Ham, the first chimpanzee ever to ride into space is shown off by his animal trainer on January 31, 1961, at Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Ham was brought from the French Camaroons, West Africa, where he was born July 1957, to Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico in 1959.
On January 31, 1961, Ham, whose name was an acronym for H olloman A ero M ed, became the first chimpanzee in space, aboard the Mercury Redstone rocket on a sub-orbital flight.
The spacecraft carrying Ham reached an altitude of 157 miles and a speed of 5857 mph. Ham performed well during his flight and splashed down in the Atlantic Ocean 60 miles from the recovery ship. He experienced a total of 6.6 minutes of weightlessness during a 16.5-minute flight.
Ham was placed on display at the Washington Zoo in 1963 where he lived alone until September 25, 1980. He then was moved to the North Carolina Zoological Park in Asheboro. Upon his death on January 17, 1983, Ham's body was preserved and loaned by the Smithsonian Institution to the International Space Hall of Fame in Alamogordo, New Mexico.
Source: NASA
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Ham, the first chimpanzee astronaut
A Brief History of Animals in Space
Before humans actually went into space, one of the prevailing theories of the perils of space flight was that humans might not be able to survive long periods of weightlessness.
American and Russian scientists utilized animals - mainly monkeys, chimps and dogs - in order to test each country's ability to launch a living organism into space and bring it back alive and unharmed.
This article highlights of the history of animals involved in space flight, mostly monkeys, mice, and dogs. Also described are the early attempts with animals in sCreatepace flight, the first chimpanzee in space (Ham), the expansion of species in space (such as an Apollo flight that recorded spiders' attempts to spin webs in space), and other notable history.
Source: NASA
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Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Update: "Bird Poop Video"
In a previous post, we linked to the "Bird Poops in Mouth Video" which has to be one of the most hilarious things around.
Emil Steiner, at Off/Beat, now cautions that the video might be [oh horrors!] a hoax!
Who cares. It's still funny. Right?
Have you had lunch yet?
Witchetty grubs
Silkworm pupae
Scorpions
Stink bugs
Dragonflies
Mealworms
Grasshoppers
Tarantulas
Termites
Mopane caterpillars
Palm grubs
Crickets
Hungry? Bugs you can eat
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Holy cow! There's cows all over the place today
In Cincinnati, Ohio, searchers on the ground and in a sheriff's department helicopter Monday were looking for an Angus steer that postponed its date with a slaughterhouse by bolting out a gate that had been inadvertently left open.
In Australia, police were forced to shoot a cow which was discovered toddling along a major motorway near the town of Nerang, 43 miles south of Brisbane, after it escaped from a nearby property.
In Indonesia, a Boeing 737 was landing at Merauke airport in southwest Papua when it hit a calf which was running across the runway. The plane suffered damage to its left engine but no one was injured. The report did not say if the calf was killed.
A Pennsylvania man has been sentenced to two years probation and 50 hours of community service for mailing a bloody cow's head to his wife's lover.
In Quasqueton, Iowa, Keith Franck got an unexpected surprise when his cow gave birth to rare triplets. Triplets occur about once in 100,000 births among cows.
Thanks, I'll keep the job I have
New Scientist magazine reports that working with manure can drastically reduce chances of developing lung cancer. Dairy farmers are five times less likely than the general populace to develop the disease.
The study found farmers typically breathed in dust that consisted largely of dried manure, and all the bacteria that grew in it.
New Scientist said adults who had a greater exposure to germs than usual might build up a better resistance to bugs, including cancer.
Source: Daily Telegraph
Photo: "Cow butt" uploaded by sarae
Moles are so cute!
This is a Namib Desert Golden Mole, Eremitalpa granti namibensis.
There are more cute mole photos here.
Photo: G. Rathbun.
Flame Retardants Link to Tasmanian Devils Cancer
A study conducted by the Australian government's National Measurement Institute took samples of fat from 16 living and dead Tasmanian devils, some of which suffered from the fatal devil facial-tumor disease (DFTD).
DFTD forms disfiguring tumors on the animals' faces and necks that cause them to die from starvation within about six months of showing symptoms.
The scientists found "high" levels of hexabromobiphenyl ether and "reasonably high" levels of decabromobiphenyl ether—chemicals used to treat electronics, textiles, and furniture.
The find triggered local media reports suggesting that the chemicals might be linked to the mysterious cancer that has been killing the rare marsupials for more than a decade.
Source: National Geographic
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Baby Panda in Vienna
The first baby panda to be born in Europe in a quarter of a century has made his first public appearance.
Vienna Zoo's panda baby, Fu Long, has until now spent all his time with his over protective mother Yang Yang.
The zoo hopes that Fu Long will make more excursions into public view now he has taken the first step.
Source: Ananova
Albert the Bull
Albert, the World's Largest Bull, has been guarding the peaceful streets of Audubon since 1964. He is 30 feet tall and 33 feet long, and has a 15-foot span between horns. He also has baby blue eyes and giant concrete gonads.
He weighs 45 tons, and most of it is solid concrete. The steelwork that forms his mighty frame was salvaged from abandoned Iowa windmills.
Source: Roadside America
The Daily Mammal
Jennifer Rae Atkins, in her blog, the Daily Mammal, is attempting to draw [close to] every mammal on earth. Therefore: a mammal a day. Since there are about 5,000 named mammal species, give or take, it should take her about 14 years to meet this goal. That's not so bad!
The Fennec Fox, at left, is one of my favorites.
Cats in Space
Why is it that the first we hear of the cat is when it appears in Egypt around 2,000 B.C. as the living embodiment of the goddess Bast?
The dog was domesticated...comfortably ensconced as man's adoring servant, catching frisbees and letting his tongue loll unattractively out of his mouth, long before the cat arrived on the scene.
Why? Where was the cat? Why are there no images of cats in cave paintings? Why is the Bible silent on the subject?
Keep reading - Nichole Hollander will answer all your question.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Art by Kent Rogowski - Bears
Kent Rogowki's Bears is a series of portraits of the most unusual sort: ordinary teddy bears that have been turned inside out and restuffed.
These bears, which have lived and loved and lost as much as their owners, have suffered and endured through it all. It is by virtue of revealing their inner core might we better understand our own.
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Sunday, January 27, 2008
When Pigs Fly
I didn't know that flying pigs were so frequently seen.Paulus Tjiang Flying Pig
7" x 7" Pink glass complete with wings, bug eyes and kissy lips.
$275.00 at CBL Fine Art
Iron Piggy Paper Weight
Combination paperweight and non-verbal response of "Yeah, right!"
$19.00 at Wisteria
Gemstone Flying Pig
Carved in Aventurine stone
$15.00 at Exquisite Crystals
Flying Pig Lawn Ornament
Ready for either hanging or mounting on a stake,
$170.00 at Uncommon Goods
Flying Pig Jewelry
Earrings, Pendants, Charms, Pins
$26.00 and up at Dee Sharp Jewelry
Flying Pig for home and garden
A rusty cast iron statue (and bank)
$29.00 at Stone Griffin
Flying Pig Door Stop
Sturdy cast-iron design features a double-tiered base and a whimsical design.
$29.99 at GoCollect.com
When Pigs Fly T-Shirt
In 2 colors and several sizes
Starting at $14.95 at GoWear
Pig Flying Hat
Pull the chin string to flap the wings. Size fits most adults. Approximately 15"L.
$4.95 at US Toy Company
Flying Pig Hood Ornament
Customize your vehicle, or try these hood ornaments on boats, golf carts, plaques, trophies or promotional items.
$46.72 and up at Truck Customizers
Saturday, January 26, 2008
You can help Georgia dogs
Saving Georgia Dogs, Inc. is participating in a challenge being offered Six Degrees, partnered with the Case Foundation and Parade for America's Giving Challenge.
The four charity badges that have the most unique donors will receive $50,000 for their cause. This could mean hundreds more lives saved in Georgia's kill shelters. They need your help!! The Challenge ends on January 31, 2008 at 3:00 pm eastern.
SGD is a non profit 501(c)3 animal welfare organization and licensed rescue. All donations are tax deductible. The winners are determined by the number of donations, not the amount of money donated. They just need $10 donations to help them win!
Please donate by clicking the orange donate button HERE.
Georgia euthanizes 90,000 adoptable dogs each year, more than New York, New Jersey and Oregon combined. Another horrible fact is that some shelters in Georgia still use the gas chamber as a means of euthanizing these animals; it’s a cruel and inhumane death.
The goal of SGD to stop this practice and to implement plans that not only rescues many more animals from shelters, but to help prevent animals from ending up in these shelters in the first place. Their goal is to implement programs for spay/neuter clinics and to lobby for mandatory spay/neuter requirements in local counties, to start a heart worm prevention/treatment fund to help low income families keep their pets healthy, humane education programs for local schools and a program to help victims of domestic violence who are staying in abusive situations because they don’t want to surrender their pets.
Friday, January 25, 2008
Police Puppy Training Diary
Police in Scotland have set up a Web site to allow the public to meet their newest, and cutest, recruit as he learns how to sniff out criminals.
He's a six-week-old German Shepherd puppy and he is so new to the Force he doesn't even have a name yet!
One of a litter of seven pups bred especially for police work by Lothian and Borders Police, you can follow our new recruit's progress over the coming months on this special diary page.
Source: Yahoo News
It's a boy!
Three-week-old Jed was examined for the first time since he was born and staff at the Werribee Open Range Zoo were pleased to discover he is a boy. Jed is a vervet monkey.
Source: Herald Sun
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Photography by Anna Kuperberg
Anna Kuperberg photographs dogs. She made this blog, SlobberSpace, to entertain you and to help you procrastinate your boring office work. There is no useful information on this blog, no training advice, and no breed analysis. Just happy, goofy dogs.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Pet Turtles Linked to Rise in Salmonella Infections
The sale of small turtles has been banned in the United States since 1975, but the number of these reptiles being purchased for children has been increasing, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Small pet turtles were to blame for 103 cases of Salmonella infection in the second half of last year, mostly in young children, but the true number of infections with the potentially fatal bacteria is undoubtedly much higher.
Many people aren't aware of the risk of Salmonella infections from pet turtles. Only 20 percent of these cases said they were aware there was a connection between Salmonella infection and reptile exposure.
Source: U.S. News
You think your favorite restaurant is too far to drive?
A leatherback sea turtle recently completed the longest recorded migration of any sea vertebrate: 12,774 miles across the Pacific Ocean.
The giant reptile began the trek in Indonesia's warm tropical waters in the summer of 2003 and traveled 647 days just to eat jellyfish off Oregon, in the cool waters of the Pacific Northwest.
Source: National Geographic
The 5 Most Horrifying Bugs in the World
There are about 10,000,000,000,000,000,000 insects on earth at any given moment. Seriously, that's a real number. For every one of us, there are 1.5 billion bugs.
But some of them are so horrifying, just one is too many. Cracked showcases five insects you want to avoid at all costs.
These are really creepy!
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Teach your kids
A good lesson for those of us trying to teach our children and grandchildren not to be afraid of dogs and to treat animals with respect, Terrierman points out that it is NOT always OK to pet a strange dog, or to leave small helpless children alone with dogs.
"A dog that bites does not violate any laws of nature. And, as uncomfortable as it may make some breed defenders, biting is very much in the nature of all dogs, and some breeds in particular. A Jack Russell is one of them. "
I think I'll stick to Godiva, thank you
Pink Tentacle has discovered a unique chocolate made to look like a beetle larva. They say this confection has captured the fancy of candy aficionados in Japan. Produced by the Komatsuya confectionery and bakery based in Akita prefecture, the bite-sized Larva Chocolates (Youchu Choco) have a grub-shaped body made from milk chocolate and corn flakes, a layer of skin made from white chocolate, legs made from tiny strips of dried squid, and a dainty mouth made from orange peel.
Elephants are evolving smaller tusks
The average tusk size of African elephants has halved since the mid-19th century. A similar effect has been spotted in the Asian elephant population in India.
Researchers say it is an example of Darwinism in action, caused by the mass slaughter of dominant male elephants - but whereas evolution normally takes place over thousands of years, these changes have occurred within 150 years.
Zoologists at Oxford University fear that poaching and hunting of the largest male elephants, which also have the largest tusks, has changed the natural breeding behaviour of these animals. Their research has shown that the hunting of these large males for their ivory allows smaller males with shorter tusks to produce more calves. Over time the average tusk size decrease
Source: Telegraph
Oregon Rancher Crosses US on Horseback
An Oregon rancher who set off on a cross-country horseback ride seven months ago in search of what's good in America finished his trip feeling encouraged by the spirit and stories of the people he met.
Bill Inman began his journey June 2 because he felt distress over how the country was being portrayed in news coverage and on TV shows. He rode his 16-year-old thoroughbred-quarter horse Blackie.
Inman finished his trip riding into the southwestern North Carolina town under overcast skies. A crowd of more than 100 people greeted Inman at a motorcycle dealership as he ended the journey.
Source: Washington Post
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Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Recent Doggie News
* Since 2001, Southwest Florida International has used a 9-year-old border collie named Radar to patrol the runways and chase away birds. Birds being sucked into aircraft engines is one of the most persistent safety problems at airports. Border collies scare the birds but don't harm them.
* Grace Saenz-Lopez, the mayor of Alice, Texas, has been indicted after neighbors accused her of taking their dog, a 5-pound Shih Tzu, while she cared for it during their vacation.
The day after her neighbors left with their kids for vacation, Saenz-Lopez called to tell them that their dog Puddles had died. But three months later, the same dog, now renamed Panchito, was spotted at a local dog groomer. When Saenz-Lopez refused to return the dog, the family filed a criminal complaint and a civil lawsuit against her.
* Derick Phanord who killed his dog, Maximus, by pouring gasoline on the pit bull and setting it on fire, was sentenced Tuesday to 2 years in prison for animal cruelty.
"I am not a monster. I am a good guy," a weeping Phanord, 22, said before his sentencing. "I am an animal lover," he said.
* The Fort Worth City Council approved an ordinance Tuesday banning dog tethering. The new ordinance, which becomes effective this week, makes it illegal to use a chain, rope, tether, leash, cable or other device to attach an unattended dog to a stationary object or trolley system. A dog still must be confined within a secure enclosure at all times.
Deaths of Rare Crocodile in India Stir Alarm
Three decades after it was brought back from the brink of extinction, the rare Indian crocodile known as the gharial is turning up dead by the dozens on the banks of a river called the Chambal. Forest officials are at a loss to explain why.
Since mid-December, the National Chambal Wildlife Sanctuary has confirmed 76 deaths along the river, which begins in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh and runs through Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
Other species that inhabit the Chambal River ecosystem, including dozens of fish species on which the gharials feed, appear to be healthy.
Sourge: NY Times
Photo: Tim Dwight(Wildldife Web)
The Art of Dead Mice
Carnivores released into wild 'fail and die'
Most carnivores bred in captivity and released back into the wild fail to cope and die, according to a study published online in the journal Biological Conservation.
Researchers are calling for a complete rethink of such reintroductions before others are carried out, including the suggested release of animals such as the lynx, wildcat and wolf into Scotland.
The scientists from Exeter University looked at 45 reintroductions, involving 17 carnivore species. It found that over half the animals were killed by humans, generally in shootings and car accidents.
For example, of 46 captive-bred lynx released into Switzerland, only 15 survived.
Five wolves released into Yellowstone national park in the United States were shot by ranchers bordering the park.
The study also found captive animals were more susceptible to starvation and disease than their wild counterparts and less able to form successful social groups.
Source: Telegraph
Big Horses
At 6ft 6ins and still growing, Digger the Clydesdale has become Britain's biggest horse, according to the Daily Mail.
Best estimates put the strapping Clydesdale at 19 hands and two inches (6ft 6in) - on a par with Britain's biggest living horse.
And at just four years old, Digger is the equivalent in equine terms to a teenager so there is still time for him to grow.
Tina, from Niota, Tennessee is now in the Guinness Book of World Records for 2008 as the Tallest Horse in the World.
At 20 hands tall, Tina is nearly seven feet tall. She has taken the top spot from former record holder Radar who is a little more than 19 hands tall.
Tina should have no problem holding on to her new title. Her owners expect her to continuing growing, topping out around 23 hands.
Monday, January 21, 2008
Skimming the news
* A Montana man says he was lucky to find a mechanic without a snake phobia when his pet Burmese python hid under the dashboard of his car.
* In Britain, six abandoned kittens have found an unexpected new mother figure - a pet rabbit.
Too important not to mention
This is NOT a pet or animal related post, but it's about a subject that is increasingly scaring and frustrating to me ...
Autism - it's the fastest-growing developmental disability, with 1 in 150 births, now affecting 1 to 1.5 million Americans, and with a 10 - 17 % annual growth.
Would you like to help in a VERY EASY way?
The band, Five for Fighting, is generously donating $0.49 to Autism Speaks for each time this video is viewed. The funding goes toward research studies to help find a cure.
When you have a moment, please visit the link to watch the video and pass it along to friends and family. They are aiming for 10,000 hits, but hopefully we can help to exceed that goal.
What kind of a world do you want?
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Italian mozzarella is threatened
The production of one of Italy's best known exports, mozzarella, is under threat from an infection spreading through herds of water buffalo.
Mozzarella di bufala is not only an essential part of the Italian diet, but one of Italy's most important exports.
The Italian government has set up an emergency commission to try and stop the spread of the disease, which affects milk production.
In the next two months, the Italian government will start the slaughter of 32,000 buffalo, infected with Brucellosis - a contagious bacterial disease that in livestock leads to abortion, infertility and reduced milk production.
It can be transmitted through food to humans, causing severe intermittent fever - though the milk which produces the cheese is perfectly safe when it is pasteurised.
Source: BBC
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Cat Tattoo
Why would someone do this?
I can't figure it out.
Is this an extreme cat lover? Or just an extremely offensive person?
Photo found at Sling's Domain.
Play a game - feed rescued pets
Provide food to abandoned (and often abused) dogs and cats just by playing the trivia game here.
For every question you answer correctly, Experience Project donates the equivalent of 1 kibble of food to Rocket Dog Rescue & the Urban Cat Project, helping save pet's lives.
The more you play, the more shelter pets they can feed! Spread the word and make a huge difference!
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Weirdest and most endangered creatures
Amphibians as a rule are not cute and cuddly which puts them way down the pecking order of species that need to be saved.
But they are a key indicator species and if they start to decline it is a clear warning that the environment is in trouble.
The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) has drawn up a list of some of the world's most extraordinary creatures threatened with extinction.
They found 85 per cent of the top 100 of the 'world's weirdest and most endangered creatures' are receiving little conservation attention and will disappear if no action is taken.
ZSL has identified and is starting work to protect 10 of the most unusual and threatened EDGE amphibian species this year. They include:
*Chinese giant salamander (salamander that can grow up to 1.8m in length and evolved independently from all other amphibians over 100m years before Tyrannosaurus rex)
*Sagalla caecilian (limbless amphibian with sensory tentacles on the sides of its head)
*Purple frog (purple-pigmented frog that was only discovered in 2003 because it spends most of the year buried up to 4m underground)
*Ghost frogs of South Africa (one species is found only in the traditional human burial grounds of Skeleton Gorge in Table Mountain, South Africa)
*Olm (blind salamander with transparent skin that lives underground, hunts for its prey by smell and electrosensitivity and can survive without food for 10 years)
*Lungless salamanders of Mexico (highly endangered salamanders that do not have lungs but instead breathe through their skin and mouth lining)
*Malagasy rainbow frog (highly-decorated frog that inflates itself when under threat and can climb vertical rock surfaces)
*Chile Darwin's frog (a frog where fathers protect the young in their mouths, this species has not been officially seen since around 1980 and may now be extinct)
*Betic midwife toad (toads that evolved from all others over 150m years ago - the males carry the fertilised eggs wrapped around their hind legs)
*Gardiner's Seychelles frog (perhaps the world's smallest frog, with adults growing up to just 11mm in length - the size of a drawing pin)
Source: Telegraph
The Whale Hunt - A Story in 3214 Photos
From May 1 to May 7, Jonathan Harris took a photo every 5 minutes of an Inupiat Whale Hunt near Barrow Alaska.
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Is your dog a little stinker?
Veterinarian formulated and recommended dietary supplement helps balance your pet's digestive system to reduce excessive gas. And, the great flavor means your dog will eat Doggie-Bites like a treat.
$6.50 at Healthy Pet Company
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Beef for Dinner, Bones for Surgery
Prather Ranch's dry-aged, organic New York steaks will set you back $20 per pound at its upscale stall in San Francisco's Ferry Building farmers market. But even at that price, foodies aren't the company's best market.
The most valuable parts of its cows are the inedible parts: pituitary glands, bones, heart muscles and hides. Medical companies covet them for making surgical glue, bone screws, collagen and artificial skin.
"In most years, these things are more valuable than the meat," said Jim Rickert, a fifth-generation farmer. "We also think out of an ethical-moral thing. The animal deserves us using it completely."
Photo: Foot bones from Prather Ranch cows are cleaned, then turned into a variety of implants for humans, including these screws for knee surgeries.
Image: Regeneration Technologies
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Sunday, January 20, 2008
Cat wine decanter
Sitting Cat wine caddy.
Also available: dog, pig, reindeer and moose.
$69.95 at Colorado Wine
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Dallas to Dallas Ride for Wet Noses
Inspired by Randy Boudouris's ride to benefit Cystic Fibrosis, Bill Craig will set off in April of 2008 to bike from Dallas, Texas to Dallas, Georgia to raise awareness for the need to Spay, Neuter, and Adopt. This ride will also raise funds for various shelters & humane societies along his route.
Craig is riding in support of the Spay, Neuter and Adopt message, and he will be stopping at many different animal shelters along his route to talk to people about the importance of spaying, neutering and adopting pets.
Visit his website http://www.d2d4wetnoses.com/ where he has a lot more information about his trek.
Robo-pet pins
The industrial quality of this canine only adds to its charm. And haven't you always wanted a cat that doesn't shed?
Slightly robotic and mechanical, but completely alluring, artist Thomas Mann has created atypical accessories that allow dog and cat lovers to show their pet pride without being overly cutesy.
A combination of sterling silver and brass accents, these pins combine sturdy craftsmanship, playful imagination and a true appreciation for our four-legged friends. Handmade in New Orleans.
$136.00 at Uncommon Goods
Robots by Ann Smith
Ann Smith is a graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design in Illustration. She creates robot-like animal sculptures out of broken electronics and machines which are sold in stores and galleries throughout the United States.
The art of war
In 1998, the Cambodian government destroyed 125,000 weapons across the country.
The Peace Art Project Cambodia (PAPC) was created in November 2003 to get rid of the weapons in an artistic way.
See pictures of weapons sculpture and furniture at funnytogo.com.
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Saturday, January 19, 2008
How Baboons Think
Dorothy Cheney and Robert Seyfarth, a husband-and-wife team of biologists at the University of Pennsylvania, have spent 14 years observing the Moremi baboons. Through ingenious playback experiments performed by themselves and colleagues, the researchers say they have worked out many aspects of what baboons use their minds for, along with their limitations.
Reading a baboon’s mind affords an excellent grasp of the dynamics of baboon society. But more than that, it bears on the evolution of the human mind and the nature of human existence.
Dr. Cheney and Dr. Seyfarth have summed up their new cycle of research in a book titled “Baboon Metaphysics
“Monkey society is governed by the same two general rules that governed the behavior of women in so many 19th-century novels,” Dr. Cheney and Dr. Seyfarth write. “Stay loyal to your relatives (though perhaps at a distance, if they are an impediment), but also try to ingratiate yourself with the members of high-ranking families.”
NY Times
Old collars, new collars
A unique collection of historic and fascinating dog collars has been built up over the years at Leeds Castle Dog Collar Museum and is now the only one of its kind in Great Britain.
Spanning five centuries, the collection contains examples of collars from fearsome fetters for the great hunting hounds of the past, to canine couture for 21st century pooches.
The collection of over 100 collars and related exhibits was presented to the Leeds Castle Foundation by Mrs. Gertrude Hunt.
The Leeds Castle Replica Collar, sold by Vintage Dogs, has a classic 19th century design of flowers and scrolling acanthus leaves, with a silver wire encircling the top and bottom edges. Each is created in sterling silver, by hand, by the renowned New York City silversmith William Manfredi.
Each collar is priced at $2,400.00, jewels can be embedded by request.
Duke of Windsor's Dog Collars Will Be Sold at Auction
Dog collars once worn by pugs belonging to the Duke and Duchess of Windsor will be part of a lot expected to sell at auction for as much as $3,000 next month in New York at Bonhams.
The sale will coincide with the Westminster Kennel Club's 132nd Annual All-Breed Dog Show, Feb. 11-12.
The five leather collars, one with a tag inscribed, ``I belong to the Duke of Windsor,'' are among about 100 dog collars being sold by a person whom Bonhams declined to name.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Meet Snowflake
Germany named its latest furry superstar "Flocke", or "Snowflake" on Friday, sending the media into a frenzy which echoed "Knut-mania" in Berlin last year.
A naming competition for the nearly six-week-old polar bear cub launched by the city of Nuremberg received 50,000 emails, causing a server meltdown at the zoo as entries flooded in from around the globe.
REUTERS/Handout/Tiergarten Nuernberg/Stadt Nuernberg
Skimming the news
* A western Pennsylvania man who mailed a bloody cow's head to his wife's lover has been sentenced to probation and community service.
* A drunk man in Munster, Germany, was bitten on the face by a dog after he began chowing down on food from the animal's dish.
* Vietnam has seized more than a ton of ratsnakes found aboard a Vietnam Airlines flight from Bangkok. Last month, the airport authorities also seized 1,550 pounds of snakes aboard a Thai Airways flight to Hanoi.
* Raccoon meat has made its way to Chicago's upscale Moto restaurant, where chef Homaro Cantu created a dish that makes the raccoon look like road kill, complete with a yellow stripe down the center of the plate.
"It was a real eye catcher," Cantu said. "The fact that the dish looked like it was run over was really cool."
Cute Baby Seal
A female grey seal pup is pictured on the German island of Helgoland, January 11, 2008. A record number of 55 Atlantic grey seal babies have been born on Helgoland's sandy shores this winter after last year's just 32 births and 27 the year before, an official responsible for environmental protection on the island says. Helgoland is located 44 miles from the German coast line in the North Sea.
Photo: REUTERS/Christian Charisius
Couldn't find his Burberry scarf?
Police arrested a New York resident Tuesday who was walking down the Montauk Highway with this Burmese python wrapped around his body.
Curtis Dewberry, 35, was charged with animal cruelty and failure to protect the public against dangerous wildlife. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 1 year in jail or a $1,000 fine. Dewberry pleaded not guilty.
Source: Newsday
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Animal Mailboxes
Are you tired of your ugly, beat up, old mailbox?
Does yours look like everyone else's up and down the street?
Well then, here's a good winter project for you and some inspiring examples.
from Sam's Mailbox Picture Collection
from Waymarking
"A generous Mail Box" uploaded by Sylvieblissplace
from Waymarking
from Waymarking
from Sam's Mailbox Picture Collection
from Waymarking
from Mailboxes and Stuff
from Waymarking
from Waymarking
from Ugly Mailbox
from Sam's Mailbox Picture Collection
"Manatee Mailbox" uploaded by Joe Shlabotnik
from Waymarking
"Timmy" turtle mailbox" uploaded by turtlemom4bacon
from Sam's Mailbox Picture Collection
from Mariners Mailboxes
from Mariners Mailboxes
from Ugly Mailbox
from Morgan Home Accents
from Jana's Journal
from Weirdomatic
from Ugly Mailbox
"Mailbox" uploaded by Prophetsflow
from the Mailbox Ranch
from Sam's Mailbox Picture Collection
from Ugly Mailbox
"MY PANDA MAILBOX IS DONE!!!!" uploaded by electra-cute
The Dead Bug Funeral Kit
The Dead Bug Funeral Kit comes with a 32-page Illustrated Buggy Book of Eulogies with Ribbon Bookmark, Casket, Grave Marker, White Clay Flower, Burial Scroll, and Pouch of Grass Seed.
The Buggy Book of Eulogies contains 15 eulogies and 15 buggy illustrations for your Ant, Bee, Beetle, Butterfly, Caterpillar, Cockroach, Cricket, Doodlebug, Fly, Grasshopper, Ladybug, Lightning Bug, Praying Mantis, Spider or Stickbug.
The Burial Scroll comes tied with a ribbon and gives instructions for conducting burial ceremonies.
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Pied tamarin babies hand-reared at Devon zoo
Keepers at a Devon zoo are hand-rearing two critically endangered monkeys after their mother abandoned them.
The pied tamarin babies born on New Year's Eve at Paignton Zoo were rescued when their mother started to show signs of neglecting the pair.
Padme and Chewie are being kept in an incubator near their parents during the day. They will have 24-hour care for about more six weeks.
Pied tamarins are the most endangered of all the Amazon primates - every youngster is vital to the future of the species
BBC
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
The World’s 5 Most Venomous Species
Yikes! Environmental Graffiti's list of 5 of the deadliest animals out of the hundreds that could kill you.
Want to to feed a tiger?
The Times Online reports that Paradise Wildlife Park in Hertfordshire allows customers to stroke with their fingers Rocky, a nine-year-old Siberian and Bengal tiger cross described as a “gentleman”. The park also permits customers to feed Narnia, a white tiger. Meat is held up to the bars so it can be pulled into the cage.
On their website, Paradise Wildlife Park clarifies: You actually get to spend the whole day "with Big Cat Keepers and discover just how much fun you can have looking after Lions, Tigers, Cheetahs, Jaguars and Snow Leopards. Assist the keepers and really get your hands dirty cleaning out enclosures and preparing food; something that is definitely not for the squeamish! After you have spent the morning pampering our felines you will hand feed one of our Big Cats, a truly memorable experience not to be missed. "
Wait, there's more. At Paradise Wildlife Park you can also handle a variety of non-venomous snakes, lizards and a tarantula spider ... or enter the lemur enclosure at feeding time ... or meet the meerkats and become a human climbing frame.
Sounds like fun!
Your pet can be a star
Have you ever looked through a rack of greeting cards and thought, "I could do better?"
Hallmark is holding a contest to make your pet a birthday card superstar.
Enter your funniest, most endearing, cutest, or most creative pet photos, along with a corresponding “birthday” greeting, which will be judged and turned into actual greeting cards.
Sixty-seven finalists will have their 15 minutes of fame when their cards are printed and sold to the public -- both at hallmark.com and in more than 10,000 stores! They also will win $250 cash. In addition to being sold in stores, one grand prize winner’s card will be available for sale at hallmark.com for at least a year and may become part of another card collection! That person also will win $1,000 plus a trip to Hallmark with their pet for a professional photo shoot and workshop with Hallmark’s creative team!
Entering is easy. Just log on to hallmark.com/you anytime between now and Feb. 3 to upload your photo and birthday greeting.
Chimp not a person, Austrian court rules
Austria's Supreme Court ruled that a chimpanzee named Matthew Hiasl Pan cannot be declared a person.
The shelter where Matthew has lived for 25 years is going bankrupt, threatening to leave him homeless. Matthew and another chimp at the shelter, Rosi, were captured as babies in Sierra Leone in 1982 and smuggled to Austria for use in pharmaceutical experiments. Customs officers intercepted the shipment and turned the chimps over to the shelter.
Donors have offered to help support Matthew, but under Austrian law, only a person can receive personal gifts.
Source: AP
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
World's only blue-eyed koala
His piercing eyes have dumbfounded animal carers who were so worried they tested his vision.
Staff at his Dreamworld home on the Gold Coast found that apart from some reduced pigmentation, Frankie, named after Frank Sinatra, has perfect vision.
Frankie is the world's only known blue-eyed koala.
Source: Daily Telegraph
Columbus Zoo buys popular 24-foot python
The gigantic python that slithered its way into Columbus' heart on a visit last summer is there to stay.
The animal, thought to be the world's longest captive snake, will call the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium home permanently.
Fluffy's Columbus stint was supposed to last from April through Halloween. Zoo Director Emeritus Jack Hanna had arranged the loan from python breeder Bob Clark in Oklahoma City, who'd raised Fluffy from a hatchling.
The 24-foot-long snake with the watermelon-size girth wowed zoo visitors and helped make last year's 1.53 million attendance the second highest on record, Fingerhut said. The biggest year was 2006, with 1.56 million visitors.
So when Nov. 1 rolled around, zookeepers weren't happy about packing up Fluffy for her flight back to Oklahoma City. Then, they got a reprieve. The cargo company scheduled to ferry the 300-pound reticulated snake had gone out of business, and Clark was having trouble finding a substitute.
In the end, the zoo purchased Fluffy for $35,000.
Source: The Columbus Dispatch
Miracle Michigan dog
It was obvious to Scott and Kelly Cornelisse that their 2-year-old chocolate Labrador retriever, Remington, wasn't feeling well. What they didn't know was that their dog, for as long as they had owned him, had been living with part of an arrow lodged in his chest.
Hidden in the dog's broad-chested, athletic body was a time bomb -- 81⁄2-inches of an aluminum arrow shaft complete with a field tip.
No one knows when, where or why the dog was shot, only that the arrow was lodged in his body for a long time -- certainly before Scott Cornelisse, his wife, Kelly, 31, and their children, Olivia, 7, and Kamden, 9, brought him home, according to their veterinarian.
Dr. Steven Harden of Clarke Animal Hospital in Norton Shores successfully removed the arrow and Remington is now home recuperating.
"This was a unique case because of how long the arrow had been in there," Harden said, adding: "Animals are amazing, and this dog is proof of that.
Source: The Muskegon Chronicle
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Playing with food
The Daily Mail has a series of amazing pictures by top environmental photographer Andy Rouse, which show a female cheetah demonstrating to her young the first rules of survival in the wild - how to hunt and kill.
The cubs think they have a brand-new friend and, pleased as punch, begin playing with it - nuzzling, and pawing and biting it as it staggers to its wobbly feet and tries to flee, again and again.
My cats do this same thing when they bring chipmunks and itsy-bitsy blind moles inside to play with. They chase the creatures from room to room, bat and swat them, bite them, lick them and flip them around until the poor little playmates die.
All about manatees
Manatees (family Trichechidae, genus Trichechus) are large, aquatic marine mammals sometimes known as sea cows. The largest population of manatees is found in Florida, where there are over 3,000 individuals. The florida manatee, Florida’s state marine mammal, is a large aquatic relative of the elephant. They are grayish brown in color and have thick, wrinkled skin on which there is often a growth of algae.
Well known for their gentle, slow-moving nature, manatees have also been known to body surf or barrel roll when playing. They normally rest and feed often. Manatees communicate by squealing under water to demonstrate fear, stress or excitement.
Manatees are capable of understanding discrimination tasks, and show signs of complex associated learning and advanced long term memory.
Manatees eat aquatic plants and can consume 10-15% of their body weight daily in vegetation. They graze for food along water bottoms and on the surface. They may rest submerged at the bottom or just below the surface, coming up to breathe on the average of every three to five minutes.
Sources:
Save the Manatee
Defenders of Wildlife
Monday, January 14, 2008
The Potty Rock - to train your dog
Place the Potty Rock™ in an area you want your dog to use for a designated potty area.
The potty rock is cast with a built in fragrance that is almost irresistible to canines, and makes potty training your dog a quick efficient process.
$14.95 at M & B Pet Products
Yes, I AM outraged!
An official report from People for The Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), submitted nine months after a Virginia government agency's deadline, shows that the animal rights group put to death more than 97 percent of the dogs, cats, and other pets it took in for adoption in 2006.
It sickens me that a group held out to be the "end all" and "be all" of fair treatment for animals, a group that is rabidly vocal about the treatment of animals by the food industry and the fashion industry would rather see an animal slaughtered and dumped than to make that animal available for adoption.
Hypocrisy!
PETA raised over $30 million in 2006 and is using that money to kill the only flesh-and-blood animals its employees actually see.
Think how many animals can be lovingly housed and cared for with $30 million!
PETA kills animals
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Creature Comforts Bed
The Bella Bed signature cave shape bed addresses pets’ desire to burrow, and the baffling of the bed offers support along the body of the pet and precludes the filler from shifting into the corners of the bed. The products are 100% hypoallergenic and washable, and offered in a dazzling array of color combinations.
$79.99 at Dog Beds and More
The Cashmere Classic Pet Bed
"The Bed" is made from the highest quality of 100% luxurious woven Mongolian Cashmere.
By Friends of Cashmere for $399.00
Heated & cooled pet bed
The first cooled and heated pet bed. Cool air therapy provides relief in warm weather while heated air therapy relieves joint and muscle pain.
From DolceVita $249.99
Cute and new: teeny little salamanders
Discovered in remote Costa Rican cloud forests, this amphibian's eye-catching coloration resembles the warning markings of deadly poison-dart frogs, also native to Central America.
Small enough to fit on a fingernail, this amphibian is among several previously unknown salamanders recently discovered in Costa Rica, scientists announced on January 4, 2008.
Measuring 2.4 inches (6 centimeters) long, this newfound nocturnal salamander hunts insects at a snail's pace but with a “ballistic tongue."
Source: National Geographic
Virgin birth celebrated in Hungary
A Hungarian aquarium is celebrating an extrordinary virgin birth after its lone female shark produced a pup without ever having come into contact with a male shark.
The white-tipped reef shark, named Ibolya by staff, has been on her own at the Nyiregyhaza Centre since she was born seven years ago.
"I was amazed when I realised it was a real shark. The mother is very protective of her pup, but as soon as we can, marine biologists want to get a DNA sample from both."
Parthenogenesis, where an egg starts to divide without being fertilised, occurs in a number of lower animals such as bees and ants but, it was thought, not in higher animals including cartilaginous fish such as a shark.
Source
LAPD enlists feral cats for rat patrol
They are the homeless of the domestic animal world -- colonies of feral cats that roam residential neighborhoods and lurk around office buildings and commercial garages, scavenging for food.
Unlike other strays that might rub up against a leg hoping for a crumb or a head rub, these felines are so unaccustomed to human contact that they dart away when people approach. Feral cats cannot be turned into house pets. When they end up in municipal shelters, they have little hope of coming out alive.
But one animal welfare group has figured out a way to save their lives and put them to work in Los Angeles. The Working Cats program of Voice for the Animals, a Los Angeles-based animal advocacy and rescue group, has placed feral cats in a handful of police stations with rodent problems, just as the group placed cats in the rat-plagued downtown flower district several years ago -- to great effect.
Six feral cats were recently installed as ratters in the parking lot of the Los Angeles Police Department's Southeast Division, and another group will be housed at the Central Division early in the new year.
Rats had been burrowing into the equipment bags that bicycle officers stored in outside cages; inside the facility, mice were sometimes scurrying across people's desks.
"Once we got the cats, problem solved," said Cmdr. Kirk Albanese, a captain at the Wilshire station at the time. "I was almost an immediate believer."
Source: Los Angeles Times
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Cat freed from jar
Animal control officials in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, rescued a feral cat that had been wandering for days with its head stuck in a glass jar. The 8-month old domestic shorthair male was found wedged under a deck. A veterinarian used cooking oil to remove the container, described as a mason jar, typically used to store vegetables or fruit.
Source
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Saturday, January 12, 2008
Free shipping on orders for pet rescue agencies
Happy New Year from Internet Pet Supplies!
You must enter COUPON CODE 1200160697 on your order form for $6.00 discount
Your pets are lucky to have a safe and loving home.Think of the millions of unwanted animals waiting for a family like yours.
Internet Pet Supplies appreciates and supports the dedication and concern for pets performed by Animal Welfare and Pet Rescue Organizations.
To show our support and willingness to help, we're offering FREE SHIPPING on any order delivered to a Pet Rescue, Shelter, or Animal Welfare Agency during the month of January, 2008.
Please encourage all your friends to visit and place an order at Internet Pet Supplies: www.i-pets.com.
We have the highest quality USA rawhide treats and pet toys at the lowest prices on the Internet.
The following are some of our favorite pet rescues, animal welfare agencies and animal shelters. We will gladly add others, just let us know their URL or address.
Humane Society of Monroe County
MN/WI Italian Greyhound Rescue
Lost But Loved (LBL) Animal Rescue
Olive Branch Animal Rescue & Refuge, Inc.You must enter COUPON CODE 1200160697 on your order form for $6.00 discount
Friday, January 11, 2008
It's understandable
Louis the Giant Pacific Octopus at Newquay's Blue Reef Aquarium is so attached to the Christmas present that was dropped into his aquarium tank, he fights his keepers whenever they try to take the toy from him.
Louis can dismantle and assemble his Mr Potato Head and has even learned to dig out food hidden in a secret box at the back of it.
Source
Yawn
The Nuremberg Zoo polar bear cub which was saved from its mother who wasn't paying sufficient care, gets a public airing.
It's just a faux "paw"
The Nevada Humane Society is doing a promotion surrounding the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday called "Black Is Beautiful" where black dogs and cats are offered for adoption at a reduced rate.
"Adopt a black or mostly black adult dog or cat Six months or older. Dogs - $40 and Cats - $25"
Mark Robinson called NHS executive director Bonney Brown to question whether the timing of the promotion was racially insensitive.
She said that they have an abundance of black animals and wanted a promotion to find homes for them. She said they set up the promotion, then realized it was over the King holiday and were indeed concerned that some might be offended by it. So, she said, they ran it by their three black staff members and all said they were fine with it.
"We never intended to offend anyone," she said.
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I never realized that people were less likely to adopt black dogs and black cats. I can't even begin to imagine why.
Lucky dog
This 50-pound female retriever mix darted inside a service entrance to the Memphis Zoo and led workers on a brief chase before it bolted over a 4-foot-high visitors railing and a retaining wall at the tiger exhibit.
She swam across a 12-foot-wide moat to the interior of the exhibit and was quickly attacked by a 225-pound female Sumatran tiger.
Zoo workers used fireworks and air horns to distract the two tigers in the exhibit and get them into their night enclosures behind the exhibit viewing area.
After emergency treatment by zoo veterinarians, the dog was taken to the Animal Emergency Medical Center in Memphis where she was reported in good condition Wednesday.
MSNBC
Why did the seal cross the road?
In San Luis Obispo, California, an adult elephant seal deserted the beach and crossed Highway 1 which runs through town.
Authorities decided not to try to force the seal back across the highway, but to watch it closely and see if the massive animal would head back to its natural habitat on its own.
He didn't. In fact, he has found a large puddle in the grass and settled in. For how long, no one knows.
He sure looks content, doesn't he?
The elephant seal should be able to go about two weeks before experiencing hunger pains, experts said.
NBC11.com
Is this the next Firedog?
Roll Call
Three adorable Chihuahua puppies who were born without front paws are now hot dogs on a roll - each equipped with their own custom set of wheels.
Litter mates Pablo, Carmen and Venus received the tiny carts, costing a total of $1,000, courtesy of North Shore Animal League donors.
The 11-month-old pups were adopted by Donna Imhof, a veterinary technician at the league's shelter in Port Washington, LI. She adopted them after the no-kill shelter rescued them from a puppy mill in Virginia last July. They were slated to be euthanized.
Source: New York Post
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Thursday, January 10, 2008
Chocolate Hedgehogs
Cute Baby Hedgehog
Insanely cute!
There's a whole series of photos of newborn hedgehogs at Dark Roasted Blend.
The new Knut
Zoo officials in Nuremberg announced Wednesday that Germany's new polar bear cub is probably a female. The cub's eyes are not yet open and its sexual organs not completely developed, so there's still a chance she could be a he, the Nuremberg zoo's deputy director Helmut Maegdefrau told reporters.
But the yet-unnamed 4-week-old cub - taken from its mother, Vera, on Tuesday amid concerns she could harm or even kill the newborn - is "lively, strong and well-fed," Maegdefrau said.
Four keepers are caring for the baby bear, who weighed in at 3.75 pounds, feeding it high-fat milk every four hours. "So far, it can only crawl a little," Maegdefrau said, noting that the cub does little more at the moment than sleep.
Another polar bear at Nuremberg, Vilma, gave birth around the same time as Vera but is believed to have killed and eaten her cubs earlier this week because they were sick.
The new cub will not be returned to its mother out of fear that Vera might eat it. The controversial decision to hand raise the cub was made after Vera was seen carrying the cub around the enclosure in her jaws.
Source
There are more photos of the cub and mom Vera at The Daily Mail.
Dogs in the White House
Terrierman has assembled a fascinating collection with photos and history of presidential pets.
The photo above is of Theodore Roosevelt, with family and "Skip," a small cross-bred feist that Roosevelt adopted while on a bear hunting trip out West.
Another interesting fact: Teddy's dog is the origin of the America Rat Terrier breed.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Some current cat news
The Associated Press reports that an Idaho cat entered an electrical substation, snuggled up to a warm transformer and contacted a live circuit, causing a short that blew out nine feeder lines. The cat died, but he also caused a power outage that blacked out more than 12,000 homes and businesses.
Speaking of dead cats, a dog in Britain missed the family’s dead cat so much that he dug up his grave and brought the body back into the house. The Times on Line reports that Oscar's owners woke up the next morning to discover the dog curled up beside Arthur, the late cat, in his basket.
Way to go, Granny
The light was already fading when 80-year-old Martha Smith heard her dog Bo barking furiously outside her Fairburn ranch house late last Thursday afternoon.
She looked outside and saw Bo, a Border collie, facing off with a snarling mountain lion.
So Smith, who was home alone, grabbed her .22-caliber rifle, walked outside and fired a shot at the lion. She missed.
Smith went back inside and called 911, but the dispatcher had trouble finding someone from Game, Fish & Parks to come out right away and take care of the lion.
So Smith grabbed the .22 again and went back outside where Bo was keeping the lion at bay.
She walked to within about 20 or 25 feet of the lion and fired. "I got as close as I could," Smith said. "I figured he'd run. I waited until he lifted his leg to run, and I got him right in the chest where his heart would be."
Source: Rapid City Journal
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2007 - the year in cats
Neatorama had a lot of stories and videos about cats in 2007. Here are some of the more popular ones, in case you missed them or want to see them again.
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The Best Veterinary Breakthroughs of 2007
Americans now spend more than $41 billion a year on their pets, according to Business Week magazine.
This year much of that money has been spent on a wide range of exciting breakthroughs in pet care. Marty Becker, veterinarian and author of two new books, "bowWOW!
Some of the most exciting breakthroughs: Melanoma Vaccine, Dental Disease Vaccine, New Vaccine Delivery System, and New Drug for Weight Loss among others.
ABC News
Hero Dog of 2008
Angela Marcelino rescued Maya from the Santa Clara County Animal Shelter. On June 17th, 2007, Maya returned the favor when she rescued Angela and fought off a felon and robber who was attacking Angela.
Maya is a testament to the fact that the Pit Bull breed can be hero dogs just like any other breed.
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Tuesday, January 8, 2008
Iguanas Fall From Florida Trees During Cold Snap
How cold was it in South Florida this week? So cold the iguanas fell from the trees.
The cold-blooded reptiles go into a deep sleep when the temperature falls into the 40s Fahrenheit (5 to 10 degrees Celsius). Their bodies turn gray, and they lose their grip, experts say.
While many of the iguanas will wake up, they could face death if low temperatures persist. Iguanas can sustain cold for four to ten hours before they have to wake up, Magill said.
According to Kenneth Krysko, a herpetologist at the Florida Museum of Natural History, losing a few iguanas "is a good thing."
"The [iguana] populations have expanded so drastically [that] when we do experience a really good cold snap, it will kill off a lot of them," Krysko said, adding that "they're not native, and they're considered a nuisance."
Source: National Geographic
Back from vacation!
Back from sunny, warm Florida, which was rainy and unusually cold. Bleh.
Happy New Year!
Tons to catch up on -
Izzy e-mailed to let me know about the launch of Petside.com, a new interactive website for pets and their people. The site includes a feature called Pet Vet, a tool where cat (or dog) owners can input their pet's symptoms into the Pet Vet and get useful advice and possible diagnoses.
Monica, from Dogs Deserve Better, e-mailed me about “Have a Heart for Chained Dogs” Campaign. The group annually sends Valentines and coupons for dog treats to chained canines across the country. They're aiming to have 10,000 addresses for perpetually chained dogs. The group also needs volunteers to make the Valentines and requests donations of coupons for dog treats or dog food.
I also received an e-mail from David with a reference to A Blog About Pets which has humor, pictures, and some handy pet information.
A report from CNN, about 10 dogs that changed the world. From a Soviet dog named Laika to a dog who stood between Alexander the Great and a charging elephant.
From theGinBlog, a series of disturbing photos of a dog who stood by his companion after it was hit by a car. The dog drew in a crowd as people were amazed at the display of canine loyalty.
At Animal(lover)dose, I found this amazing video. I thought only bulls did that.
Well - it IS nice to be back.
