DesktamerBlog
About desktop pets: how to make them, where they run, and which to pick. Written by Taha Bozdemir, who makes Desktamer and says so wherever it comes up.
- How to make a Shimeji: a free template and all 46 poses
Make your own Shimeji-ee character: a free template, what each of the 46 pictures shows, the size and anchor rules, and how to test and fix it.
- Desktop Goose: download, mods, Mac, and how to close it
Where to get Desktop Goose and what it costs, how to close it on Windows and a Mac, its settings, memes and mods, whether it's safe, and what runs on Linux.
- Bongo Cat: Steam, Mac, Linux and the Paw Pass
Where Bongo Cat came from, how the free Steam game works (taps, hats and the Paw Pass), whether it runs on a Mac or Linux, and the open-source desktop versions.
- Do desktop pets slow down your computer? What we measured
What a desktop pet costs your Mac, Windows PC or Linux machine in CPU, memory and battery, what we measured with our own pets, and how to check any pet.
- Shimeji desktop pets: how to download and run them
What Shimeji are, where to download Shimeji-ee and get it running on Windows, what works on a Mac and on Linux, and how to stay safe with character packs.
- The best desktop pets for Mac in 2026
Eleven desktop pets for Mac, from Pets Therapy and Mac Pet to Desktop Goose and RunCat: what each costs, where it lives on your screen, and who it's for.
- The best desktop pets for Windows in 2026
Twelve desktop pets for Windows 10 and 11, from VPet and Pets Therapy to Desktop Goose, Shimeji and Bongo Cat: what each costs, where it lives, who it's for.
- Codex pets: how to use them, and where to find more
What Codex pets are, where to download thousands of them for free, how to add one to Codex, and how to keep one on your Mac, Windows or Linux desktop all day.
- Idle games that play at the bottom of your screen
Rusty's Retirement, Bongo Cat, Task Bar Hero, Tiny Pasture and more: idle games in a strip or a corner of your screen. What each costs, and which run on a Mac.
- A focus timer with a pet: why it helps, and which to pick
Work in 25-minute rounds with a pet that settles down while you focus and cheers at the break. What research says, and the best apps for desktop and phone.
- Desktop pets on Linux: what runs, and why Wayland makes it hard
The desktop pets that run on Linux today, from oneko and xpenguins to Shimeji runners and Desktamer, and why Wayland keeps most of them on XWayland.
- How to make your own desktop pet
Draw a pet, lay it out as a Codex spritesheet, add a pet.json, and it walks your Mac, Windows or Linux desktop. Or start from a single animated GIF.