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Traveling Exhibit

An exhibition that gives every dog (and cat!) its day!

Please note: This traveling exhibit is not for pets. The only animals allowed at the Science Center of Iowa are ADA compliant service animals. 

Show dogs or mutts, pure-breed cats or alley cats, guide dogs or search and rescue dogs...

They fill our homes, our streets, our imaginations, and even some phrases.

Cherished, feared, or ignored, they have been our companions for thousands of years. In fact, there are almost 420 million pets registered in North America, 81.5 million of which are dogs and 94.9 million are cats.

But what do we actually know about them? What are their emotions? How do they perceive the world? Do they understand us? This exhibition looks at recent findings by experts in animal behavior and gives us the chance to look at these animals from a whole new angle!

The Exhibition offers a sensory and interactive journey largely devoted to games and simulations: there is nothing better than putting yourself in an animal’s place to understand them better and decode their behavior.

Using colors, materials and selected furnishings, three different scenes are created, consisting of distinct environments that let visitors experience each universe.

IN THEIR SKIN. This is an active space where visitors compare their own physical skills to those of the animals, such as speed, agility and capacity to jump. They discover the different range of canine and feline body shape types and observe their characteristics.

IN THEIR HEADS. Plunged into a space decorated to put us on a level with the animals, visitors are invited to look, listen and feel like a dog or cat, with unusual immersive experiments. Understand how they communicate, interpret their emotions and decrypt their behavior.

IN OUR SOCIETY. Dogs and cats fill our homes, our streets and even our culture. This final section shows visitors the nature of our relationship with these animals over time, and the important role they play today in our society.

Exhibition designed and produced by Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie in partnership with the Adrienne and Pierre Sommer Foundation, the Foundation of France, the 30 Millions d’Amis foundation and Animalis.

Exhibition Sponsor

Kemin Industries 

Traveling Exhibits at SCI

SCI's traveling exhibits change regularly and engage visitors of all ages in a wide range of science topics.