A new video game teaches animal science before stepping into the field, or the barn.
Nicholas Free, An animal science student with Texas A & M University’s College Of Ag & Life Sciences developed the simulation to help introduce concepts of working with livestock before handling cattle in real-world scenarios.
The first part of CowSim is designed to teach the player how to behave in an open environment with cattle, the second section provides techniques needed for driving cattle into a production facility, and lastly, players lead the cattle through the facility with additional obstacles.
“Overall, I feel very comfortable saying that if a person – who has never had any interaction with livestock – were to play this game, they would have sufficient knowledge on how to handle them by the end of the game,” Free said. “I hope we can start the process of interactive learning through simulation and games as a model to be used in the education system.”
For more info, and to play the game, visit Free’s website.
