Sunday, June 14, 2020

Why Dogs and Humans Love Each Other More Than Anyone Else


How Dogs Think: Inside the Canine Mind.
You speak dog better than you think you do. You may not be fluent; that would require actually being a dog. But if you went to live in a dogs-only world, you’d be pretty good at understanding what they’re saying. You can tell a nervous yip from a menacing growl, a bark that says hello from a bark that says get lost. You can read the body language that says happy, that says sad, that says tired, that says scared, that says Please, please, please play with me right now!
Think that’s not a big deal? Then answer this: What does a happy bird look like? A sad lion? You don’t know, but dog talk you get. And as with your first human language, you didn’t even have to try to learn it. You grew up in a world in which dogs are everywhere and simply came to understand them.
That, by itself, says something about the bond that humans and dogs share. We live with cats, we work with horses, we hire cows for their milk and chickens for their eggs and pay them with food—unless we kill them and eat them instead. Our lives are entangled with those of other species, but we could disentangle if we wanted.
With dogs, things are different. Our world and their world swirled together long ago like two different shades of paint. Once you’ve achieved a commingled orange, you’re never going back to red and yellow.

It was only by the tiniest bit of genetic chance that our cross-species union was forged at all. Dogs and wolves share 99.9% of their mitochondrial DNA—the DNA that’s passed down by the mother alone—which makes the two species nearly indistinguishable. But elsewhere in the genome, there are a few genetic scraps that make a powerful difference. On chromosome six in particular, investigators have found three genes that code for hyper-sociability—and they are in the same spot as similar genes linked to similar sweetness in humans.The relationship began—well, nobody knows exactly when it began. The earliest remains of humans and dogs interred together date to 14,000 years ago, but there are some unconfirmed finds that are said to be more than twice as old. The larger point is the meaning of the discoveries: we lived with dogs and then chose to be buried with them. Imagine that.
It was only by the tiniest bit of genetic chance that our cross-species union was forged at all. Dogs and wolves share 99.9% of their mitochondrial DNA—the DNA that’s passed down by the mother alone—which makes the two species nearly indistinguishable. But elsewhere in the genome, there are a few genetic scraps that make a powerful difference. On chromosome six in particular, investigators have found three genes that code for hyper-sociability—and they are in the same spot as similar genes linked to similar sweetness in humans.
Our ancestors didn’t know what genes were many millennia ago, but they did know that every now and then, one or two of the midsize scavengers with the long muzzles that came nosing around their campfires would gaze at them with a certain attentiveness, a certain loving neediness, and that it was awfully hard to resist them. So they welcomed those few in from the cold and eventually came to call them dogs, while the animals’ close kin that didn’t pull the good genes—the ones we would come to call wolves or jackals or coyotes or dingoes—would be left to make their way in the state of nature in which they were born.

Our ancestors didn’t know what genes were many millennia ago, but they did know that every now and then, one or two of the midsize scavengers with the long muzzles that came nosing around their campfires would gaze at them with a certain attentiveness, a certain loving neediness, and that it was awfully hard to resist them. So they welcomed those few in from the cold and eventually came to call them dogs, while the animals’ close kin that didn’t pull the good genes—the ones we would come to call wolves or jackals or coyotes or dingoes—would be left to make their way in the state of nature in which they were born.
When humans ourselves left the state of nature, our alliance with dogs might well have been dissolved. If you didn’t need a working dog—and fewer and fewer people did—the ledger went out of balance. We kept paying dogs their food-and-­shelter salary, but we got little that was tangible in return. Never mind, though; by then we were smitten.
Our language reflected how love-drunk we’d gotten: the word “puppy” is thought to have been adapted from the French poupée, or doll—an object on which we lavish irrational affection. Our folk stories were populated by dogs: the Africans spoke of Rukuba, the dog who brought us fire; the Welsh told the tale of the faithful hound Gelert, who saved a prince’s baby from a wolf. Aristocrats took to including the family dog in family portraits. Wealthy eccentrics took to including dogs in their wills.
Today, at least in areas populated by humans, dogs are the planet’s most abundant terrestrial carnivore. There are about 900 million of them worldwide, just shy of 80 million of whom live in the U.S. alone. The single species that is the domestic dog—Canis lupus familiaris—has been subdivided into hundreds of breeds, selected for size or temperament or color or cuteness.

R




Friday, June 12, 2020

Many Ways Kids Benefit from Having a Dog

 Many Ways Kids Benefit from Having a Dog

 

Want a smarter, more empathetic, possibly healthier child? Who wouldn’t?

Having a family dog can benefit your child’s emotional intelligence, according to a collection of scientific studies outlined by Nienke Endenburg and Ben Baarda in their paper The Role of Pets in Enhancing Human Well-being: Effects on Child Development, which was reprinted from The Waltham Book of Human-Animal Interactions: Benefits and Responsibilities. Other research shows that pets can have a positive effect on your child's health, too. Here are seven ways kids who have a pet in the home have a leg up on those who don't:

1) They have higher self esteem: When given tasks to complete, such as helping with the care of a pet, kids show an improvement in self esteem. The tasks should be age-appropriate, though, the authors say, such as allowing a 3-year-old who is too young to walk a dog instead put the water bowl down.

2) They’re more compassionate: Multiple studies showed that children who owned pets were more empathetic towards others. “If there are pets in the house, parents and children frequently share in taking care of the pet, which suggests that youngsters learn at an early age how to care for and nurture a dependent animal,” Endenburg and Baarda write.  

3) They feel supported: Several researchers found that children often name their pet when asked who they would go to with a problem. “Pets can make people feel unconditionally accepted, whereas fellow humans will jue and may criticize,” the report continues.

4) They have better cognitive skills: Some research has suggested that kids who talk to pets, whether by giving praise and commands or just babbling, show improved cognitive development.

5) They have less stress: Petting a dog has been proven to lower cortisol levels in both the person and the pet. Also, research has found that children’s stress levels decrease when reading aloud to a dog. 

6) They're happier: Playing with a pet raises levels of serotonin and dopamine, which calm the mind and increase the mood.

 

7) They're healthier: Besides the obvious benefits of being more active and getting outside more often when playing with a dog, several studies have suggested that children who have dogs have a decreased chance of developing allergies. A current study is underway to determine if dogs could even have a probiotic-like effect on the human body. Read more about that here.

When selecting a dog for your child, make sure to research the breeds and speak to the breeder about your family’s lifestyle so that you can ensure the pet you get is the best fit for your whole family. 

Also, be sure to educate children about dog body language and always supervise their interactions. 

Source: akc.org


Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Benefits of keeping pets

Benefits of keeping pets

dogscatsandpets-jasha.blogspot.com

Benefits of keeping pets at home

  • Decreased blood pressure.
  • Decreased cholesterol levels.
  • Decreased triglyceride levels.
  • Decreased feelings of loneliness.
  • Increased opportunities for exercise and outdoor activities.
  • Increased opportunities for socialization.


Pets help you brush off rejection

One of the benefits of owning a pet? Thinking of your pet as part of the family could help you get over social rejection. A study in the journal Anthrozoös asked volunteers to think about a past experience when they’d felt rejected, then to name a photo of a cat, dog, person, or toy. When asked about their feelings again, those who named an animal or a toy with humanlike qualities felt less negatively than those who’d given names to people. The researchers say people inclined to treat animals or objects like people (like when you talk to your pet) are also more prone to having traits like empathy and unconventional thinking to guard them against that negativity

Pets make you less lonely

Loneliness has been associated with heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and other negative outcomes, but older adults who owned pets were 36 percent less likely to say they were lonely than those who didn’t have a furry friend, according to a study published in Aging & Mental Health. Especially among those who live alone, a pet could offer social interaction when other people aren’t around, the authors report 

Pets protect your heart

Owning a cat could lower your risk of dying from heart disease, a study in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Neurology reports. The researchers found that those who said they’d owned a cat at some point in their lives had a lower risk of dying of a heart attack during the 20-year study than those who’d never owned one. Cats might help relax people during stress, or cat owners might tend to have traits that make them less at-risk.


Pets help keep your brain sharp

Research published in Anthrozoös found that older homebound adults who owned cats or dogs had better executive function (the skills you need to pay attention, remember details, and use past experience to decide how to act) than those who didn’t own a pet

Pets encourage you to get more exercise

Of course your pup needs walks, but that stroll is good for your health too—and dog owners don’t just use those jaunts to replace the exercise they’d do otherwise. A Michigan State University study found that one of the benefits of owning a pet are that people who own dogs exercise about half an hour more per week than those who don’t live with a dog.

Pets ease your pain

The benefits of having a dog don't stop with walking.  Spending time with your pet might help keep you off pain meds. A study in Anthrozoös found that adults who spent five to 15 minutes with a dog after joint replacement surgery used less pain medication than those who didn’t have animal-assisted therapy.

Pets make your kid less likely to have allergies

Babies with pets in the house are less likely to develop allergies later in life, according to a study in Clinical & Experimental Allergy. The study found that 18-year-olds who’d had a cat or dog in the family when they were less than a year old were about half as likely to be allergic to that animal as those who didn’t have an animal in the house. But early-life exposure is key—adopting a pet later as an adult won’t help your immune system in the same way.

Pets might help your child take better care of her blood sugar

Nine- to 19-year-olds who help take care of a pet are better at managing type 1 diabetes than those who aren’t responsible for a pet, according to a small study in the journal PLoS ONE. Kids who actively cared for a pet—not just saying they loved the family’s cat or dog—were 2.5 times more likely to keep up healthy blood sugar levels, the study found. The authors say kids who are in charge of pets might feel more responsible and be more used to routines.

Pets can help fight cancer

One of the incredible benefits of owning a pet might be in their ability to help detect cancer. According to a study published in British Medical Journaldogs can accurately sniff out early stage bowel cancer with a surprisingly high degree of accuracy. A specifically trained Labrador completed 74 sniff tests, comprised of breath and stool samples. With these tests, the dog was able to correctly identify which samples were cancerous in 33 of 36 breath tests and 37 of 38 stool tests. Scientists indicate that there is also additional research and anecdotal evidence of dogs being able to accurately sniff out other forms of cancer as well, such as bladder, skin, lung, breast, and ovarian cancers.


Source: rd.com/


Friday, May 1, 2020

Scientifically Proven Health Benefits Of Being a Cat Owner

 Scientifically Proven Health Benefits Of Being a Cat Owner


(Shutterstock)
(kmsh / Shutterstock.com)
They’re fluffy, independent, the internet's in love with them, and there is scientific proof that having a furry roo mate is actually all kinds of good for your health. Whether you live with a cuddly lap cat or a quiet introvert who loves their space, having a feline around you can be just as rewarding and beneficial as any other animal friendship.

In honor of International Cat Day, we collected a few little-known scientific facts that prove how awesome cats really are.

1. THEY CAN LOWER YOUR RISK OF HEART DISEASE

       Studies have found that owning a cat can lower your stress level which in turn will have a knock-on effect on your risk of cardiovascular disease. Owning a cat can actually lower ones risk of various heart diseases, including stroke, by around 30 percent.

2. THEIR PURRING HELPS TO HEAL BONES, TENDONS AND MUSCLES

A cat purring is one of the most comforting sounds in the world and while it certainly means your cat is happy and comfortable, the sound has also been long associated with a  therapeutic healing ability on human bones and muscle.

A cats purr creates vibrations at a frequency of 20-140 HZ, and studies have shown that frequencies in the 18-35 HZ range have a positive effect on joint mobility after injury, scientists have begun talking about how the cat noise could help humans.
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3. YOU'LL SLEEP BETTER

Several studies in the UK have found that people (especially women) prefer to sleep with their cats over their partners, and they even report sleeping better with a cat than with a human bed companion. A recent study from the Mayo Clinic Center for Sleep Medicine was able to confirm those findings: 41 percent of the people in that study indicated that they slept better because of their pet, while only 20 percent said that it led to disturbances.
(FotoAndalucia / Shutterstock/com)

4. THEY'LL MAKE YOU MORE ATTRACTIVE (TO WOMEN)

Research conducted by leading pet researcher Dr June Nicolls found that women were more likely to be attracted to men with pets with a whopping 90 percent of single women perceiving men with cats as nicer and more caring than those without. 

5. THEY REDUCE STRESS AND ANXIETY

Having a cat around you can actually trigger the release of calming chemicals in your body which lower your stress and anxiety leves. Cats are known for being super low-maintenance and a simple petting session is usually enough to make both you and your cat happy.

6. CATS MEAN FEWER ALLERGIES (FOR YOUR KIDS)

In 2002, the National Institutes of Health released a study that found children under a year old who were exposed to a cat to be less likely to develop all kinds of allergies. According to Marshall Plaut, M.D., chief of the allergic mechanisms section at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, "high pet exposure early in life appears to protect against not only pet allergy but also other types of common allergies, such as allergy to dust mites, ragweed, and grass."

7. EVEN JUST WATCHING CAT VIDEOS IS GOOD FOR YOU

A study of over 7,000 people by Indiana University Bloomington found that watching cat videos on the internet boosts viewers’ energy and positive emotions while decreasing negative feelings. Turns out all those hours spent on YouTube actually did you some good.
Courtesy: Good net.org

Why Dogs and Humans Love Each Other More Than Anyone Else

How Dogs Think: Inside the Canine Mind . You speak dog better than you think you do. You may not be fluent; that would require actual...