DEAR READERS: Small dogs with long snouts have the longest life expectancy of pure breeds, while flat-faced dogs have the shortest, and small breeds are generally longer-lived than large, according to a study of 584,734 dogs across 155 breeds in the U.K. The study, published in Scientific Reports, found the median life span across breeds is 12.5 years, pure breeds have a slightly longer life expectancy than mixed breeds, and female dogs live slightly longer than males. (See McMillan, K.M., Bielby, J., Williams, C.L. et al. Longevity of companion dog breeds: those at risk from early death. Sci Rep 14, 531 (2024).)
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF DOGS AND CATS EUTHANIZED IN THE U.S. LAST YEAR
Many animal shelters and facilities in the U.S. are so overcrowded that more than 359,000 dogs and 330,000 cats were euthanized last year, according to the animal advocacy group Shelter Animals Count. “Unlike cat adoptions, which continue to increase, dog adoptions have essentially flatlined,” said Executive Director Stephanie Filer. (Full story: USA Today, Feb. 20)
DOMESTICATED RABBITS: ECO-FRIENDLY PETS
Pet rabbits can be trained to use a litter box, they eat hay and discarded vegetable parts instead of meat, and their droppings can be used to fertilize gardens. As prey animals, many rabbits do not like to be lifted, but they may be happy to be stroked while on the floor, they can learn their name and come when called, and are active in the morning and at twilight and sleep during the day and at night, which fits many household schedules. But they must have a safe place to nestle, social interaction, proper food and regular veterinary care. (Full story: The Washington Post, Feb. 20)
My immediate neighbors are part of a network of rabbit rescuers who adopt thousands of rabbits every year that were sold as baby Easter bunnies, but grew up with people who did not know how to properly care for them. As a result, they are dropped off at animal shelters or simply abandoned.
THE RIGHTS OF PLANTS
In the 1901 edition of "Erewhon," Samuel Butler added a chapter on vegetable rights that reiterates Charles Darwin’s findings and parses their implications: If plants truly are conscious, intelligent beings, then how might human authors narrate their presence? And how should this new understanding of vegetal being affect humans’ interactions with plants?
For an interesting discussion, see this review article: Vegetal Being in Samuel Butler’s Erewhon: The Narrative Challenge of Nineteenth-Century Plant Science, Mary Bowden, ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment, Volume 28, Issue 3, Autumn 2021, Pages 966–985, doi.org/10.1093/isle/isaa185.
AN INITIATIVE FOR COMPANION ANIMALS SET BY MEXICO ALL COUNTRIES SHOULD EMULATE
A new law in Mexico gives state and local governments 180 days to set up public veterinary clinics and start providing free preventive pet care, such as spaying, neutering, vaccinations and deworming. The clinics must also provide emergency and appropriate sick-pet care, but they may charge for that care. (Full story: Mexico News Daily, Feb. 1)
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