Curious Creatures

This past Friday there were animals, feathered, scaled and fluffy at the Museum courtesy of Curious Creatures.  Not only did visitors have the chance to see the animals and learn about them, but they also had a chance to pet the animals as well.  Some of the many awesome animals that were at the Museum were a skunk, boa constrictor, chinchilla, bearded dragons and a flying squirrel.  Everyone in the audience had a chance to touch the animals during the show as well as the chance to spend time with some of the animals after the show as well.  The children helped hold up the boa constrictor, played with a fluffy bunny and provided a perch for the parrot.

Animals from every continent but Antarctica were present at the Museum on Friday.

• Macaw's (parrot) can be found in South America.
• Flying Squirrels can be found in North and Central America.
• Alligator's can be found in North America and China.
• Chinchilla's can be found in the Andes mountains in Peru and Chile.
• Bearded Dragons can be found in central Australia.
• Boa Constrictors can be found in North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.
• Scorpions can be found on every continent besides Antarctica but are not native to the United Kingdom and New Zealand.
• Tarantula's can be found in the U.S., Mexico, South America, Africa, Australia and lower Asia.
• Tropical frogs can be found in Central and South America.
• Bunnies can be found in Southwestern Europe, Southeast Asial Africa, South America, Japan, Sumatra and in your own backyard.
• Tortoise's, Skunks and King Snakes can all be found in North America.

There was a lot of fun and educational information in the show on Friday.  In case you missed the event, here are some of the many fun facts that we learned about the many different animals present.

• A parrot’s jaw is so strong that it can break a human finger and crack open the hardest nuts.
• Parrot's lose feathers every day.
• Blue and gold Macaws from South America are as smart as a 3 year old. 
• Bearded Dragon's are shades of yellow and tan to camouflage themselves in their habitat, the desert.
• Bearded Dragon’s have no teeth and spike up when they feel threatened.
• Aside from crocodiles, alligators have the strongest jaws of any animal.
• Despite how hard a tortoise shell might seem, a jaguar can bite through it.
• Tortoise shells grow in rings from the cracks on their shells.
•  Skunks dig in the dirt for bugs to eat; the more bugs they eat the stinkier they get.
• After a skunk sprays it can’t spray for a week.

Is your child curious about lots of different creatures?  If they are, don’t be afraid to encourage their love for animals.  Share these fun facts with them, take them out to explore at the zoo or on a farm and take them to the library to find books that can teach them more about their favorite animals.

For some more photos from Curious Creatures you can check out the slideshow below.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Benefits of Pets for Kids

Are you debating whether or not you should get that new puppy? Or that kitten? Or any pet for that matter? Obviously this decision is difficult and based on many factors, and pets aren’t for every family. One of the main questions on every parent’s mind is, “will getting a pet be good for my kids or will it be a detriment to our family dynamics?” Well we’ve put together a list to help you answer this question. Though as we said before, pets are not for every family or child, in the right atmosphere they can be beneficial for children!

1. Responsibility: Perhaps the best thing a pet can teach your child is responsibility. Pets are dependent on their owners for survival. Having your children help take on the responsibility to feed, water, and exercise their pets teaches self discipline and develops children’s sense of nurturing. Furthermore, it teaches your children about commitment and consequences. Commitment comes with ownership. If you want a pet, you must take care of it. You are responsible for them for their entire life. If you can’t handle the commitment, you will lose your pet (either you’ll have to sell it or it will die).  Lastly, all actions have consequences. If you don’t feed your fish, it will die. If you leave the gate open, the dog can run away. Children will begin to learn to think before they do. All of these are great skills to have for life.

2. Learning: Pets actually help kids learn! Aside from learning responsibility and how to take care of something, kids can learn a bunch from their pets! With pets, your children will learn both verbal and non-verbal communication skills. Through commands they learn how to be assertive with their voice. Through interacting with their animals, they will learn how to read cues because clearly animals can’t talk. Furthermore, being with animals can help ease stress and help sustain focus, this can help when doing homework and in learning other things! Finally, pets can teach your child about bigger life ideas such as unconditional love and the circle of life (humans almost always outlive their pets).

 3. Fun, Entertainment & Physical Activity:  Having a playful pet around can entertain your children for hours. Not only does this give you a break, but it is a much better alternative than them watching television! Additionally, for pets that need exercise, caring for pets is a great way to keep your  children active.

4. Allergens! This item on the list was new to me. When doing research for this post we stumbled upon this website: http://voices.yahoo.com/10-reasons-kids-pet-8288127.html?cat=25. They explained that, “Doctors used to think that exposure to pets caused allergies. New studies have now shown that the opposite is actually true. Web MD reports that children who live with dogs and cats in the house during their first year actually have a reduced risk of developing allergies. Not only are they less likely to react to pet dander, but the protection also seems to extend to outdoor allergens as well. The theory behind this protection is that the high exposure to pet dander allows the immune system to de-sensitize to harmless antigens, leaving it less likely to react inappropriately.”

5. Built-in-friend: This last benefit is dedicated to all the pets who stuck by their humans through thick and thin. Not only is this just for your kids but for you as well. When your kids or yourself feel lonely, stressed, anxious or anything else, a pet is always there to comfort you and give you love and support. They don’t say much, but just a nuzzle, hug, or pat can do wonders for your mood

     To go along with our “pets are good for you” theme, we spoke to Dawn Cordeiro of Farm Visits. Her business brings baby farm animals to you for any occasion and provides a hands on experience with them. 

Dawn supports us and says that interactions with animals “teach kindness and compassion.” “I think overall it teaches them responsibility, you know? To care for another living being.” She expands to talking about farm animals and says that they teach children about “where their food comes from. Children [and people in general] are very distanced from their food origin. It really comes from a farm, not Stop & Shop.”

We next asked Dawn her expert opinion on what makes a good pet and she listed three right off the bat: “Dog, kitty, bunny.” Those aren’t a surprise to hear, but the next thing she says may be! Dawn says that as far as outdoor pets go, goats are the way to go! She explains, “They’re friendly, easy to care for and feed, and they mow your lawn!”

To learn more about Dawn and Farm Visits,

 visit www.farm-visits.com !

Chinchillas and Bunnies and Frogs, Oh My!

The Children's Museum was thrilled to welcome Matt of Animal World Experience on Thursday. After several weeks of voting for our favorite animals, the votes were counted and Matt brought in the winners!

Including:
Rudy - A Chinchilla whose breed has become endangered because they have the softest fur in the world and have unfortunately been used for fur coats. This lucky chinchilla spends her days in a safe home, enjoying raisins.

Kiwi - An Australian White's Tree Frog whose slimy skin makes him hard to hang on to. He's a great jumper and climber and was happy to take a rest on the heads of a few volunteers at the Museum!

Peanut - A Guinea Pig who was dropped off at a pet store when her owner couldn't care for her anymore. Luckily she was taken in by Matt and his wife Melissa where she is a "chatterbox," squeaking and squealing her days away.

Scooter - An Alligator Snapping Turtle who took a bite out of some celery in front of his audience and cut just like a knife! Don't be fooled by his 2" long body at birth because Scooter may one day grow to weigh over 300 lbs!

Oreo - A Bunny that was found on a campground in Connecticut. She was not supposed to be let loose in the wild, so Matt spent 8 hours trying to coax her to come out from under a deck. He was successful and now Oreo spends her days munching on apples and helping Matt teach kids about responsible pet ownership.

Angel - Oreo's sister who is known as the "Queen of the House." She is a quirky little bunny who is litter box trained just like a cat.

Hulk - An Emperor Scorpion who is the 2nd largest kind of Scorpion in the world. When Matt shined a special flashlight on her she turned green! Hulk was cool to look at, but not to touch. From her sharp claws to her venomous tail, she's not as nice to pet as a Bunny!

Matt taught the children that welcoming a new pet into your home makes it a part of your family. It's important to never set your pet free in the wild if you can't care for it anymore. There are plenty of options for a shelter to keep them happy and healthy!

"We hope that through our animal presentations people will develop respect and awareness for animals of all kinds." - Matt and Melissa

Click here to learn more at Matt and Melissa's Website or Facebook Page!

-Kerri, PR Intern

Ahoy Mateys!

On Thursday, February 17th, the Children’s Museum hosted Awesome Robb’s very first Pirate Adventure! Robb took his young mateys on a journey from here to England, Hungary, and China. Some enthusiastic young pirates volunteered to help Robb overcome obstacles along the way, like finding his pirate flag and searching for treasure!

Here, special helper Rafaila helps Robb by naming some colors….

The children were even lucky enough to meet a special guest - a bunny named “Walk the Plank.”

Awesome Robb has been performing at the Children’s Museum for over five years, introducing new lessons and exciting magic to children of all ages.

“The Museum is one of my favorite places to perform. I always feel like I’m walking into a big room full of old friends. There are always great crowds and a festive atmosphere. It’s like a funhouse for kids!” – Robb

In case you missed Robb’s last performance, you can catch Awesome Robb's next Adventure on March 17^th as he hosts his “Go Green” show. He will use magic, puppetry, and storytelling to teach kids how to reduce, reuse, and recycle to keep our environment clean.

To book a show with Awesome Robb:

Call: 617.818.7484

Visit: http://www.awesomerobb.com/

-Kerri, PR Intern