Mapping Your Dog's Health, Oakley Knows the Rules, Meet the Doodle Makeovers, and More!

The DAP team found that dogs suffered more infections in the Northeast, more dental problems in the West, and more skin issues in the South. photo: DAP

Location, Location, Location:
Mapping Your Dog's Health

A recent analysis by the Dog Aging Project (DAP) found where your dog lives can affect its health. 

DAP researchers first divided the U.S. into four geographic regions: Northeast, Midwest, South, and West. Then, crunching data provided by over 47,000 participating dog owners, they compared each region's notable environmental factors - yard pesticide use, climate, types of home heating or cooling, what kind of water the dogs swam in, etc. - with the canine diseases most commonly found in each area.

Of course, there was a lot more science - and nuance - involved, but generally the DAP team found that dogs suffered more infections in the Northeast, more dental problems in the West, and more skin issues in the South. Researchers didn't call out the Midwest for any particular health issues - at least not in their summary - but it was the only region where air fresheners made the list of common environmental factors (all those nice Midwestern dog moms keeping not-nice smells at bay, no doubt). Other conditions like cancer, neurological issues, and digestive problems were fairly similar across regions, as were dogs' levels of activity.

The takeaway in practical terms? Northeastern dog owners should watch out for infections like tick-borne diseases, Westerners should talk with their vets about preventive dental care, and those in hot Southern climates should be alert for signs of itching, allergies, and pests like fleas. 

Finally, no matter where we live, we should all pay attention to our dogs' environments, including what household products we use and where we let our dogs play. That's not science - just plain common sense for anyone who loves a dog.

Source: dogagingproject.org

Oakley showed officers he could walk out in full compliance. photo: CBS News

Oakley Knows the Rules:
No Leash, No Go

A Staffordshire Terrier named Oakley showed his cool under literal fire in suburban Chicago recently.

Aurora police officer Michael Ely and his partner had just broken down the door of a burning home when they spotted a chunky gray dog trapped behind a gate. At first, the dog seemed to be running away from his rescuers. But in fact, he was showing them something very important: his leash. Apparently even the threat of smoke and flames wasn't enough for this good boy to break the rules.

"He ran right to that leash and kind of looked up at it, and I'm like, 'Okay, buddy. We'll put your leash on if that makes you feel better," Ely recalled. "As soon as I put the leash on, he took off on me."

Luckily, no one else was home at the time of the fire. and Oakley's family is forever grateful that their pup was saved without injury. As for Officer Ely, he's now keeping a leash at both the front and back doors of his own home - just in case his dog ever needs to make a quick exit like Oakley.

Source: cbsnews.com

Miss Buttercup the “Bernedoodle.” photo: Geoffrey Tischman, Animal Care Centers of NYC

What Wig?
Doodle Makeovers Breed Success for New York Shelter

Finally, a New York shelter has come up with a winning strategy to find homes for its harder-to-adopt larger dogs. Enter the doodle makeover!

A new video from the Animal Care Centers of NYC opens with the caption, "We've never seen this many doodles at our shelter before," then goes on to showcase a series of clearly non-doodle dogs hilariously decked out with "doodle" wigs. There's Suzie Q, a pink-nosed Pit mix, sporting a curly blonde mane. Or a big boy called LaGuardia cheekily masquerading as a Schnoodle.

Made by Lois Huang, the video has garnered tens of thousands of views since it first posted last month - and led to nine dog adoptions in a single day. Those include Miss Buttercup, a stray who'd been at the shelter for months before her forever family spotted her hamming it up in the video wearing a curly doodle wig. Now known simply as Butter, she spends her days cuddling on the couch or lounging on the bed with her new humans.

"We really just wanted to use humor to get people to come into the shelter to find the perfect dog," says Huang. This is one wiggy idea that just seems to be working.

Sources: washingtonpost.com

Meeko (the dog) and Russell (the crow) are inseparable. photo: Instagram

Dog and Crow:
A Lesson in Friendship

Earlier this summer, a young crow fell from a nest atop an 80-foot tall fir tree in a Portland, Oregon, backyard. Injured and struggling to walk, the fledgling was taken in by Autumn Buck and her husband, who placed it in a makeshift basket nest, providing food and water after the mother bird failed to return.

Also on nurse duty was Meeko, the couple's five-year-old Border Collie, who stayed by the little crow's side, chasing off any neighborhood cats who threatened its recovery. As the young crow grew stronger, so did the animals' interspecies bond.

Now Meeko and the crow - since named Russell - are inseparable. Russell sits on Meeko's tail as they lounge on the porch and follows Meeko around the yard. He (or possibly she - they're not sure) has even taken up some of the dog's favorite hobbies, including gnawing on pine cones and playing fetch. While Russell sleeps in a nearby tree, he's quick to peck at the glass door when he wants Meeko to join him outside.

Buck hopes to help Russell find a crow community and, eventually, a partner (crows typically mate for life). And if there are any baby crows in Russell's future, no doubt Meeko will be ready to lend a helping paw as the proud grand-dog.

"There's an important lesson there, you know, about everybody coexisting and getting along, even if you are completely different from someone," says Buck. Timely advice for all of us in the allegedly smarter species.

Source: washingtonpost.com

Knowing the difference between the words “pizza” and “nail trim” is required learning for most smart dogs. photo: Scientific American

Beyond Words:
Some Bright Pups Recognize Categories

Most dogs know at least a few words in our strange human language: come, sit, salami. But a group of extra-bright pups recently demonstrated the ability to go beyond simple labels for things and actually recognize categories, a major leap in understanding similar to that seen in human toddlers.

For the study, researchers at Hungary's Eötvös Loránd University used 10 dogs - mostly Border Collies - who had already demonstrated exceptional vocabulary skills. They then taught them the words for two different categories of dog toys: tug toys, which they called "pulls" and fetch toys, which they called "throws." All toys in both categories were of different sizes, shapes, and colors so that the dogs couldn't tell which was which by their appearance, only by their function and the words the trainers used for them.

After four weeks of training, the researchers then introduced a bunch of brand-new toys that looked nothing like any of the previous toys. And this time the dogs only experienced the toys' function (tugging or fetching) without hearing the category words "pull" or "throw."

After a week of play with the new toys, researchers finally asked the dogs to bring a toy using the words "pull" or "throw." Amazingly, the dogs chose the right toy based on its category name at least two-thirds of the time, well above the percentage expected by chance.

"These gifted word-learner dogs are not only able to memorize the labels of many different objects but can also extend a familiar word to new objects that share the same function, even if they look very different," said lead study author Claudia Fugazza. Way to go, smarty pups.

Source: scientificamerican.com