Petopia

Photo and Etymology of Horse and Buggy

What do hobbyhorse, horse-and-buggy, horse latitudes, and stalking horse all have in common? They're all featured in this week's a-word-a-day theme of "words with horse-related origins." What will tomorrow's word be -- Trojan Horse?

Anu Garg's wonderful love of words and their origins is shared at his wordsmith.org site. I have been a subscriber for years and still delight in his informative posts. Of course, I particularly like it when he does something related to animals. If you love words and etymology, be sure to it check out.

By the way, the above photo shows one of my great-grandfathers with his horse and buggy. Love my old family photos. . . More about words from Anu Garg: The Dord, the Diglot, and an Avocado or Two: The Hidden Lives and Strange Origins of Common and Not-So-Common Words.

So You Want to Teach Your Dog a Few Tricks?

I found this great article 10 Best Unique and Easy Tricks to Teach Your Dog that I think any dog owner would enjoy reading. The list offers a wide range of commands that you can teach your dog along with links to further instruction.

There are tricks you can do just for fun like teaching your dog to dance, fetch a beer, or walk backwards. Some commands will offer your dog good exercise like how to run a course. And then there are the behaviors that will make your dog easier to live with like house training (they claim it can be done in three easy steps). Read the article for details and more tricks.

The article ends with the caution "Be sure to speak with your veterinarian when beginning any training" which strikes me as a bit funny. Are they serious or is this a spoof of the boilerplate, please-don't-sue-me caution traditionally given? I don't know but perhaps the site's title offers a clue: Veterinary Technician Schools Online (picture a smiley face here).

More dog training resources (when 10 tricks aren't enough): 101 Dog Tricks: Step by Step Activities to Engage, Challenge, and Bond with Your Dog.

Swine Flu: Are Dogs, Cats and Other Pets Susceptible?

If you become ill with the H1N1 flu you know that you need to stay home and protect others in the household from your sneezes -- but you may not realize that you also need to protect your pets. Recent reports of a cat becoming infected with the swine flu from its owners demonstrate that people can spread the flu to their pets. The cat survived but one lesson is: if you happen to get the flu, don't cuddle up with your pets for comfort.

The Guideposts site has a good article, 5 things to know about swine flu and pets that every pet owner should read. It gives information on which pets are more susceptible and measures you can take to help protect them. This is the time of year to be extra attentive to your pet's health. If your pet coughs, loses its appetite, or becomes lethargic call your veterinarian for counsel.

While transmission of the flu to our pets is not common, let's all work to keep it that way. Related reading: The Merck/Merial Manual for Pet Health: The complete pet health resource for your dog, cat, horse or other pets - in everyday language.

Video: Fascinating Swarming Black Clouds of Starling Birds

This is a video of 300,000 birds, or as the title says "starlings in spring ballet." The video was captured in Denmark and shows an amazing shape-shifting black cloud of swarming birds. It is simply fascinating and mesmerizing to watch.

After viewing this I wondered if this swarming behavior is common. In searching for more information I found this article on The Working of a Bird Swarm which has a video of swarming starlings in the UK country-side and a fascinating explanation of exactly how birds to this. Follow the link and read the full article, but in part the explanation is:

a bird in a flock, only adjusts its movements to coordinate with the movements of its flock mates or more precisely the members that are its neighbors. It simply tries to stay close to its neighbors, but avoid collisions with them. Each bird does not take commands from any leader bird since there is no lead bird.

More about birds: The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior

Contest: Children Don't Really Throw Dead Rabbits Do They?

It's hard to imagine a bunny contest that has children competing to throw a dead rabbit the farthest. This annual contest has been a part of Waiau's pig hunt for years. But his year, after attention and pressure from the animal charity SPCA of New Zealand, the contest has been declared inhumane and the event has been canceled.

While the 30 million wild rabbits in New Zealand can be pests, I don't believe that the inhumane treatment is justified. And I hope we can all agree that letting children think of dead animals as amusement is a bit bizarre.

Related reading: Rabbits: Gentle Hearts Valiant Spirits: Inspirational Stories of Rescue, Triumph, and Joy.

Photo: Housebreaking Dog, Can You Train Dogs to Pee in Urinal?

I am familiar with toilet training kits for cats but I had never seen dogs trained to pee in a urinal -- until I saw this photo. This photo appears on the home page of Sit Means Sit Dog Training with the caption "Just dogs.... sorry, we don't train husband's, wives, or kids." This humorous and clever (I think) photo helps draw attention to their dog training business.

This business says that "talk is cheap - we love to show our work." They feel that the Sit Means Sit dog training system is truly revolutionizing the world of dog training. And they offer a whole portfolio of videos on their site that showcase their work. When I visited the site I couldn't get the videos to play, but maybe you'll have better luck. Wonder if those dogs flush also. . .

Related reading: How to Housebreak Your Dog in 7 Days (Revised)