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6 Search Results for "fish"

• Obamas' pup boasts Local kin Obamas' pup boasts Local kin

  • From: nurturedpets
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    Bo shares father with Portuguese water dog owned by local breeder
    
    Gone gaga over Bo 'Bama?
    
    No wonder. The new first puppy, delivered to the White House yesterday, is a fluffy bundle of adorability.
    
    Powell dog owner and breeder Jill Roudebush is especially excited: Her youngest puppy, Clash, is the half brother of first puppy Bo, a Portuguese water dog.
    
    "The president's dog is very well-bred," said Roudebush, who runs the Maritimo kennel. "Bo has a very healthy pedigree with awesome temperaments."
    
    Those come from Bo's mother, Penny, who lives in Texas, and father, Watson, of Erie, Pa., she said.
    
    A year ago, Watson was bred with Roudebush's dog, Olivia, and Clash is one of the eight puppies from that litter. The others live with families in Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Alabama, Texas and North Carolina.
    
    Roudebush hasn't met the first puppy, but she's friends with the Texas breeders who own Penny. She said Bo came from a litter of 10 and that one of those pups, Cappy, belongs to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts. The senator's other two Portuguese water dogs, both adults, are from the same breeder.
    
    Bo first was owned by a Washington, D.C., family with an adult Portuguese water dog, but the puppy was too rambunctious for the older pet, according to news reports. Bo was returned to the breeder, and Kennedy decided to buy the dog and give it to the first family.
    
    The breed isn't well-known in the United States but dates to the 13th century on the coast of Portugal, according to the Portuguese Water Dog Club of America.
    
    The working dogs were used by fishermen to retrieve nets, herd fish and dive underwater when gear fell overboard. By the early 1900s, only a few remained with fishermen, and a Portuguese businessman began breeding the dogs as pets. U.S. breeding began in the late 1960s.
    
    A local rescue-dog advocate wishes that the Obamas had picked a dog from a shelter, as the president had promised when he announced last fall that he would give his daughters a puppy.
    
    "I'm disappointed," said Susan Smith, community-relations manager for the Franklin County Animal Shelter. "Any time someone's a public figure and can say, 'This is what we did; follow my lead,' that helps."
    
    Still, Smith is glad that Bo is a "recycled" puppy.
    
    Though the shelter doesn't have any Portuguese water dogs now, it has in the past.
    
    "Chances are that sooner or later we'll get one," Smith said.
    
    "We have a lot of very similar dogs," she added. The cost to adopt is $117.
    
    Pure-bred "portys," as they're often called, cost $1,800 to $2,000, Roudebush said.
    
    Breeders have mixed feelings about the Obamas' new dog because they are concerned about indiscriminate breeding should the demand for portys skyrocket, she said.
    
    "We're afraid people will say, 'These are two cute dogs; let's mate them and make cute puppies.' But they have to be genetically compatible and bred for the benefit of the breed. We don't see many in shelters, and we don't want to."
    
    Bo made his White House debut yesterday afternoon in front of reporters and photographers. And the Obamas even walked him over near the fence on the South Lawn.
    
    Said the president: "He's got star quality."
    
    First lady Michelle Obama did most of the walking, with Bo on a leash. But daughter Malia took a turn, too, as Bo took off running.

    source ~ Columbus Dispatch

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  • 1 year ago
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• A Small Casualty in Hard Times A Small Casualty in Hard Times

  • From: nurturedpets
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    When it comes to the recession, tactful New Yorkers may refrain from complaining too loudly about their misfortunes, knowing that the chances are, there is someone else out there who has it worse.
    
    But try explaining to a 6-year-old, no matter how worldly and well mannered, that budget cuts may prevent him from spending quality time with a penguin..
    
    The Wildlife Conservation Society, which manages the city’s zoos and the New York Aquarium in Coney Island, is among the many organizations in the city facing steep budget cuts.
    
    Last week, the society announced that 100 of its 1,200 employees had accepted buyouts and that dozens more would be laid off. Gov. David Paterson has proposed eliminating all funding for zoological institutions in the next fiscal year.
    
    The consequences of these cuts and threats may seem trivial in a landscape of home foreclosures, disappearing jobs and a pervasive sense of fragility. But the cuts would mean the trimming or elimination of certain longstanding pleasures that until recently seemed eternal.
    
    One is the New York Aquarium’s summer education program, which for more than 30 years has run science-theme children’s camps and which the aquarium has decided to cancel. At the four-day-a-week camps, younger children learned about marine life and conservation, and teenagers earned community service credits in an intern program.
    
    “It’s sort of this perfect storm of economic pressures,” said Jon Forrest Dohlin, the aquarium’s director. “It’s not as though anybody would like to see summer camps stop. It’s a shame, and we’re incredibly distressed about it.”
    
    Aquarium employees have been told to direct inquiring parents to the Bronx and Central Park Zoos, where summer camps will continue, because they serve more children each year, Mr. Dohlin said. The Bronx Zoo serves about 750 children a year and the Central Park Zoo 225, compared with 175 at the aquarium.
    
    Julie Fissinger, who lives in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn, sent two of her three children to the aquarium’s camp last summer. With the camps canceled, she said her family may opt this year for a day trip to the Bronx Zoo instead. Her son Gavin Mulcahy, 10, said he enjoyed throwing fish into the shark tank from above, as well as the camp’s access to animals, including his favorites: sea lions and clownfish.
    
    “I enjoyed getting to spend so much time with certain animals,” he said. “I feel like they would remember who I was.”
    
    source ~ nytimes.com, GREGORY BEYER

    

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  • 1 year ago
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• fishhead1992

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  • Since: 1 year ago

• Toxic Cats and Dogs Toxic Cats and Dogs

  • From: nurturedpets
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    At a time when people are fretting about toxins in baby bottles and prescription drugs in the water supply, a new report shows that our pets are teeming with chemicals as well.

    The analysis, released by the Washington-based Environmental Working Group, used blood and urine samples from 35 dogs and 37 cats collected at Hanover Animal Hospital in Mechanicsville, Va. The study found high levels of numerous chemicals in dogs and cats, including chemicals used in the making of furniture, fabrics and electronics. Mercury was also detected at high levels, likely from fish used in pet food.

    While the data sound scary, it’s not clear what they really mean. Pets chew on plastic toys and spend a lot of time on the ground, where chemicals and pesticides accumulate, so it makes sense they would have higher levels of various toxins in their blood compared to humans.

    But the report raises more questions than it answers. Is this added chemical exposure having a meaningful effect on pet health? More important is the question of how these chemicals affect people, through exposure to food animals as well as fruits and vegetables, but the report doesn’t go that far. The study is, however, a good opportunity to alert readers to an article that appeared late last year in Harper’s magazine called “Toxic Inaction.” When I first reported on it last October, it required a subscription to view it, but now it’s free.

    The article cites several studies that show how industrial chemicals and toxins used in clothing, food, toys and cosmetics have found their way into our blood.

    Greenpeace U.K. released a study in 2005 that found numerous toxic chemicals in the umbilical-cord blood of European infants. That same year, World Wildlife Fund International tested the blood of three generations of women from 12 European countries. The largest number of chemicals — 63 — was found in the group of grandmothers. Given the number of years they had had to accumulate exposure, this result was perhaps not surprising. But the next-highest level was among their grandchildren, aged 12 to 28, who in their short lifetimes had amassed 59 different toxic chemicals….Bio-monitoring tests in the United States have revealed the same dangerous chemicals making their way into the blood of Americans. In 2005, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention completed screening for the presence of 148 toxic chemicals in the blood of a broad cross section of Americans; it found that the vast majority of subjects harbored almost all the toxins.

    Harper’s says the United States is doing very little to address the problem, despite efforts by European authorities to step up regulation of various industrial chemicals. To read the full article, click here.

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  • 1 year ago
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• The Internet Has Gone to the D The Internet Has Gone to the Dogs… and Cats, Birds, Fish, Gerbils and Lizards!

  • From: jweirich
  • Description:

    -Pets have become one of the most popular topics online leading to a wave of new social networking sites, product review sites, blogs, news, videos, photos and more all dedicated to pets and their owners according to the American Pet Products Association -

    (Greenwich, CT)- First, they became a part of the family. Then, they grew to be the drivers of one of the largest spending sectors in the country. Now, they’ve invaded the internet. We’re talking about the family pet.
    A simple Google search of pets will provide you with oh, only about 300,000,000 results. A Google Blog search results in 3,854,049 hits. Google Shopping- another 3 million results. Quite impressive for something that can’t even talk, let alone use a mouse and keyboard. But their owners can, and do. And this has led to an explosion of innovative sites for pets and their owners to connect and share information.
    Move over MySpace and Facebook. It’s time to make room for sites quickly growing in popularity like Doggyspace.com, which since its July launch has attracted more than 700,000 users who share photos, videos, advice, and stories, as well as supply their pups' "voices." Other sites for canines and canine lovers include Dogster.com, Uniteddogs, Doggysnaps, and Dogbook on Facebook.com.

    These sites don’t discriminate against other animal types. There is of course MyCatSpace.com, Unitedcats, and Hamsterer.com. And, if a social network hasn’t been created yet for reptile or bunny owners, it’s probably in the works.
    Then you have sites for pet owners of all kinds such as www.zootoo.com with more than 450,000 members who share information, get news, find local area services, and rate pet products all while earning points for their shelter of choice that will be eligible for a shelter makeover. Another site, Petster.com allows pet owners to write messages to one another about shared interests and offer advice on health problems, training or local dog-friendly parks. PetSmooch is another where, according to the site, pets smooch, owners schmooze. Pawsconnect.com is a site where “pets and pet parents connect, share, educate and simply have fun.” Yet another, Pawspot.com lets users arrange play dates, coordinate pet sitting, and find local pet-friendly parks.
    Now, there’s even a downloadable social networking widget designed to connect animal lovers with pets in need of homes called Dogpile.com. People who download the Dogpile adoptable pet widget application gain easy access to information on pets available for adoption through Petfinder.com right from their Facebook or MySpace page.
    Dogtime.com, another large media network in the pet market, recently launched the DogTime Blog Network, blogs.dogtime.com, a network of pet-related blogs. More than 106 pet bloggers have signed-up to be part of the DogTime Blog Network. According to its founders, these blogs are “Hand-picked as the most entertaining, informative and knowledgeable pet blogs, they embody the deep passion and love for pets that is shared by the 8.2 million visitors to the DogTime Media Network of 180 pet related sites.”
    “If you asked me three years ago what a social network was, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you,” admits Bob Vetere, President of the largest non-profit organization in the pet industry, American Pet Products Association (APPA), who launched his own blog two months ago called Pet Industry Insights.
    “Now there are dozens of these sites purely dedicated to pets and pet owners, which is no wonder given that pet owners consider pets a part of the family and spend over $40 billion dollars every year on them,” says Vetere. “This movement on the internet is very positive for the industry as it enables pet owners to connect with each other while providing convenient access to valuable information on pet products and services that can enhance their pets’ lives.”
    Vetere’s organization actively engages in the social media focused on pets. Along with his blog, APPA has its own Facebook page, Youtube videos, twitter feeds, RSS feeds and two other blogs- one focusing on the joys of pet ownership called Pets Add Life (PAL) and the other on the world’s largest annual pet products trade show, Global Pet Expo.
    APPA want to be where pet owners are spending a majority of their time and getting their information,” said Vetere.
    According to APPA’s National Pet Owners Survey, the internet has shown tremendous growth since 1998 as an information provider that pet owners turn to, sometimes increasing as much as five times over a two year period.
    “This is the wave of the future. Social networking will continue to grow and become a part of our lives, and apparently, our pets’ lives. Which means I better start a page for my dog, Dakota soon,” Vetere jokes.

    Source: APPA (American Pet Products Association) For more information visit www.americanpetproducts.org

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  • 1 year ago
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• Fishy Fishy

  • From: nurturedpets
  • Description:

    Here is a very neat movie about a fish, a fish that got a chance in life.  Before you is presented Todd, this elegantly shaped Clown Fish enjoys life.

  • 1 year ago
  • Views: 55