Why Dogs Love Bones

animal pet science

Why Dogs Love Bones

Unknown Tuesday, November 10, 2015 Komentar

Seeing a dog chewing on a piece of bone is not something really special, even when it seems to get aggressive when disturbed. Dogs love bones. It is a fact. However, not only dogs, but all canines including fox, wolves, jackal, coyotes, dingoes, etc. enjoy chewing on pieces of bone, and they will bury these treasure in the ground to save that piece of delicacy for savoring later. Why do dogs love bones anyway? There are several answers for this question.

Firstly, dogs enjoy chewing on bones because those pieces are sources of nutrition. Dogs know that instinctively. Bone is a perfect food rich in calcium phosphorus and trace minerals. That way, dogs can remove plaque from their body. Besides that, chewing on bones make dogs happy due to the flowing of endorphins. This desire to chew on bones is very strong in dogs and all canines, thus when the natural urge to chew arises, they will start to chew on any hard stuffs they can find including plastic toys, shoes, or even table legs.

Secondly, it has something to do with evolution. Long before dogs are domesticated, their ancestors along with the ancestors of the other modern canines had developed a skull shape with strong jaw muscles and sharp teeth—it was around eight million years ago when open habitats were spreading through Asia, Europe and North America. Since the preys tend to group together so there will be more eyes to watch for a stalking predator, which is to protect themselves, ancient canines would need to hunt together as well so that they will be more likely to succeed in hunting. Hunting in pack was also the only way for smaller predators, including ancient canines, to snatch a very large prey. 

Slowly, after a few generations of hunting in pack, their jaws had become more accustomed to biting and holding on their preys. Thus, the modern dogs we see today love to chew—basically, it means biting and holding—on bones because it is simply a leftover evolutionary trait. In other words, predators with larger teeth and stronger jaws were more likely to hunt better, and to survive to pass on their large-toothed, strong-jawed genes to the next generation. It seems that living and hunting in packs coincided with a shift in dogs' diets today.

The resulting evolution of their strong jaws slowly turned the ancestors of our domestic pets into hypercarnivores. Hypercarnivores are animals which have a diet that is more than 70 percent meat, with the balance consisting of non-animal foods such as fungi, plant, etc.. Let us say, they also prey at all stages of life for a variety of organisms. Some of those well-know hypercarnivorous animals are sharks, starfishes, salmons, all sorts of felines (e.g. cats, lions, tigers, etc.) and canines in its natural state.

Dogs love bones. However, are bones really safe for dogs? Is it OK to feed your dogs with raw bones? Is it OK to let your dogs pick any bone from garbage? That is indeed another case and we are discussing about it here.

If a dog's prayers were answered, bones would rain from the sky.
~ Anonymous

Related topics you may find interesting:

Why Your Dogs Are Happy to See You; Why Dogs Bite People

Via bbc, why. Photo: Freeimages.com/Vaughan Willis

Baca selengkapnya

Ayam Cemani, The Unholy Yet The Most Expensive Chicken in The World

animal pet

Ayam Cemani, The Unholy Yet The Most Expensive Chicken in The World

Unknown Wednesday, November 04, 2015 Komentar

If there is an exotic chicken that will cost you more than $2,000 each, it is Cemani Chicken (or Ayam Cemani)—originated from Java Island in Indonesia—making it the most expensive chicken legally available in markets. The price is considerably high due to the rare availability outside of its native Indonesia and their being completely black: extraordinary ink-black feathers with a greenish shine, black legs, claws and toe nails, black beak and tongue, black comb and wattles; even their meat, bones and organs appear totally black except for their blood which is still red albeit extremely darker than a normal chicken’s blood.

The raven-black colour of the chicken occurs as a result of hyperpigmentation or excessive pigmentation of the tissues, caused by a mutated genetic condition known as fibromelanosis. This genetic condition is also found in some similar black chicken breeds such as Silkie (of China), Swedish Black (of Swedia) and Kadaknath (of India) although Cemani Chicken is considered the darkest of them all. “It is clearly the chicken of Our Dark Lord and Savior Satan!” said someone. Well, of course it was just an unusual expression of praise on the celebrated breed albeit Cemani Chicken being the “Lamborghini of poultry” as well. 

As traditional Javanese people are very fond of chickens, Cemani Chicken holds a special place in the culture for centuries and such breed receives special treatment. In some, if not many, cases, the pure black chicken are considered status symbols, good luck charms and are used in traditional medicine preparations to cure a variety of ailments. The chickens are even believed to have supernatural power and often used as offerings in a shamanic ritual. The black meat and its dark red blood—the darker the better—are favoured by unearthly forces they are trying to connect to, they said. Well, these occult practices can be rooted from the glorious days of the Majapahit Empire in the 15^th century. But of course you do not have to be an occult practitioner to be able to enjoy the innocent and wonderful view of these majestic chickens on your own backyard. Cemani Chickens are robust, low cost, and by nature easy to handle, just like any other chickens.

Based on the comb type, Cemani Chickens fall into several categories as follow:

• Ayam Cemani Wilah: single-combed 
• Ayam Cemani Sumpel: pea-combed
• Ayam Cemani Telon: pea-combed; splitting into three sections on top
• Ayam Cemani Mahkota: rose-combed

Ayam Cemani Telon

Based on the feather, Cemani Chickens fall into several sub-breeds as follow:

• Ayam Cemani: with all its common characteristics
• Ayam Cemani Walik: with frizzled feathers
• Ayam Cemani Rajeg Wesi (the Iron Feathers): with needle-like feathers
• Ayam Cemani Putih: white-feathered Cemani Chicken

Ayam Cemani Walik

Based on the skin and tongue, Cemani Chickens fall into several categories as follow:

1. Ayam Cemani (the common breed of Cemani Chicken). As we may have acknowledged, the word “ayam” means “chicken” in Indonesian, while the word “cemani” means “completely black” in Javanese. The chickens that falls into this category have normal feathers, just like any ordinary chicken breeds, but with black feathers—all black. However, the colour of its tongue is rather grey, and not pure black.

2. Ayam Cemani Asli (the purest breed of Cemani Chicken). It has exactly the same characteristics as the common breed except for its tongue and blood which is black, or extremely dark (as the colour of its blood is still red in fact). Due to its being extremely small in number, the breed, if available, is usually sold at very fantastic prices, much higher than that of the common breed. However, several sources claimed that such breed with a pure black tongue and blood does not really exist.

3. Ayam Kedu (Kedunese Chicken). Being the ancestor of Cemani Chicken, it has the same physical appearance as Cemani Chicken except for the red colour on some parts of the body, including the comb, neck and buttock. Kedu is a region in Central Java where Cemani Chicken originated from centuries ago.

 

Ayam Cemani Rajeg Wesi

How to Breed Ayam Cemani

Instead of black eggs, Cemani Chicken lays normal cream-colored 45-gram eggs and it becomes the only part of the friendly bird that is not black. The hen lays up to 100 eggs on the first year. A typical laying cycle lasts for about 20 to 30 eggs, and then she will stop laying the eggs for 3 to 6 months. However, the distribution of black pigment in the offspring may vary. If you want to breed the bird, be aware that the hens are poor setters, and they rarely hatch their own brood so you may want to consider using incubators. 

So, what do you think about Ayam Cemani as the most expensive chicken you'll ever see? They do deserve a special spot among your lovely pets.

A drunken man was dreaming that he died and reincarnated on earth as a chicken. He became heavy and tried to lay an egg! He pushed and pushed and laid the 1st egg, then the 2nd. He was pushing to lay a 3rd egg when his wife screamed ''James! You're shitting on the bed!" ~ Anonymous

Via amusingplanet, carabudidayaternak; Photo: masterhias, gracefulchickens, cemanifarms, jf2013eks

Baca selengkapnya

Australia The Origin of Komodo Dragons

animal history

Australia The Origin of Komodo Dragons

Unknown Tuesday, October 27, 2015 Komentar

“I shouted and he came to help me but he didn’t like to come up because the dragon was still moving around,” Maen explains. “Then he saw the blood on the floor and he got everyone from the kitchen. All the people come running here, but other dragons follow along as well.” ~  quoted from timetravelturtle

Komodo dragons (Varanus komodoensis) are the largest of the monitor lizards, the largest living lizards to date, and the top predators in their habitat due to the size and ferocity. A fully grown komodo dragon can grow up to 3 meters in length and 70 kilograms in weight. A female dragon can lay dozens of eggs without mating, and her size is smaller than that of the male. Fossil record shows that komodo dragons are the last of a group of lizards called varanids.

These lizards are cannibals and they can smell blood kilometers away. They eat their young and sometimes their eggs as well. Young komodo dragons will roll themselves in entrails and faeces to prevent being eaten by mature dragons. Young komodo dragons are also able to climb trees. Their saliva contains over 50 types of bacteria, 7 of them are highly septic, which come in handy when hunting their preys, e.g. birds, rodents, snakes, fish, crabs, snails, and mammals including goats, deer, wild boar, water buffalo, and sometimes even humans. For nearly a million years the lizards have been about the same size. It is indeed a fearsome ancient species.

Komodo dragons have been living on five islands (Komodo, Rinca, Gili Montang, Gili Dasami and Flores) in southern Indonesia as their natural habitat. Komodo dragons are endangered due in part to their limited range. It appears that they have been hunted over the years, but not to the extent of decimating the population. Komodo National Park and strict anti-poaching laws in Indonesia have helped protect the giant lizards. But, how come they can only be found roaming freely on those islands? Where is the origin of komodo dragons?

Komodo dragons were discovered for the first time by Western scientists back in 1910. Under harsh environmental conditions, komodo dragons have been so far known to be able to swim within short range distance between islands—and those five islands are close to each other. But now scientists have also found out that komodo dragons most likely evolved in Australia and dispersed westward to their current habitat in Indonesia.

In the past, scientists suggested that komodo dragons might have developed from a smaller ancestor isolated on the Indonesian islands, evolving into their current size as a response to the lack of competition from other large predators or as specialist hunters of pygmy elephants known as Stegodon. But recently, a team of scientists have unearthed numerous fossils from eastern Australia dated from 300,000 years ago to 4 million years ago that they now know belong to komodo dragons. The fossils and the bones of komodo dragons are identical. They also said that the ancestor of komodo dragons most likely had evolved in Australia and then they spread westward, reaching Flores island about 900,000 years ago. Comparisons between the fossils and the bones of the living komodo dragons show that they have been about the same size since then.

However, one question remains unanswered: Why did komodo dragons go extinct on Australia while surviving on a few isolated Indonesian isles? No matter what the answer is, now we can also mention that Australia is the origin of komodo dragons.

***

Via livescience, sandiegozoo, komodonationalpark

Photo: Freeimages.com/Lauren Burbank; herval / Foter / CC BY-NC-SA

Baca selengkapnya

Why Your Dogs Are Happy to See You

animal pet

Why Your Dogs Are Happy to See You

Unknown Friday, October 23, 2015 Komentar

Throughout history, dog is no doubt man’s best friend. They are the most loyal companions who will share their happiness with you. And anytime you walk through the door, you will see them wagging their tails insanely, sometimes overwhelmed with chaotic excitement. There is of course a scientific reason behind it, and it is not just because you are the one who feeds them everyday with your own hands. Let us see why your dogs are happy to see you now.

Using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging)—while presenting certain items to the dogs and mapping their response—it was discovered that the temporal lobes in dog brains lit up "significantly more" when presented with faces than with objects. That implies that dogs may have the ability to recognize both human and dog faces. The research conducted at Emory University also shows that face recognition causes dog brains to activate in the same areas as in monkey and human brains. These areas are separate from the "reward areas" in the brain that would usually be triggered by anticipation of food. This fMRI result may suggest that dogs love their humans, and not just for food. They simply love the company of humans.

On further tests, it is also discovered that during abscence and then at rejoining with the owners, dogs’ behavior is very similar to that observed in children and mothers in similar situations. The abscence of or the separation from the owner is not voluntary for the dog as it is always unnatural for a dog to detach and abandon the pack. And humans are part of their pack, if not the pack leader. This insane level of happy greeting received by humans from their dogs is likely due to the fact that dogs do not recognize the possibility of non-voluntary detachment. Let us now imagine what it is like for a dog to be alone all day while we are gone. Unlike humans who can spend their being at home alone with all sorts of gadgets and activities of their choice, dogs will just sit, yawn, sleep, eat, run around and create chaos in the house. So in addition of being happy to see their owner, dogs are probably feeling some relief that they will do something interesting, such as going for a walk and having someone around. Inviting a dog walker or sending their dogs to daycare will be a good solution.

However, a dog’s particular greeting to humans depends on several factors, such as the dog’s temperament, the personality of the owner, the nature of their relationship, the level of stress and anxiety, and the dog’s capacity for self-control. And it is important to note that stress manifests differently in dogs than it does in humans. Moreover, licking you in the face is also a part of their social greeting. That way, dogs are trying to taste and smell you in the attempt to find out where you might have been and what you might have done during the time when you are not with them. Well, let us call it curiosity.

The other signs which indicate that the dogs are happy to see their owners are wagging tails and lifting eyebrows. The behavioral reason for these is that dogs can express strong social emotions (such as attachment and separation anxiety) to certain humans, such as their owners. They do not show such reaction for other things that may excite them, such as toys or food.

Below are several things that can trigger over-excitement or make your dogs "really" happy to see you:

• Communicating with your dogs through words.
• Treating your dog like a child.
• Your dog is bored.
• Acting like your dog’s playmate, not pack leader.
• Being tense and nervous around your dog.

***

Read our related topics you may find interesting:
Why Dogs Bite People; Why Dogs Love Bones

Via abc7, io9, cesarsway; Photo: Freeimages.com/Kym Parry

Baca selengkapnya

How Sharks Survive for Millions of Years

animal history

How Sharks Survive for Millions of Years

Unknown Thursday, October 22, 2015 Komentar

Do you know that the mako shark is the fastest species of shark today as it is able to swim up to 65 mph (over 100 kph)? Well, knowing there is a shark that can reach a speed limit for most of modern cars is very impressive! But knowing that sharks have been surviving for more than 450 million years on this Earth is ultra-impressive! So, how do sharks survive for millions of years until today?

Certainly not all early sharks that once were roaming our seas and oceans still exist now. Judging from early fossils there are reports indicating that at least half of those species of sharks have become extinct. And nowadays, there are only a few hundreds of sharks species remaining.

Many of the prehistoric sharks were quite small. Some of them looked more like fish and some were similar to eels. Their noses were mostly round rather than pointed. Also they did not have a brain as large as it is today—yet, more than 2/3 of the size of a brain today is for the senses, and it supports their ability to smell. This is one of the areas where sharks have considerably been able to evolve and to become a more intelligent species.

The teeth of prehistoric sharks were also quite different from they are today. Instead of being razor sharp they were smooth. This could indicate that early sharks fed upon plants in the water instead of being meat eaters as we know them today. This could be an indication that something occurred that made it impossible for plants to grow for a while. In order to survive, these early sharks started to consume other living creatures in the water. And today, they all eat meat.

Below are modern sharks categories based on their diets:

1. Fast-moving hunters: Many sharks (such as the great white, blue shark, mako, tiger shark and hammerhead) are swift, sleek predators that consume fish, squid, other sharks and marine mammals (such as sea lions, seals, and smaller whales). 
2. Slow-moving hunters: Some bottom-dwelling sharks (such as zebra horn shark, angel shark and wobbegong) are slow-swimming predators that crush and eat shellfish (such as crabs and clams) from the ocean bed. 
3. Filter Feeders: Some large sharks (such as whale shark, basking shark and megamouth shark) are filter feeders. They sieve tiny plankton and small animals from the water through their gills as they swim with wide-open mouths. 

The fact that sharks are found in water all over the world also shows their ability to evolve. Some species were able to adapt to fresh water and to salt water environments. They were also able to live in different temperatures. No wonder if many sharks species had managed to survive five mass extinctions.

There is evidence of catastrophic events that dramatically altered the environment, resulting in the mass extinction of a significant percentage of species about 251 million years ago. During these deadly events, about 95% of living species were killed by either a comet impact or volcanic activities. Fossil evidence indicates that sharks might have survived these catastrophes by seeking refuge in the depths of the ocean or by simply diving and living deeper.

Actually, for any species that survived, mass extinctions can provide a great opportunity to flourish if existing predators disappeared or new habitats opened up. These events, in turn, have sometimes given rise to “adaptive radiations”—a dramatic increase in new different species. Sharks also benefited from such adaptive radiations, giving rise to many new species of sharks about 360 to 286 million years ago.

At the end of the Cretaceous about 65 million years ago, another global catastrophe destroyed a mass number of species, including the dinosaurs. The sharks who survived that mass extinction include the modern sharks of today.

But, are sharks going to be able to survive? There is fear that sixth mass extinction will happen due to human taking too much control today, resulting in great challenges for sharks to continue to evolve for survive. Similar conditions also happen to many other species which are in danger of becoming extinct. Only time will tell if sharks are able to survive today despite the fact that they have certainly done an amazing job of it millions of years ago.

***

Via sharkopedia.discovery, sharksaver, enchantedlearning

Photo: Freeimages.com/Piotr Ciuchta

Baca selengkapnya

Why Dogs Bite People

animal pet safety

Why Dogs Bite People

Unknown Monday, October 19, 2015 1 Komentar

There are strong reasons why dogs bite people, including children. And in some worst case scenarios, the attacks had also led to fatality. Training the dogs will prove useful to minimize any risks of getting bitten, but it will be better if we understand the reasons why people get nipped or bitten by friendly dogs, especially at home:

• The dog is protecting something valuable or in its possessions, for example food, water dish, toy, territory or resting place, puppies (maternal instinct in this case), or even a person. Not only in guard dogs and herding breeds, such behaviors can clearly be seen in any dogs. It is a behavior that many humans really do not appreciate but is actually very normal for dogs.
• The dog is afraid of strangers, for example postal workers, technician or any other unfamiliar visitors. Bites driven by fear can also occur when the dog is startled at home. 
• The dog is injured or sick. The pain can drive any dogs to bite. Scheduling an appointment with a veterinarian could prove useful if injury or sickness is the real reason of why the dog bites people.
• The dog is provoked by someone running or cycling near him/her position, resulting in a chase. Avoiding to cross path with a wandering dog on a street is a wise thing to do. But if the dog chases you, do not run. Stand still and avoid eye contact as this can be seen as a challenge— hopefully the dog will lose interest and sniffs at you and then walks away to find a new target. And in the worst case, if the dog chases and knocks you down, you have protect your heads, necks, and hands.

However, several other possible reasons of why dog bite people can be added if a child is bitten by the dog as below:

• The child has provoked or frightened the dog, for example cuddling it, moving into its territory, stepping over it, taking something it. A provoked or frightened dog may pose some risks to the child.
• The child has hurt the dog by stepping on it, poking it, or pulling its fur, tail, or ears. If not hurting, it can be startling the dog and provoking it to bite.
• The dog is overly excited when both the child and the dog are enganging in a play. A playful dog can pose significant risks to the child. Even if the dog has no intention of harming the child, it may get caught up in the excitement of the chase and nip at children or knock them down.
• The dog is of a herding breed and nips while trying to “herd” children. It is a normal and natural instinct, and not necessarily a learned behavior, especially for a herding breed. And the more people react to being herded by running, yelling, or else, the more likely the dog will be thinking of it as a fun and entertaining game.
• Children are generally not very good at reading signals that a dog is trying to guard his possessions, for example placing its paw on top of the items and growling before the dog bites. As we know, most of them give clear warning before the dogs bite people.

***

Read our related topics you may find interesting:

Why Dogs Love Bones; Why Your Dogs Are Happy to See You

Via cesarsway, doggonesafe; Photo: FreeImages.com/Dimitri C

Baca selengkapnya