Great Grey Owl (by Ari Hazeghi)
Tag Archives: Animal welfare
Saturday’s Mother & Son
You reblogged oceansdream
Mother and Son – Giant panda cub Xiao Liwu and his mother Bai Yun share a moment.
Source: sdzoo
2.26.13 Don’t Allow Breed Discrimination
There has been a great deal of discussion lately about breed discrimination. In Maryland, where I live, there is deep discrimination against pit bulls and mixes that look like pit bulls. Last year, the Court of Appeals (that is our highest state court), passed a ruling that said that all Pit Bull dogs are ‘inherently dangerous.’ On top of that they said that Landlords would be held responsible if anyone who they rent to has a Pit Bull dog and it bites someone. This is out and out breed discrimination.
The ruling stemmed from a dog bite inflicted on a child by a dog who lived his life on a chain and was not adequately socialized. How sad for all involved. A 10 year old child and his family were traumatized, which is terrible. But the family did not just sue the owner, they also sued the Landlord (a 92 year old woman who happened to die before the case was finished). The Maryland Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the boy’s family and against the Landlord, saying that the Landlord was responsible because she should have known that there was a pit bull on her property, and that all pit bulls are inherently dangerous. I am sorry but all dogs, especially if they are tied up have the potential to bite.
You may wonder what all this means, so let me try to explain. Let’s say I had three dogs: Louise (hound/lab), Sofie (sheltie/corgie), and Sweet Pea (a Pit Bull). If someone broke in to my house and Louise attached them, the person that broke in would be at fault for being on my property. But, if Sweet Pea bit them, I would be at fault for owning a Pit Bull. Not only would I be at fault but if I was a renter, my Landlord could be sued because I have a Pit Bull.
Shelters are filling up with any dog that even looks like a Pit and they are having a really hard time getting them adopted out. Insurance companies are refusing to insure people with Pit Bull dogs. Last week, Maryland Sen. Brian Frosh (D-Montgomery County) pushed a bill that would counteract the anti-pit bull court ruling, the Capital Gazette reports. The House unanimously approved the bill so it heads to the Senate next.
I do hope that breed discrimination in Maryland does not become the law of the land. What would you do if all of a sudden your dog was deemed ‘inherently dangerous,’ and your Landlord said the dog had to go?
Sometimes people ask me if Louise is a Pit Bull – I don’t know what I would do if someone tried to take her away (I think I might bite them (I believe humans are inherently dangerous)).
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
1.17.13 Why Is Sofie’s Nose Turning Pink?
When I got home from my trip, the family was very concerned about Sofie’s nose. They had all noticed that her black nose had slowly been turning pink. They worried that she was doing something to herself, like scraping off her skin (ouch!). Or that she was sick. I assured them it was nothing to worry about, but then I started to worry. Why does a dog’s nose turn from black to pink? Did she have a vitamin deficiency? Was there something wrong? I know that with age most of my animals had started to lose pigment in their noses, but she was only 2 years old. So, being the ‘research-everything’ person that I am, I of course ‘Googled’ the situation, and found some very interesting facts.
Black Nose
April
1. Some dogs loose pigment in their noses in the winter. (Which is what I think might be going on here.) They call this ‘snow nose’ or ‘winter nose.’ Who knew? Though it seems to be something that is more common to dogs like Labrador Retrieve, Golden, Bernese or Husky (Sofie being none of those that we know – well maybe Golden?), the seasonal variation is no cause for alarm and goes back to black in the warmer months. I guess we will have to see.
2. Age of course is another reason. There is an enzyme called Tyrosinase which produces pigment. As a dog ages the nasal plenum (that is a cool word, don’t you think?) might change from black to brown or pink, as less of the enzyme is produced. Interestingly enough, Tyrosinase is also sensitive to temperature. This may be why the fading of the ‘plenum’ in warmer months happens too.
Pink Nose
January
3. Dermatitis, especially from plastic bowls, has been found to temporarily cause this. Or a real trauma, like an abrasion. If allergies are the cause, the dogs gums will possibly be red or inflamed too.
4. There is an immune disease that can cause a pink nose, called Vitiligo. (That is the disease that Michael Jackson said he had that turned his skin from black to white. I wonder if Sofie can sing?) But if a dog has this, there would be white patches usually throughout its body and white hairs. This seems to be found in Doberman, German Shepard, Rottweiler, and Dachshund mostly. It appears to be a rare problem, but I was happy to know that it can be managed by nutritional supplements (if you’re worry about the color of your dog’s nose). I guess show dogs can be disqualified if their pigment is not exactly right – so this might help in those cases.
Any changes in our little furry charges is always a cause of concern, but luckily Sofie has to go to the vet soon for her Booster shots, so I will have Dr. Kate take a look. Otherwise I would just wait until spring to see if her nose turns back to black. If it stays pink I guess I will have to invest in some Doggie sunscreen (Is there such a thing?).
What color is your dog’s nose?
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
12.20.12 Puppies Are Not Toys Pledge
We took the “Puppies Are Not Toys Pledge” sponsored by RumpyDog and he sent us this wonderful prize pack from the ASPCA of NYC. We grew up in New York so we feel a special affinity to anything from up there. What great fun this has been to win something for a pledge that we would take anyway, Thank you Rumpy and DeDe and June Buggy for making people smarter about this sad fact.
We love opening boxes and we never won anything before so this was neato! We won a new jingle bell collar (which is a little tight, but maybe they thought we were elf dogs), a new SantaPaws stocking (which is absolutely gorgeous), a cat toy for the kitties, an ASPCA wrist band for Mom, a box of Walker’s Scottie Dog Shortbread cookies for our guests, a box of doggy gift cards, and a really neat orange tote bag to put it all in. Yahoooooo!!! We feel really special. Thank you RumpyDog, you made our day. Also a big thanks to Olivia Melikhov at the ASPCA for getting this to us so quickly.
I don’t have any prizes to give away, but please take the pledge. Your gift is one less animal in a shelter or neglected because they were not right for a family that did not really understand that Pets Are Not Toys.
Just another DogDaz morning at the zoo ❤
DogDaz Zoo 