Stochasticity Occurs

In celebration of my Quarterlife breakthrough, as a canine enthusiast and dog lover, I am sharing you 25 things I know about dogs (feeling pro!).

 1.     ORIGIN AND SELF-DOMESTICATION

How can a wild wolf become a modern dog?  With the promise of food, early wolves as scavengers domesticated themselves to human campsites. Humans eventually utilized them as companions and hunters. This behavioral trait and selective breeding have been passed on to successive generations that made them comfortable around humans.

 2.     YOU CAN GET A RABIES INFECTION BY EATING A DOG (OR EVEN A CAT) MEAT.  

SO PLEASE STOP MAKING THEM AS YOUR PULUTAN. For more information visit : www.ndhealth.gov/disease/rabies

 3.     Get vaccine after being bitten. RABIES IS A VERY SERIOUS DISEASE. It can be passed to humans from bites or scratches from animals that carry the rabies virus.

 4.      THE FIRST SENSE PUPPIES DEVELOP IS TOUCH.

 5.    DOGS ARE NOT MEANT TO EAT SPICY FOODS.

A dog has only 1,700 taste buds (and mostly located at the tip of the tongue) compared to a human who has around 9,000. Feeding dogs with spicy foods can destroy their limited taste buds.

 6.     TAIL DOCKING AND EAR CLIPPING ARE’NT ESSENTIAL.  

In the picture below, have you seen Doberman pinscher, Boxer or a Pitbull terrier like that? Historically, tail docking and ear cropping were thought to prevent rabies, strengthen the back, increase the animal's speed, prevent injuries when ratting, fighting, and baiting during the Roman war. While in European Middle Ages, a tax was levied upon working dogs with tails so many kinds of dogs were docked to avoid this tax.

However, both of these procedures for cosmetic purposes nowadays are neither medically accepted nor benefit to the patients. These treatments can only cause pain and distress and as with all surgical procedures, blood loss, and infection.

 7.     BARKING IS COMMUNICATION.

It is their form of showing their feelings of fear, frustration, pain, boredom, or even happiness. Due to complaining irresponsible owners, many veterinarians were now performing”Debarking” or “Devocalization”. It is a surgical procedure that involves removing a large amount of laryngeal tissue and indeed a great deal of postoperative pain. Depriving a dog to express his primary means of expression and natural ability to communicate is definitely unjustifiably cruel.

 8.     DOGS TILT THEIR HEADS WHENEVER THEY HEAR NEW OR UNFAMILIAR HUMAN SOUND (I always do this to my Labrador retriever named Tisoy) and most of the time, it works!

 9.     EHRLICHIA (PRONOUNCED AS “EHRLIKYA”) IS A BACTERIA CAUSING EHRLICHIOSIS.

A plague like dengue that dogs get from ticks that carry the disease and infect their white blood cells. Same as the result, low levels of blood platelets and life threatening.

*Our last picture together and still breaks my heart. R.I.P to my Chloe of Sunny Sea (August 26, 2005- July 30, 2013)

 10. TOO MUCH “ARATILIS” OR “ARATILES “IS BAD FOR DOGS.

Aside from chocolates, those sweet tasting childhood favorite fruit contains toxins that can damage your doggie’s kidneys. Other hazardous food for dogs include avocado, grapes and raisins.

 11. NOT ALL DOGS ENJOY HUGGING. 

In their canine world, putting your limb over another animal signifies dominance.

*Ashley (Trizallie's pet) love to make lambing like this.

 12. DID YOU KNOW THAT NOAH HAS A PAIR OF DOGS INSIDE HIS ARK TOO?

 Story credits from: http://www.stanleycoren.com/e_wetnose

 13. WHENEVER YOU BUY A PET FROM PET SHOPS OR BREEDERS, YOU ARE DEPRIVING AN ANIMAL IN THE SHELTER OR POUND TO HAVE A GOOD HOME.

What is your reason behind buying dogs from Cartimar? Does your love count when a pet is a champion breed and has 10 red and green marks on paper? Are you really sure that the one you are buying has a good health and behavioral history, good value and no questionable pedigree? What you see isn’t necessarily what you get.

Always remember that great pets are raised by great owners. You can’t buy love but you can adopt it from an animal shelter.Find out more on:  http://www.paws.org.ph/why-adopt

 14. A DOG’S NOSEPRINTS ARE AS UNIQUE AS ZEBRA, LEOPARD AND HUMAN FINGERPRINTS.

 Their combination of ridges and creases is so distinct that can actually be used to identify them.

*This is my ever adorable 7 year old Lab named Tisoy.

 15. DOGS CAN SEE IN COLOR BUT NOT AS VIVIDLY AS HUMANS.

For example, they see colors on a blue and yellow scale but cannot distinguish between red and green. However, they have better night vision than us.

 16.  EVER WONDER WHY MALE DOGS LIFT THEIR LEGS WHEN THEY PEE?

It’s a sign of dominance. Dog urine can corrode metals and kill plants too.

 17. COMMERCIAL DOG FOODS ARE GOOD BUT DOES A TABLE FOOD MEAL CAN BE GIVEN TOO?

For me, Yes. Manufactured dog foods are cooked at nutrient-destroying temperatures, has a lot of chemical, preservatives, food dyes and contaminants that are somehow, if not balanced, may result to bladder stones, kidney and other organ problems.

In order to avoid this, you can mix some fruits, boneless meats and vegetables to keep a nutritionally complete and balanced diet.

 18.  DOGS CAN SMELL DISEASES SUCH AS HYPOGLYCEMIA (LOW BLOOD SUGAR), SKIN, LUNG AND OTHER FORMS OF CANCER.

A dog’s brain has  only a 1/10 size of human’s but the part that controls the olfactory is 40 times larger than ours, which means their sense of smell is about 1000 to 1,000,000 times more sensitive than us (depending on the breed).

 19.  DOG GHOSTS EXIST.

They have soul and I believe that they all go to heaven.

 20.  THEY CAN SENSE EARTHQUAKES, STORMS AND CALAMITY PRODUCED BY NATURE.

Science says, both wild and domestic animals feel the Earth vibrate and detect electrical changes in the air or gas released from the Earth.

If your dog’s acting up, it might be because a typhoon’s on the way. Dogs can hear, smell and feel a change in the weather long before us.

*Meet Kabang. A native dog (Aspin or Asong pinoy) from Philippines described as a "hero dog".

 21.  SQUARE HEADED DOGS (LIKE ST. BERNARD, BULLDOG AND MASTIFFS) CAN HEAR SUBSONIC SOUNDS BETTER THAN DOGS WITH NARROW HEADS (LIKE SPANIELS, COLLIES AND GREYHOUNDS).

Tiny dogs like Chihuahuas and terriers can better understand sounds in higher pitch tones while large breeds (such as Huskies, Rottweilers and Sheperd dogs) in the other way around. (Now you know why I usually baby talk my Shihtzu.)

 22.  DOGGIES WITH LONG EARFLAPS CAN HELP THEIR SENSE OF SMELL BY BUDGING UP ODORS CLOSE TO THE GROUND.

Sample breeds are Basset Hounds, Bloodhounds, Hungarian Vizsla and Beagle. Unfortunately, they are prone to ear infections.

 23. SERVICE DOGS ARE WELL TRAINED TO KNOW WHEN THEY ARE ON DUTY.

Stuffs that I learned from a K9 Unit trainer, even when there’s a whole roasted chicken in front of them or when their harness is on, a Canine knows it’s business time but once their human partner takes it off, the pup immediately become playful and energetic.

 24. WHY DO THEY SNIFF YOUR CROTCHES?

Don’t be scared guys! It’s a canine social behavior of greeting and gathering information. It was their natural way of getting to know someone unfamiliar.

 25. THERE ARE DOGS (AND CATS AS WELL) HAVE BEEN RESCUED FROM CRUELTY AND NEGLECT, AND NOW READY TO BE ADOPTED.

There are few animal welfare organizations that needs your help. "You can actually adopt a homeless pet and find a bestfriend for life. A pet is a lifetime commitment."-PAWS. No time and no place to have pet but still want to help? Donate. Volunteer.

Find out more how on:

www.paws.org.ph

www.caraphil.org

 “The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” - Mahatma Gandhi