Frequently Asked Questions

A: Many campaigns that raise awareness for shelter animals or attempt to influence adoption are utterly depressing. How many people have cried to the ASPCA commercials showing sad puppies and kittens in cages set to heartbreaking music? The Human Walking Program in Melbourne Australia tried the opposite approach. Sad humans working all day clearly needed rescuing. Happy dogs came along, ready for funfilled walks in the park. The project put up posters around the city, showing sad humans in office environments. "For 9 hours a day he is kept in a tiny box. And ignored. He needs to go walkies." The result? Astounding success. The campaign led to a 100 percent adoption rate.

A: When the McLarty family decided to adopt a puppy from the Michigan Humane Society, they could never imagine how quickly the little dog would return the favor and save their lives. The three-month old husky mix had only been with the family for two weeks when he woke the household up with his crying. His new human mom took him outside, but he kept on crying, and when they came in he ran circles in the hallway before leading her to the kitchen. There, he sat next to the stove until she looked at it. One of the gas burners was on, without a flame, leaking gas into the house. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PF9jIv_tNZY

A: February 20th is Love Your Pet Day. Hopefully all pets are loved on all days of the year, but this is a good reason to pamper them a little extra. When it comes to pets, spending time with them and giving them attention goes a long way. If you have a dog, take them out for a longer walk. Take a new route and spend some time sniffing the trees and fire hydrants. Good for both humans and pooches. Special treats are always good. All pets appreciate something new and tasty! A lot of human food is bad for animals, especially chocolate and onions, but there are many good treats available. Giving and playing with a new toy is a great way to bond. If you don't have a pet, this might be a great time to adopt one at a local shelter or rescue, or give a donation. Many grocery stores have bins for local shelters where the public can drop off dog and cat food. Most pet rescues also need everyday items such as blankets and towels.

A: Hungarian scientists recently performed a new type of study; the first in its kind to compare brain function between humans and a non primate animal. The results might not come as a big surprise to dog lovers, but the findings can shake up the world of science. Attila Andics of MTA-ELTE Comparative Ethology Research Group says, "Dogs and humans share a similar social environment. Our findings suggest they also use similar brain mechanisms to process social information." In the test, Andics and his colleagues trained eleven dogs to stay motionless in an MRI brain scanner. This made it possible to run the same neuroimaging experiment on the dogs as on the humans participating. The test subjects listened to almost 200 dog and human sounds, ranging from crying to laughing, and the experiment showed striking similarities in the ways dog and human brains process emotionally loaded sounds. The parallel brain sensitivity to voices and emotions might help explain the unique bond between humans and dogs.

A: Duffy is an Irish Terrier who lost his vision because of diabetes. He went from a happy and normal dog to completely blind within a few months and had problems adjusting. Duffy ran into things, couldn't recognize his humans, and when his diabetes became stable enough for surgery, the family decided to take the chance. Luckily, the surgeons succeeded, and the family filmed being reunited with him. The video has gone viral and has 4,5 million views this far. //www.youtube.com/watch?v=Og1nMDl1K7g

A: Service dogs have access to all places open to the public. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, they are not required to wear a special vest or collar, even though many choose to give service dogs special vests. Keeping this in mind, it's not a big surprise that a Walgreens store in North Texas recently made the news when the manager kicked out a war veteran and his service dog. The war veteran showed the dog's special tag and ID card, but the manager still didn't accept their presence. A business can ask if a dog is a service dog and what it is trained to do. A business cannot ask a service dog and/or owner to leave as long as the dog is behaving. Many  people depend on dogs trained to do everything from retrieving objects to detecting upcoming seizures, and these dogs make important contribution to their humans' lives. If you see a service dog, do not approach, try to pet it, insist that your children get to pet it, or talk to it. The dog is working and doesn't need distractions. For more information on service dogs, check out these posts: Different types of assistance dogs What is a therapy dog What is an emotional support dog

A: Caring for teeth is important both for humans and pets. We need to brush our teeth twice a day, and brushing is the best way to keep Fido's teeth clean as well. There are also chews, dental spray, and dental wipes that might assist with the cleaning process. Human children have 20 baby teeth that fall out. Human adults have 32 teeth. Puppies have 28 teeth and adult dogs have 42. 42 teeth sounds like a lot, but it's nothing compared to some other animals. A white shark has about 24 exposed teeth on their top and lower jaws respectively, but behind these 48, a white shark can have five more rows of developing teeth. When the shark loses one of the main teeth, a developing tooth rotates in and replaces it. Alligators have a similar system. An alligator has an average of 80 teeth in the mouth at any one time, and when one falls out another takes its place. Dolphins also have a surprising amount of teeth. An Atlantic bottlenose dolphin has between 80 and 100 teeth. The short-beaked common dolphin has around 240.

A: Cats and dogs need dental care just as people, and February is Pet Dental Health Month - the American Veterinary Medical Association's annual effort to remind pet owners to care for their pets' teeth. Periodontal infections have been linked to several major disorders such as diabetes, heart attacks, strokes, and kidney disease. It is the most common health problem veterinarians find in pets. By the age of two, an estimated 80 percent of dogs and 70 percent of cats already have some form of periodontal disease. There are many good products to help keep pets clean, such as dental chews, wipes, gel, and spray. Brushing is still the best thing. Use a toothpaste formulated for pets, and a pet toothbrush. Older pets can be finicky, but start with short periods of time and make it into a routine.

A: Humans have bred dogs for specific characteristics such as appearance, intelligence, herding instinct, and hunting instinct for well over 10,000 years. For the first time, scientists show that breeding not only changes the way the animals look, but also drives major changes in the dogs' brains. No other animal has been impacted by humans in the same way as dogs, and while it is well know that selective breeding from a small gene pool affects dogs' physical health, for example through breed specific disorders, most haven't considered just how much their bodies have adapted. Researches from University of New South Wales and University of Sydney have found a dramatic reorganization in the brain of certain dog breeds. The brains in many short-snouted breeds have rotated forward as much as 15 degrees and relocated entire brain regions, for example the region controlling smell. In pug-like breeds with a flat skull shape, the smell centre has drifted down to the lowest position in the skull. The next step will be to investigate just how much this impacts the dogs' behavior.

A: Cats seem to sleep all the time. They're experts at enjoying life and make stretching out for a nap in a ray of sunshine seem like the epitome of joy. The average cat sleeps fifteen hours a day, and some nap as much as twenty. The only well known animals sleeping more than cats are bats and opposum. So, why do they sleep so much? Cats are born hunters, and all that skulking about in the shadows and pouncing on pray, whether it's real or imagined, uses up enormous amounts of energy. The large amounts of sleep is reserve energy for running, climbing, and creeping. Cats are also most active during the twilight hours between dawn and dusk. Luckily they are both sociable and adaptable, and quite able to adjust their sleeping habits to be awake when their human is awake and home.