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posted by martyb on Monday June 24 2019, @06:23AM   Printer-friendly
from the not-to-be-confused-with-Reindeer-yogurt dept.

Move Over, Goat Yoga. Alaskans Now Have Reindeer Yoga

If you want to incorporate quality time with animals into your yoga practice, you have a lot of options these days. There's puppy yoga, cat yoga, and perhaps the most famous — goat yoga.

Now, in Fairbanks, Alaska, there's a new offering: a yoga class with fauna particular to the cold northern climes of the subarctic. Reindeer.

In a grassy pen at the Running Reindeer Ranch, adult and baby reindeer are milling around — grazing, nosing curiously at water bottles, and pawing yoga mats as people shake them out for class.

The air is buzzing with mosquitoes, and the sky is threatening rain, but a good two dozen or so people have shown up for this petting zoo and exercise experience.

"I've wanted to do goat yoga, but this is like one step up," says Tarah Hoxsie, one of the attendees. "This is like the ultimate, OK. So while everybody's doing goat yoga in the lower 48, we're doing reindeer yoga, which is way cooler."

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[Ed. Note: Yes, this story submission has nothing to do with STEM. But, it did give me a chuckle. And it reminded me of a quote by George Carlin “Think of how stupid the average person is, and realize half of them are stupider than that.” So it's good to be aware of what some people think is a "good idea(TM)" and have a good laugh once in a while, too.]


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  • (Score: 2) by tangomargarine on Monday June 24 2019, @06:02PM (5 children)

    by tangomargarine (667) on Monday June 24 2019, @06:02PM (#859433)

    Just read the goat yoga link [npr.org]. It explains what's going on.

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  • (Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday June 24 2019, @06:10PM (4 children)

    Thanks for the suggestion, but I already know more about this than I ever wanted to know.

    --
    No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
    • (Score: 2) by tangomargarine on Monday June 24 2019, @06:21PM (3 children)

      by tangomargarine (667) on Monday June 24 2019, @06:21PM (#859441)

      If you had read the article, it would've explained it has nothing to do with magical magnetism. Presumably it's more of a mental thing like hospital patients being cheered up by pets.

      The kids were ... adorable! As yoga instructor Janice Ingson deftly led us through various poses, the goats nuzzled us and nibbled on our clothes and belongings. One goat tried to eat a woman's ponytail, which was quickly discouraged because the goat could have given her a haircut.

      Ingson freely admits that the whole thing is a bit "preposterous." But she had a big grin even as she told her students, "There's a lot going on here. Can you bring your awareness back to your body?"

      Sorry, that's hard to do when you're surrounded by cute little kids.

      The article also points out that people who hang out with animals often say it makes them feel better. And how can you argue with that?

      But you "already knew all this" so don't let me get in the way of your making stuff up.

      --
      "Is that really true?" "I just spent the last hour telling you to think for yourself! Didn't you hear anything I said?"
      • (Score: 1, Offtopic) by NotSanguine on Monday June 24 2019, @06:56PM (2 children)

        But you "already knew all this" so don't let me get in the way of your making stuff up.

        Making stuff up? I absolutely made an attempt at humor, at the expense of the idiots who think they get something extra out of having animals around while they do yoga.

        Do you lack a sense of humor, have Poe's Law issues, or are you one of those idiots?

        Inquiring minds don't really care.

        --
        No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr
        • (Score: 2) by edIII on Monday June 24 2019, @09:45PM (1 child)

          by edIII (791) on Monday June 24 2019, @09:45PM (#859510)

          You should be fair here, and while I also laugh at the ridiculous pretentiousness of reindeer yoga being cooler, I also know there are clinically substantiated medical benefits to animals being a part of medicine.

          Years ago when I was hospitalized for a heart "event" there were specialized animals brought in specifically to spend time with patients. I was offered time with a golden lab that was pretty sweet. There really is loads of scientific data that show decreased blood pressure and heart rate, among other benefits, in response to petting animals.

          All of this being said, actually paying for yoga around animals for its coolness factor is still funny. Especially when they're apparently in "arms race" to do yoga with rare and/or deadly animals. I'll be impressed when the first class of aquatic yoga students survive a session in the river next to Hippos.

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          • (Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Monday June 24 2019, @10:05PM

            You should be fair here, and while I also laugh at the ridiculous pretentiousness of reindeer yoga being cooler, I also know there are clinically substantiated medical benefits to animals being a part of medicine.

            Fair enough. And if that sort of thing can help folks, that's great.

            What's more, I never said that animals weren't useful in many ways.

            But what about the folks in hospital who are counting on me to provide them with humorous stuff to give *them* some medical benefits?

            Should I deprive them of the opportunity to use laughter as a path toward healing because some other folks have no sense of humor? You might as well be putting a gun to their heads and pulling the trigger.

            --
            No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr