 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
FooPets
Common Sense Media says
Virtual pet site almost worthless without paid membership.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that unless you want to pay $4.99 per month or $39.99 per year for a ClubFoo premium membership, this popular virtual world pet site has limited things for kids to do. Players can adopt adorable, amazingly true-to-life-looking dogs and cats, and play with and feed them. But the virtual world with social networking and lots of creative features (like "breeding" your pet with another to have a litter of puppies or kittens) can only be accessed with ClubFoo membership, and if you're under 13 with parental permission. Members can chat with other members and post comments and in the forums, not all of which are tween appropriate. Members also receive frequent emails urging them to log onto the site to care for the pet. This is not a kids-only site, so parents may want to check in often.
What kids can learn
Kids will learn about pet care in playful ways. They learn about responsibility to provide food, water, and play on schedule; there’s even a virtual kennel if kids will be away for a few days. Quality pet care earns all kinds of rewards and benefits. A store stocks sells practical and outlandish items to house and entertain pets. The site leans toward its currency, shopping, and socializing more than it delivers lessons about the real needs of cats and dogs.
Skills
- Thinking & Reasoning
- Creativity
- Self-Direction
- Emotional Development
- Communicationfriendship building
- Collaboration
- Responsibility & Ethicslearning from consequences, making wise decisions
- Tech Skills
- Health & Fitness
What's it about?
Once kids adopt and name a pet, they have a few tools to ensure it stays healthy. Pets must get food, water, and playtime about once every 24 hours and email reminders help kids stay on schedule. Arcade-style games earn FooDollars to use for food and other items at the store. Kids can add friends, play with their friends' pets, and even breed with other pets, provided the pets are old enough and the owners have the proper licensure. If kids catch their pet being adorable, they can take a photo and post it to a gallery or brag about it in the pet owners forum.
Is it any good?
The realistic images and engaging game play for these virtual pets is impressive, and it's easy for players -- kids, teens, and adults -- to be hooked by cuteness alone. The site, created by a vet, also presents good information about responsible pet ownership and the realities of pet care. But the heavy push to join the pay-to-play membership may cause many tweens to beg more than their virtual pets. Foo Pets also sends a lot of emails to the account with which players register for site access (which is supposed to be a parent account for kids under 13), including e-alerts to let you know if you haven't fed your pet or it otherwise needs some sort of care.
Online interaction: Opportunities to meet other Foo Pets owners and share pet care responsibilities if your child is 13 or older, or gets your permission, as well as play games and interact with other pet owners. Interaction is generally positive, but some mild name-calling happens in the forums.
Explore, discuss, enjoy
What features on a virtual world make it safer for kids? Check out Common Sense Media's guide to virtual worlds for young kids.
What is the difference is between a virtual pet and a real pet. Do you think a site like this makes kids more in tune to the needs of a real pet, or less so?
Like so many other websites, Foo Pets ties heavily into Facebook. Parents, if you don't already know how to use Facebook and if your tween or teen is on it, read Common Sense Media's Parents' Guide to Facebook and discuss what you learn about this site with your kids.
What kids can learn
Kids will learn about pet care in playful ways. They learn about responsibility to provide food, water, and play on schedule; there’s even a virtual kennel if kids will be away for a few days. Quality pet care earns all kinds of rewards and benefits. A store stocks sells practical and outlandish items to house and entertain pets. The site leans toward its currency, shopping, and socializing more than it delivers lessons about the real needs of cats and dogs.
Subjects
- Language & Reading:
- Math:
- Science:
- Social Studies:
- Arts:
- Hobbies: pets
Skills
- Thinking & Reasoning:
- Creativity:
- Self-Direction:
- Emotional Development:
- Communication: friendship building
- Collaboration:
- Responsibility & Ethics: learning from consequences, making wise decisions
- Tech Skills:
- Health & Fitness:
How kids will learn
FooPets uses consequences and rewards to teach responsible pet ownership. If they’re neglectful and forget to feed a pet, clean the litter box, or give flea medicine, it won’t play or it might get sick. If kids stay on top of their duties, they are rewarded with FooDollars, Bonding Badges, and advance to new levels. A monitored forum connects pet owners who want to discuss pets, sell items, breed, make suggestions, or just talk about important tween stuff -- relationships, celebrities, Twilight, and so on.
How parents can help
- Search HowStuffWorks for animal crafts you can do at home.
- Volunteer with your local SPCA. Kids under 14 may need a parent or guardian to volunteer with them.
- Show:
- All members
- Parents
- Teens & kids
Parent of 14 year old
November 24, 2010
AGE
Foopets borders on fraud and breaks children's hearts.
Anyone who lets their kids play on this site is a fool. You now have to pay money to play on here and their terms of service say that they can delete any content at any time. So basically, your kids pay for pets and items that can be deleted tomorrow. .............It is supposed to be for 13 and older only....but anyone who plays on this site is only getting ripped off......
The biggest problem is that they sell you pets and items for your pets that have a price. Then they have a marketplace where kids can trade things. That would be a great teaching tool if Foo didn't constantly change the rules.
One day my child bought a pet that cost 15.00 dollars (once converted to real money) and the next day foo changed the price of that pet to 5 dollars. My child was crying her eyes out.
Then they had a way for you to "earn" foogems so you can buy pets with them....after months of earning these gems foo suddenly and without any notice stopped the practice and now all her hard work was for nothing. She cannot get the pet she worked for because they yanked it from her.
Further, customer service on this site is downright abusive. They attack parents who complain and tell them repeatedly either to keep paying or shut up. And if you really complain loudly, they delete your account and keep all your child's pets and delete them all.
This site is a rip off.
Don't believe me? Here is a quote from their terms of service:
"FooMojo has the right to change, edit, modify, delete or discontinue (a) any feature, function, description, process, art, images, and / or format on FooPets (b) any part of all of FooPets website and/or applications, (c) restrict access to parts of all of FooPets at any time without notice. Simply put, we may change this site or delete content or features or any services provided in any way or any time and for any reason or no reason."
You would have to be a fool to give money to a site that claims they can keep your money and give you nothing in return any time they please.
Can anyone tell me if this is even legal?
Keep people away from this site!
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Teen, 13 years old
April 7, 2011
AGE
Nobody should go on this website, ever. It's a "money" site.
FooPets is the worst website you'll ever see. As of April 26th, 2011, you may not log on until you subscribe for ClubFoo, the membership of FooPets. This includes us loyal members who have been a part of this website for 1, 2, or even 3 years. FooPets is a suckish site, NOBODY should go on it. Don't let your kids on it either, the changers have gotten SO bad that everyone curses and talks sexually. Don't even TYPE FooPets for the sake of your own self. All they care about is MONEY.
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Parent of 10 year old
April 9, 2011
AGE
Foo Pet executives have again joined the ranks of corporate mentality. We are back to the "have" and the "have nots". After permitting children and youths to perhaps enjoy "playing" and "feeding" their "virtual" pets without paying any money these corporate bullies are taking away these kids "pets" because they do not have money as of April 26th 2011. Foo Pets always had "pay" things for those that had the money but now if you don't have any money you cannot have your pet anymore that you have diligently fed, watered, walked and played with for years. Shame on the Foo Pet money hungry corporation bullies.
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Teen, 15 years old
September 29, 2010
AGE
Very money hungry site that does not listen to feedback
The game is really fun but the lack of communication is irritating. The people who are running the site do not have consideration for its user's opinions. This site has become greedy and lame with all its ridiculous rules. I'd suggest not wasting your money on this site.
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Parent of 13 year old
December 14, 2010
AGE
I am a parent and I am appalled by this site. It is DANGEROUS for children and nothing but a rip off for adults. Recently the site had tripled the cost of membership...non refundable membership..and now gives you less and less for your money. If you are fool enough to take advantage of longer and cheaper options, you end up losing it all......................I have seen the adults tell children they are immoral and should not be allowed to roam society (and this by the employees on the site). Shocking! ..................There is rampant cursing on this site that easily gets around the computer sensors by using a space here and there. Employees are there when it is time to bash the children but strangely absent when it is time to protect them...............I read the terms of service to complain and discovered to my horror that it says they will give you nothing and keep your money if they want at any time. You have no right to complain about anything and you have no recourse. ..............................I feel like the world's largest fool for skipping that part when I signed on. Who would agree to just hand over money for a promise of nothing in return? Please don't fall into the trap I did. .................Did I mention that my 13 year old daughter cried her eyes out after one of the employees called her a thief? If I had the time to sue them for slander I would. It is not my daughter's fault if they don't know how to program their own site!
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Parent of 7 year old
September 5, 2010
AGE
RIPOFF !!!!!
You pay, pay, pay in real dollars for everything for the pretend pet, and if you forget to logon and take care of it, the website takes tha animal away from you, regardless of the fact that you still have months left that you paid for. Of course they want you to adopt another pet for your broken-hearted child. Spell this one RIPOFF!
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Adult
October 1, 2010
AGE
Just another greedy business that chose money over the customers who have to pay it
This site used to be fun. At first this company cared about their clients. Now it's just become like every other company, one who only cares about money. This game has virtual money called foodollars and without them, the game is next to pointless. There used to be easier ways to earn virtual money in this game. Fashion shows were one of them and they were my favorite feature about this site. You dressed up your pet and entered them and if they placed you won money. It was like that since they introduced it. Now you no longer win money but you still have to pay money for the clothes. That doesn't make any sense because fashion shows are the only thing clothes are good for. The shows were my only source of making money. This site just keeps getting worse. The users have multiple complaints and they don't care. They no longer listen. It used to be free to join and now you have to pay to join and you don't get your money's worth. Your paying more for a lot less. This site is full of restrictions so it's no longer fun to play the game. Parents, unless you want your kids to keep running back to you asking for your credit card don't waste your money on this game. Some kids have even taken their parents credit card without permission, but you can't really blame them. This site has taken away every source of making a decent amount of the virtual money in the game so the only option is to pay. Those kids wouldn't be reaching for their parents' wallets if this site didn't take away the ability for them to earn money in the game. Instead of learning how to earn money, kids are learning to keep asking mommy and daddy for their money, and when that doesn't work, they often try to scam people on the site in order to get it. That's not something I would want my kids to learn about and yet the site is making it so. We shouldn't have to CONSTANTLY pay more money to have fun we should be able to earn it. It used to be that you wouldn't need to invest more than $10 or $15 in this game. Now I wouldn't be surprised if some people have payed $60 or more on a dog or a cat that doesn't even exist.
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Parent
April 19, 2011
AGE
Run For The Hills!
They are positively abhorrent at customer service, completely ignoring their members' concerns. They are soon to become a pay to play only site, but they have consistently charged more money for features and items while consistently taking more and more features and items away. Granted, their pixel pets are as realistic as they get. Awesome, in fact. So much so, that people become emotionally attached to them. A phenomenon covered by FooMojo's ToS. And frankly, they use those pets as a means of emotional blackmail. Further, their forum moderators are not nice people and are extremely rude and condescending. Adults are treated like children and children are treated like refuse. Trust me, EVERY negative comment here is spot on. As of the 26th of April (2011), when the site becomes strictly pay to play, I predict an epic exodus from the site. Their numbers are already dropping. Many predict that the site is going to go down and no one from the company has bothered to effectively dispel that rumor. Moreover, except for their announcement of becoming pay to play only, they keep their members in the dark about every change and they change the site compulsively. Again, those changes almost always include revocations of features and items and an increase in what they charge for everything. Additionally, the site is completely unstable. Consistently glitches, "whites out," doesn't load, search features have not worked the entire two years I've been a member and way too much more to mention. I won't even go into the HORRIBLE lessons this site "teaches" children. Bah! Harsh words? You bet. But very, very true. And if you were to visit the FooPets forums right now, you would run for the hills. Honestly, do your research, you'll find that I am not exaggerating one little bit. Stay away, for your own personal health and well being and especially, the health and well being of your children.
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Parent of 8 and 10 year old
November 27, 2010
AGE
Foo should be shut down.
Im sorry but NEVER let your children on this site. Really you shouldnt even be on it. I used to be one of the adult users. The admin harass and abuse members as well as let other users do so as well. They do not protect your children's safety (I have since taken my children as well as myself off).
There were various instances or porn pictures posted, violent messages on forums and user walls, not always by users. And I have seen more then a few death threats get nothing more then a warning over and over again. The children are at a HUGE risk of harm. And the adults will be dumbfounded and filled with frustration over their treatment as well. AVOID THIS SITE AT ALL COSTS. And if you decide to join, PLEASE keep your children away. For their sake.
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Adult
April 21, 2011
AGE
I am a woman in her 30s without kids. This game is supposed to be for kids, but it teaches them to be puppy or kitten mills, Do you want your child to learn this mentality? Most of the paying members who stick around are actually adult women, so the site is very civilised where we congregate because we don't put up with nonsense. The site used to be a lot of fun, and completely free to play. But now it seems to be all about the money. I feel like we users of the site are treated like cash cows. Our suggestions are ignored and customer service is poor. I really enjoy making pretty scenes for pets to play in, and I'm attached to the game, so probably won't quit. But I tell you, if I could tell the me from 2 years ago not to get involved with the site, I would have. The last straw for me is that the site is becoming subscriber only. How on earth is this going to ensure the survival of the site I just don't know. At least we got warning of this major change this time. Changes are often sprung upon us users with out warning that severely affects our ability to play the game. For example, taking away the ability of a player to sell items to raise in-game money. Taking away the ability of free players to gift items to other players. Changing the prices of the items in the virtual store such that valuable items you paid good money for are worth far less. Changing the statistics of your pets that severely reduces the selling price you could charge for your pet before said change. Then taking away the ability of you to be able to sell any of your pets to friends directly, only the site - and then the site deletes them!!!! It happened to me. NOT. HAPPY.
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| Genre: | Virtual Worlds |
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