sewasdee, spot!

this is hardly breaking news, but seems worth noting in this space. a thai dog groomer has started Dog Radio Thailand - a web-based radio station for dogs. His reasoning - music puts dogs into better moods. and apparently contemporary thai pop music is especially soothing for our canine friends.

this doesn't really seem like rocket science - when i spent a lot of time with horses the same theory held true (though not about thai pop music. looking back though i'm not sure the classic rock station that was always playing at the barn where i rode was actually very beneficial. a horse can only hear 'hotel california' so many times before developing an attitude problem, i'd wager.) and there have been hundreds of studies at all levels of scientific research exploring the notion that classical music helps plants grow faster. and to go ahead and state the obvious - we humans tend to gravitate toward musical sources as well, and they often make us very happy.

so obviously DRT is hardly a ground-breaking new innovation in the world of pet psychology or social engineering. in fact for now it's basically a thai pop station on the web with the added benefit that around 9 am the thai word for hello, "sewasdee," is repeated over and over. other programs are in development, some of which will have djs talking to their dog-audience. for now, if you're curious about the pop scene in thailand here's as good a place as any to eavesdrop and hear for yourself. and you just imagine all the thai pooches out there who're listening at the same time. all those wagging tails...