animals

These Front Range animal shelters changed my family’s life, twice

Published

4 months ago

September 3, 2024

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Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites. Each week, we offer our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems).

Fourteen years after adopting my dog from Denver Dumb Friends League, I returned there with her body.

Daisy was skinny and fearful when she was adopted from Denver’s Dumb Friends League at 2 years old, but quickly became a beloved family member and lived to age 16. (John Wenzel, The Denver Post)

Read the rest of this story on TheKnow.DenverPost.com.

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agriculture

CDC calls for expanded bird flu testing after more dairy worker infections found in Colorado and Michigan

Published

1 month ago

November 8, 2024

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Federal health officials on Thursday called for more testing of employees on farms with bird flu after a new study showed that some dairy workers had signs of infection, even when they didn’t report feeling sick.

Farmworkers in close contact with infected animals should be tested and offered treatment even if they show no symptoms, said Dr. Nirav Shah, principal director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The new guidance comes after blood tests for 115 farmworkers in Michigan and Colorado showed that eight workers — or 7% — had antibodies that indicated previous infection with the virus known as Type A H5N1 influenza.

Read the rest of this story on TheKnow.DenverPost.com.

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animals

What to do if your dog eats pot

Published

2 months ago

October 9, 2024

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Dogs are naturally curious animals, notorious for exploring the world by way of their mouths. So if you’re a cannabis user, it’s possible – even likely – that one day your dog will sample your stash.

Take it from Dr. Kate Smith, medical director for Animal Urgent Care in Arvada, which gets calls about pets that have consumed pot almost every time she’s in the office.

Sometimes, the owners aren’t aware that’s what happened. They call and report the dog seems wobbly or out of it, like a human that’s had one too many drinks. Other times, there’s evidence like an empty edibles container or a ripped baggie.

Read the rest of this story on DenverPost.com.

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animals

The Reason Dogs Have Puppy Dog Eyes

Published

3 months ago

September 10, 2024

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No matter what they do – all is forgiven when they show the puppy dog eyes…how did they learn the trick?

They are known as man’s best friend and have been around 30-40,000 years. Dogs became domesticated to help humans during the hunter/gatherer phase of development. And the bond has stuck ever since. Europe, Canada and the US are the most bonded to their dogs. “Puppy dog eyes” started around 1910 in popular journalism and has stuck. It is a reference to the sweet, adoring way dog can look at you…especially if they have done something wrong or in need. And it seems, the reason dogs have puppy dog eyes is do to man. This seemingly simple movement of eyebrows is proof of canine evolution and is due to their constant companionship with their pet parents.

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A study published in the Journal of the National Academy of Sciences explains dogs’ faces are capable of complex expressions thanks to a pair of muscles located near their eyes. By pulling their inner eyebrows dogs are able to give us the famous and adorable stare, facilitating human care and improving their communication skills.

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The study, conducted by the University of Portsmouth, was interested in how dogs controlled their brows and how this movement was used as a tool for communication. Researchers gathered some dogs and studied these two muscles, finding that they work in tandem to widen and open dog’s eyes. Results showed dogs move their eyebrows more often when humans paid attention to them and less often when they were ignored or given food. These findings suggest that the eyebrow movement is voluntary, and that dogs use it to express their needs.

Other results show that humans tend to respond positively to these arching eyebrows and that people and dogs receive a dose of oxytocin when engaging in eye-to-eye contact.

In order to learn if this trait was due to human influence, researchers gathered some data on wolves. These animals were unable to replicate eyebrow movements, proving that our decades of adopting dogs as pets have changed some of their behavior.

Dogs may not be able to hunt as ably as they used to, but they can try their hardest to mirror our facial expressions. When it comes to living with humans, cuteness is what matters most.

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