Bewilderbeasts tells the stories of animals at the intersection of humanity, like:

Goats were evicted from a national park for drinking human pee.

A parrot named Poll was kicked out of President Andrew Jackson's funeral. 

Racism in the 1800s still influences modern-day events by way of a Border collie in 2020 inheriting $5 million dollars

International tensions nearing a crisis point when Sweden assumed fish farts were Russian U-boats in the harbor

And more.

It's appropriate for children but also for the parents who have to listen to kids' podcasts because Melissa is a parent who has to listen to kid's podcasts, and was determined to make something for both demographics.

How Did BewilderBeasts Get Started? 

Bewilderbeasts came out of a 5-week class for kids in Somerville, MA during the COVID19 crisis. 

The city of Somerville, MA, and Somerville Media Center teamed up to give kids free programming during the summer when a normal summer was not in the realm of possibility. For parents looking for ways to keep kids busy but indoors, and for kids looking for things to do, this was a perfect way to help kids have access to programming they might not have had before. Parkour, music, dance, crafts, book clubs, cooking classes, coding and gaming classes, all brought to kids from professionals around Boston who wanted to help these kids. 

Melissa assumed she'd do just a week of talking about dogs because that's her real-life job, but after the kids said they wanted more, she volunteered the next 5 weeks to animal programming despite not having a plan of action. 

The five weeks, all available on YouTube became the foundation of BewilderBeasts. 

• How to train any animal in your home (guinea pigs, fish, cats, dogs, and kid brothers)

• Jobs animals do for humans (arson detection dogs, Croatian bomb bees)

• Jobs humans can do with / for animals (forensic veterinarians, researchers, dog trainers, and illustrators)

• Animal sports (snail racing, equestrian soccer, equestrian gymnastics)

• Animals who changed history (Mrs. O'Leary's cow, the asp who killed Cleopatra, Balto & Togo, Sgt. Stubby)

It was after the summer session that Melissa realized she loved teaching these kids - and the few curious adults who popped in from time to time - but that she was also finding the light in the dark. By researching these animals and their stories was therapeutic to Melissa, too.  It has given her a digestible task that has been inspiring her own curiosity and fascination with topics outside her wheelhouse. 

While BewilderBeasts was for kids during a crisis, it ended up helping Melissa and a few hundred families pivot in a pandemic, too. Proving yet again that animals really do more for us humans than we can ever thank them for.