodo dragon, Galapagos tortoises, asian otters etc) , models of hands of the orang utans for comparison, stuff like that.
we also have ‘touch tables’ where there are animal furs, skulls, various other artifacts that visitors can actually hold.
on thinking about it For a visual impaired experience I actually think we are doing ok
I have led around a completely blind person before and did a lot of descriptive things, we had an experience where they got to hold a bobtail, touch an echindna and wallaby etc… It takes a lot of preplanning to bring in a guide dog and there are certain areas they can’t go into, but it’s been done before and is not impossible.
I’d like to see some sort of headset that narrates signage as well… not just for the visually impaired, but in different languages too.. but that all costs money and repairs etc
Sounds good. I’ve used the headset things for guided tours through art exhibitions and such. They seem to be triggered by proximity to a sensor, or something.
Just to (maybe) provoke you with his thinking, how would you evacuate the zoo (including the low-vision people) if you needed to?
dv said:
I mean rats sometimes go half-upright to grab something or fight, with their tail behind them for balance, but a) it’s not bolt upright like this and b) their tail would go out behind them for balance and c) it’s only for short periods and d) they are constantly bobbing and weaving. They don’t just stand upright like a soldier at attention for long periods.And look at its head … is this even a rat?
It’s Bill Oddie in a Rat suit…
dv said:
I mean rats sometimes go half-upright to grab something or fight, with their tail behind them for balance, but a) it’s not bolt upright like this and b) their tail would go out behind them for balance and c) it’s only for short periods and d) they are constantly bobbing and weaving. They don’t just stand upright like a soldier at attention for long periods.And look at its head … is this even a rat?
and e) normally when cleaning themselves rats will use their tongue. Though I suppose the taste of the surfactant may inhibit that in this case.
Rule 303 said:
Just to (maybe) provoke you with his thinking, how would you evacuate the zoo (including the low-vision people) if you needed to?
we have safe houses around the zoo that can be locked in the event of a code. we also have many gates (points of exit) that we know the exit code to. Depending on the code, we are told to gather who we can and either direct to safe house and lock up or direct to exit gate (area). I don’t recall any specific instruction for low vision, but we are told to consider those with disability – but I suspect that they (VI) would ‘a. not be alone and/or b. would speak up where the guide can help.
the zoo is a 41 acre area, with a lot of ‘off display’ areas… I can’t think of a scenario where we would have to immediately evacuate the whole place. Also we keep radio contact with all staff.
any more suggestions?
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:Just to (maybe) provoke you with his thinking, how would you evacuate the zoo (including the low-vision people) if you needed to?
we have safe houses around the zoo that can be locked in the event of a code. we also have many gates (points of exit) that we know the exit code to. Depending on the code, we are told to gather who we can and either direct to safe house and lock up or direct to exit gate (area). I don’t recall any specific instruction for low vision, but we are told to consider those with disability – but I suspect that they (VI) would ‘a. not be alone and/or b. would speak up where the guide can help.
the zoo is a 41 acre area, with a lot of ‘off display’ areas… I can’t think of a scenario where we would have to immediately evacuate the whole place. Also we keep radio contact with all staff.any more suggestions?
Could the primates help to evacuate people possibly wearing butler costumes and giving directions in a posh English accent “I say sir would you terribly mind heading towards that exit, what not”
Cymek said:
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:Just to (maybe) provoke you with his thinking, how would you evacuate the zoo (including the low-vision people) if you needed to?
we have safe houses around the zoo that can be locked in the event of a code. we also have many gates (points of exit) that we know the exit code to. Depending on the code, we are told to gather who we can and either direct to safe house and lock up or direct to exit gate (area). I don’t recall any specific instruction for low vision, but we are told to consider those with disability – but I suspect that they (VI) would ‘a. not be alone and/or b. would speak up where the guide can help.
the zoo is a 41 acre area, with a lot of ‘off display’ areas… I can’t think of a scenario where we would have to immediately evacuate the whole place. Also we keep radio contact with all staff.any more suggestions?
Could the primates help to evacuate people possibly wearing butler costumes and giving directions in a posh English accent “I say sir would you terribly mind heading towards that exit, what not”
Some of the primates can do that
dv said:
Cymek said:
Arts said:we have safe houses around the zoo that can be locked in the event of a code. we also have many gates (points of exit) that we know the exit code to. Depending on the code, we are told to gather who we can and either direct to safe house and lock up or direct to exit gate (area). I don’t recall any specific instruction for low vision, but we are told to consider those with disability – but I suspect that they (VI) would ‘a. not be alone and/or b. would speak up where the guide can help.
the zoo is a 41 acre area, with a lot of ‘off display’ areas… I can’t think of a scenario where we would have to immediately evacuate the whole place. Also we keep radio contact with all staff.any more suggestions?
Could the primates help to evacuate people possibly wearing butler costumes and giving directions in a posh English accent “I say sir would you terribly mind heading towards that exit, what not”
Some of the primates can do that
That is true, the non human kind to be precise
ok I went searching.. it’s apparently a pacarana, according to this http://www.newsweek.com/viral-shower-rat-video-not-what-we-think-starters-its-not-rat-794526
http://www.newsweek.com/viral-shower-rat-video-not-what-we-think-starters-its-not-rat-794526
The latest viral sensation is a double-misnomer: “Shower Rat” is not taking a shower, and it’s not a rat.The video, which comes from Peru, features some sort of rodent covered in suds, rubbing its body like one would to lather soap in the shower. As much as it is interesting to watch a “rat” act like a human, that’s not what’s happening.
First, rodents don’t need to use soap. In fact, rat enthusiasts are concerned for the welfare of the animal: rats clean themselves by licking, so pouring soap on a rat isn’t good for them. The animal doesn’t appear to be being rinsed off, either, just soaped-up, as Gizmodo points out.
Keep Up With This Story And More By Subscribing Now
Furthermore, the animal is definitely not a rat. It’s a pacarana, a different type of brown rodent from South America.
“With the large head size, bipedal position, flexible forelimbs, short stiff tail, and consistent coat color…this animal fits the ID of a pacarana,” Dallas Krentzel, an evolutionary biologist who studies rodent diversity at the University of Chicago at the Field Museum, told Newsweek.
“There is just no other rodent that would fit all of those features, and the fact that this video was taken in Peru where pacaranas are known just seals the deal.”
“Both pacas and pacaranas are some of my favorite species for how weird they are, so I took notice of this post today,” Krentzel said. As he explains, pacarana are arboreal, meaning their habitats are in trees. Pacaranas are also fairly comfortable standing on their hind legs, and many online videos of pacaranas show the rodents in upright stances.
That stance made it a star in the “shower rat” video. “It makes sense that this animal could wash itself like a human because it needs that forelimb mobility for foraging and food processing,” said Krentzel.
The animal in the video, standing next to a drain, is larger than a rat and has a very large face. Also unlike rats, it doesn’t have a long, snake-like tail.
In short, this is a young pacarana that someone covered with soap, which it’s trying to get rid of in the video. It’s interesting to look at as it sits on its hind legs, but Krentzel notes that this kind of washing isn’t natural for it. Rather, it’s unsafe and potentially inhumane.
Arts said:
ok I went searching.. it’s apparently a pacarana, according to this http://www.newsweek.com/viral-shower-rat-video-not-what-we-think-starters-its-not-rat-794526
The eight second legend.
Arts said:
ok I went searching.. it’s apparently a pacarana, according to this http://www.newsweek.com/viral-shower-rat-video-not-what-we-think-starters-its-not-rat-794526
last paragraph “In short, this is a young pacarana that someone covered with soap, which it’s trying to get rid of in the video. It’s interesting to look at as it sits on its hind legs, but Krentzel notes that this kind of washing isn’t natural for it. Rather, it’s unsafe and potentially inhumane.”
Arts said:
Rule 303 said:Just to (maybe) provoke you with his thinking, how would you evacuate the zoo (including the low-vision people) if you needed to?
we have safe houses around the zoo that can be locked in the event of a code. we also have many gates (points of exit) that we know the exit code to. Depending on the code, we are told to gather who we can and either direct to safe house and lock up or direct to exit gate (area). I don’t recall any specific instruction for low vision, but we are told to consider those with disability – but I suspect that they (VI) would ‘a. not be alone and/or b. would speak up where the guide can help.
the zoo is a 41 acre area, with a lot of ‘off display’ areas… I can’t think of a scenario where we would have to immediately evacuate the whole place. Also we keep radio contact with all staff.any more suggestions?
Not really. There’s certain colour combinations that don’t work for people with sub-optimal colour vision, and colour-coding things doesn’t usually work for them…
I suggested he needs to find out whether low vision is a design consideration for public spaces. I don’t know whether the issues of an aging population (and TII Diabetes and such) are making a difference to the rates of VI in the community, but I definitively reckon it’s worth considering.
Next: a cat masturbating, which turns out to be a skunk removing shotgun pellets from its groin.
Bubblecar said:
Next: a cat masturbating, which turns out to be a skunk removing shotgun pellets from its groin.
I laughed
dv said:
kii said:
dv said:Posibly. But how and why is it standing upright, quite still?
Didn’t you have pet rats as a child?
That would be a no.
Neither did I, but my best friend had 2 – Sebastiana and Coverly. We were involved in a rather insane adventure with those rats. It also included a washing machine, a female afghan hound, broken doors and dead mice.
Dale a tu cuerpo alegria Pacarana
Que tu cuerpo es pa’ darle alegria cosa buena
Dale a tu cuerpo alegria, Pacarana
E Pacarana
Ya reckon, if it’s real, that video might be in slo-mo?
Let’s start gently. First off, it’s not a rat. The fact that shower rat has no tail is a massive clue, as well as the fact that it was filmed in Peru.
“With the large head size, bipedal position, flexible forelimbs, short stiff tail, and consistent coat color… this animal fits the ID of a pacarana,” Dallas Krentzel, an evolutionary biologist, told Newsweek.
The way the animal is standing also fits with a pacarana, a native rodent of South America.
Now for the hard bit – it’s also probably not enjoying a shower. It’s most likely trying to get an irritant off its body, whether it’s soap or something else.
“A rat wouldn’t do that unless there’s something it really wants to get rid of. I think it’s soapy all over,” Tuomas Aivelo, a biologist at the University of Helsinki, told Gizmodo.
“That’s probably a problem for the rat. It just wants to get rid of the soap.”
We’re not sure how it got the soap on itself. Maybe it slipped on the soap, fell into the sink and in its haste to get the soap off it accidentally started lathering itself up. Or maybe the soap was placed on the animal.
“My guess is that someone soaped up that rat,” Associate Professor Jason Munshi-South told Gizmodo. Poor little thing.
Gizmodo asked Aivelo if the rat was in pain.
“It’s totally possible,” he replied, because 2018 is awful. http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/theres-something-you-need-to-know-about-shower-rat-the-rat-who-loves-taking-showers/
