Summer is here! Not only on the calendar, but weather-wise as well, finally! I love the heat, but remember to never, ever leave your pets in the car this time of year; a car sitting in the sun gets deadly hot in a very short time (and leaving the windows a tad open does not help):
Cars and Heat
Thousands of dogs die from being left in hot cars every year, and many of those who survive end up with brain damage. And even if it’s not all that hot out, don’t take any chances – researchers at Stanford University found that a car parked in the sun, even on cooler days and with the windows cracked, turns into a death chamber for animals and kids in a matter of minutes. Just look at the graph on the right: the inside temperature of a car parked in the sun on a 73-degree day rises to 100 degrees in just 22 minutes.
Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics
Vet School Gets Grant For Holistic Medicine
Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine received $110,000 for their Integrative Medicine program. The money comes from the American Holistic Veterinary Medicine Foundation and private donors, and will help the school respond to the growing demand for complementary therapies.
LSU School of Veterinary Medicine
Rosemary Essential Oil Can Help Increase Memory by 75%
Researchers found that diffusing just four drops of rosemary essential oil in a room resulted in the study participants performing 60-75% better in memory-related tasks than the control group in an “unscented” room.
I have yet to have a dog select it, but in Applied Zoopharmacognosy, rosemary essential oil is said to among other things stimulate circulation, help with respiratory issues, lack of confidence, and mental fatigue.
The Daily Mail
Hydrotherapy Helps Heidi the Rabbit
When arthritis started bothering four-year old pet rabbit Heidi to the point where she didn’t even want to move anymore, her vet suggested swim therapy. So Heidi’s owner took her to “Paddy’s Pool”, a canine hydrotherapy center in Hampshire, England, where she was fitted with a tiny life jacket and introduced to the water. She immediately took to it, and pool owner Linda Prove says Heidi has become more confident and agile with each session, and is now a much happier rabbit.
BBC
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yWSiasRPPo8
Prairie Dogs Describe Intruders in Great Detail
Con Slobodchikoff, Professor Emeritus at the Biology Department at Northern Arizona University, has been studying prairie dogs and their language for 25 years, and have found that their warning “chirps” contain a wealth of information about the potential threat. A human intruder is described with details about their species (human), size, shape and even the color of their clothes! And they never mistake a dog for a coyote (or vice versa).
NPR
