Doggone Christmas Season

I'm at my shop... there are 22 dogs here with me.

I decide (stupidly), that I am going to go into my storage room and drag out my 6' fake Christmas tree.. (it's green, not white or tinsel colored)..

I open the door, turn on the lights and 16 of the 22 dogs flood the room ... mind you, the room, is approximately 8 feet by 6 feet ... and my tree is standing in the corner behind some kiddie pools. I go to move the pools, and the dogs go ballistic.. they think it's pool time and I'm bringing out the pools to fill.. nooooooooooooo...

After I try to explain to them that it is winter.. (cocked head, tongues waggin', tails flicking)... they back out of the room when they see I have a tree that I am trying to drag... (I swear I heard one of them say, "Oh God, she is going to fill the hole I dug with that tree")..

So I proceed to drag the tree out of the room, with them all backing up.. (not turning around and walking out.. backing up as to not miss any movements I may make). I slide the tree on it's side so that it doesn't fall over and hit one of them... (good thinking.. so I thought)..

'Fido' yells "Tug of War"... and grabs the top of the tree and yanks it off.. (lights still attached, breaking the bar that will hold the top of the tree on). I say "LEAVE IT".. and thankfully, he let's go... (the dogs name has been changed to protect his identity)..

They had to figure it wasn't a 'good thing' to touch the tree that Gail has in her arms so they stand out of the way and watch... wait... and try to figure out how the heck I am going to get this through the gate and is this an opportunity to get through the gate too? All way to smart for their own good.

I get through... only one dog comes through with me... (not bad, I thought)...

I go to stand the tree top up straight.. nope.. broken. ..

The lights work... (most of them).. the tree is up... the top is straight, kind of .. (with a bright yellow broom handle zip tied to it for stability - my options were limited considering I don't get out much... X-Pen surrounds it .. figuring nobody can shoot pee that far...

I'm figuring by next year, the tree will look like a Charlie Brown tree... but I'll still like it, the dogs will still try to pee on it... ahh, tis the season..

Do you see what I see?

Here are some interesting facts about what your dog sees. This is written by Mark Plonsky, Ph.D.

Dogs are red-green color blind. They see a brighter and less detailed world when compared to humans. Peripheral vision is better than humans (dogs see more of the world), but distance is not judged quite as well. Dogs excel at night vision and the detection of moving objects. Figure 1 is a rough guesstimate of what a dog and human might see when viewing a color band (the electromagnetic spectrum).







Figure 1

These differences in visual ability make sense in light of evolutionary theory. Good depth perception and visual acuity are necessary for a primate (from which humans evolved) jumping from tree limb to tree limb. Good color vision enabled this primate to choose the ripest and most nutritious fruit. The canine, on the other hand, is well adapted as a nocturnal hunter of camouflaged prey.

Particulars

1. Color

   Dogs see something like a human deuteranope, that is, they are red-green color blind (occurs in 4% of male humans). Simply put, this is due to having only 2 cone types rather than 3 (light sensitive cells include cones and rods).

2. Detail or Acuity

   Since dogs have no fovea (or area with 100% cones), their estimated eye for detail is (roughly) 6 times poorer than in an average human.

3. Night Vision

   Dogs have much better night vision for 2 reasons:
   

   • The have more rods (which enable night vision).
   • They have a structure called the Tapetum Lucidum
     This is a reflective surface behind the retina (area including the light sensitive cells) that reflects light back through it (gives the eerie shine at night).

4. Sensitivity to Movement

   Dogs are better able to detect movement.

5. Depth & Field

   Figure 2 (below) shows the field of view of a human and a dog. Due to the placement of the eyes, humans have an overlap of the field of each eye of 140; in dogs, it is about 100.
   
   

   This results in the dog having limited ability to accommodate (focus on items at different distances), but a wider overall field allowing them to see more of the world.

Pet Toothpaste Recall

Below is an email I received from the National Pet Foundation. Please take note - This product is a PET EDGE product...

Pet product may have diethylene glycol

Please forward this information to
family and friends who have pets.

PetEdge is voluntarily recalling Top
Performance brand ProDental Toothpaste
with Toothbrush kit because the
toothpaste could contain diethylene
glycol.

For more specific info on this recall please visit:
http://www.nationalpetfoundation.com/foods/petedge.html

Get notifications within hours of new recalls and
save your pet's life. Sign your family and friends
up for the free pet alerts at:
http://nationalpetfoundation.com/pet-food-recall.html

The full list of already recalled food can be found at:
http://nationalpetfoundation.com/list.html

Please help get the word out and forward this email
to any pet owners you know. Our goal is to keep
our pets safe.

National Pet Foundation

NPF

*********
Please note that this is the compound that is in Antifreeze that would kill an animal. Why they have it in anything that can be ingested, is beyond me but as I have said before, it is so important to keep up with the recalls...

Here is some additional information about diethylene glycol

This compound is used in the production of polyurethane, unsaturated polyester resins and triethylene glycol. It is also used as a textile softener, in petroleum solvent extraction, in the dehydration of natural gas, as a plasticizer, in surfactants and as a solvent for nitrocellulose, resins, dyes, oils and many other organic compounds. It is used as a humectant for tobacco, cork, printing ink and glue. It is also used in casein, in synthetic sponges and paper products, in bookbinding adhesives, as a dyeing assistant, in cosmetics, in antifreeze solutions, in lacquers, in lubricants and in brake fluids.

Here are the Symptoms to ingesting this compound:
Symptoms of exposure to this compound include nausea and vomiting. Other symptoms include headache, anuria, narcosis, cyanosis, tachypnea, tachycardia, hypotension, stupor, prostration, hypoglycemia and unconsciousness. Exposure can cause alcohol intoxication, muscle tenderness, pulmonary edema, convulsions and death. It can also cause degenerative changes in the kidneys and liver, central nervous system depression, nephrotoxicity, abdominal pain, weakness, respiratory failure, cardiovascular collapse, hypocalcemic tetany (rare), metabolic acidosis (rare), acute renal failure and brain damage. Somnolence has been reported in children.

Dog Rescue

Ahhh, Dog Rescue... (sigh) ...with so many dogs put to sleep on a daily basis just because they were not wanted anymore, it can be a tough vocation to get involved in, because you soon realize, you can't save them all. Anyone who has ever walked into an overcrowded Shelter knows exactly what I am talking about.

As most of you know, I have done dog rescue work for a number of years, with not only the Chinese Crested Breed but with other breeds and mixes also. A very rewarding but sometimes a heartbreaking job.

Within the last several month, a group of my fellow rescue people from several parts of the United States have come together to start a non-profit rescue organization. With several members on board and several more going through the process of coming on board, we are so extremely excited that we were able to put together a raffle to help us build a treasury in order to appropriately care for these unwanted, neglected, abused and abandoned dogs. With this treasury, we can properly vet the dogs and give them the necessary restart in life to get to a fine family to never be abandoned or abused again.

While I am not one to normally ask for money for any cause, I do hold this cause deeply close to my heart and there is always that chance with a raffle you will WIN something!

Crested Guardians, Inc. has already taken in 3 honorary foster dogs. These dogs are being fostered and cared for by several of our 'Guardians' with vetting costs and care coming directly from the foster parent. While this is great, we cannot run an rescue group without the help of the generous tax deductible donations from Companies and private individuals. So please help us, help them.

Please visit: http://www.crestedguardians.org/raffle.htm
and purchase a raffle ticket...

In addition, if you would like to become involved in rescue work, just ask .. the amount of help you do is in your hands... every bit helps. Thank you for your support... and buying those raffle tickets!!!

Pet Recalls...

It is important the people keep up with the pet recalls. The rash of them that happened in recent months seem to have lightened but they are still coming in. I receive an email from a watch group every time a pet product is recalled. It is easy to become part of their list that they will email if a recall is in effect.

The recall group's website is www.nationalpetfoundation.com -- you can sign up and be alerted to any pet recalls that happen.

Where we 'hope' the food for our animals is safe for their consumption, the fact of the matter is that the controls in place are not that good. We, as pet owners really need to be more aware of what products and by-products are being put into our dogs... the products that actually go into dog food would astound most people and would actually sicken you to know also.

Top quality dog food is not immune to problems. We, as consumers and our pets advocates, can easily find out what is in our dogs food by just doing some google searching on the ingredients listed on the back of the packaging. When I see that an ingredient has been known to 'kill' a human, it is really is easy to know that I don't want it in my dogs food.

In any event, I stopped purchasing commercial dog food and started to make the food for my dogs... simple recipe... basic food... 1 hour a week to make a weeks worth of food.

The basic recipe is brown rice, cooked turkey, frozen blueberries and blanched string beans. You can add Flax Seed oil and other things to enhance the antioxidants . I also crush up two One A Day vitamins in the morning and add it to their food as their vitamins for the day. The vitamin is split between all of them. Nothing special.. nothing crazy.. nothing that is hard to do. I have yet to have a problem with any of my dogs being 'finicky' (anymore). Considering they are practically chewing my leg off trying to 'hurry me up' when it is dinner time... I think it is fair to say they like their food.

Hartz has recalled it's Vitamins due to Salmonella... not sure why a pet product that is classified as a vitamin would have salmonella... maybe it goes back to the 'controls in place' to monitor this stuff. I have never heard of a human grade vitamin having salmonella, have you?