This 93-Year-Old Inventor’s Robotic Companion Bird Is the Only Gadget That Should Ever Be Allowed to Tweet
Following robotic versions of cats and golden retriever puppies designed to provide companionship to seniors without all of the cleanup and demands of pet ownership, Ageless Innovation’s Joy For All line is introducing a new animatronic bird designed to perch on a walker to help motivate older adults to embrace their mobility aids.
The idea for the Walker Squawker (yes, that’s what it’s actually called) is credited to 93-year-old Rita Melone who, after 90 years of getting around on her own, found it challenging to adapt to a walker, and to remember to actually use it whenever she got up. But instead of constant reminders from a nurse or other caregiver which could create negative associations to a mobility aid, the Walker Squawker seems like a fun and innocuous way to passively encourage walker use because its animated movements are designed to emulate a real bird— a species which, as far as we know, doesn’t spend a lot of its time judging humanity.
