The alpha wolf is a figure that looms large in our imagination. The notion of a supreme pack leader who fought his way to dominance and reigns superior to the other wolves in his pack informs both our fiction and is how many people understand wolf behavior. But the alpha wolf doesn’t exist—at least not in the wild.

Read the full article at io9: Why everything you know about wolf packs is wrong.

Image by Tambako the Jaguar.

Fern the Whio hunter.

Some things I do in my job include… finding kiwi and whio that humans seem incapable of locating. It’s so easy to sniff them out and I’m not really sure why they have noses if they aren’t prepared to use them. I’m also involved in advocacy work at schools and end up with a heap of kids sitting on and around me. I don’t really mind that because the kids make quite a fuss over me, and my ranger (Malcolm) talks about cool stuff like stoats and rats and possums.

Read more about Fern at Jobs at DOC: Fern—Species dog « Conservation blog.

Dog life expectancy.

Looking at a sample of 40,139 death records from the Veterinary Medical Database from 1984-2004, researchers determined the average age at death for intact dogs—dogs that had not been spayed or neutered—was 7.9 years versus 9.4 years for sterilized dogs.

… Dogs who had undergone a gonadectomy (a spay or castration) were more likely to die from cancer or autoimmune diseases. Those in the sample who still had functional reproduction systems at death were more likely to die from infectious disease and trauma.…

Creevy added, “At the level of the individual dog owner, our study tells pet owners that, overall, sterilized dogs will live longer, which is good to know. Also, if you are going to sterilize your dog, you should be aware of possible risks of immune-mediated diseases and cancer; and if you are going to keep him or her intact, you need to keep your eye out for trauma and infection.”

[Via UGA research finds sterilized dogs live longer.]

[Jacko] Gill, who turned down the chance to go to last year’s London Olympics [for shot-put], spent three days in hospital last week after an attack by Recka, an 11-year-old bitch, as she fought with the Gill family’s other dog, Pippi, a 10-year-old Pomeranian-Pekinese cross. …

Recka and Pippi were being fed about four hours later than normal and began to fight after a food bowl was knocked off a chair.

“It was quite bad,” Gill said, “so I tried to pick one up from the chest and drag it back and I got a bite.

[Via Shot-put star nearly blinded by dog - Sport - NZ Herald News.]

Avoid dog fights

It’s too late now for Jacko, but it pays to supervise your dogs around food, perhaps feeding them in separate places to reduce stress and risk.

Also see this page of comprehensive advice: Preventing Dog Bites in Children, How to Avoid Dog Bites in Children, by Ed Frawley.

But if a dog fight does break out and you feel you must intervene there’s a good way to go about breaking it up. In the video below one dog trainer shows two of the safer ways to go about it.

“Dogs are non-judgmental. They are loving. They are accepting of anyone,” Tim Hetzner, president of the organization, told the Chicago Tribune. “It creates the atmosphere for people to share.”

People and kids often pet the dogs while they talk or pray with the handlers. Sometimes those who are grieving prefer just to spend quiet time with the dogs, receiving comfort from their assuring presence.

The dogs are deployed during national disasters. But they also handle daily matters where their soothing help is needed, such as at hospitals and nursing homes. Each dog carries a business card listing its name, Facebook page, Twitter account and e-mail address so that those who connect can stay in touch.

[Via Dogs Sent to Newtown to Comfort Grieving.]

Read more about The LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs.

K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry from Lutheran Church Charities on Vimeo.

Photo by zebarnabe.

Update: LATEST: Peter Dunne has ruled out using a “barbaric and disgusting” method which would force animals to take lethal doses of party pills to ensure they’re safe for human use.

But how about recreational drugs? Should dogs and rats die to find out how lethal party pills are? That may happen in New Zealand soon:

Dogs will forced to take lethal doses of party pills under a controversial scientific testing method being considered by the Government to determine whether the designer drugs are safe for humans. …

According to a Ministry of Health report – “Regulations governing the control of novel psychoactive drugs” – outlining what testing would be needed under the law change, a designer drug “must” go through pre-clinical animals studies and it is “critical” to show a drug is safe for animals before it can be given to humans.

“At the study’s completion, animals are sacrificed and tissues from all organ systems examined,” the paper said.

Both rats and dogs would be subject to a lethal dose 50 per cent (LD50) test, where doses of the drug increase until half the test group dies. The method is banned in Britain and is not recognised by the OECD. …

Legislation detailing the testing regime will be voted on early next year, following select committee debate that will allow for a period of public consultation.

[Via Party pills testing will mean dogs have to die | Stuff.co.nz.]

Dog sniffing.

The dogs excel at sniffing out animal poop — just what the researchers need to track the wildlife the researchers are interested in:

The scientists turned to dogs trained to detect narcotics, but instead of rewarding them for finding cocaine or marijuana, they’re rewarded for finding, well, poop.

Our dogs have an incredible play drive for a ball. They are so focused, that, if they know you’ve got the ball, and you throw the ball, nothing in its way will stop it, Wasser said. You can transfer this incredible drive into finding samples because the dog is so obsessed. Once it smells a sample and knows its going to get the reward from it, it will work tirelessly to find it.

Once a sample is found, scientists can collect it and do the sorts of DNA testing that help them track a species.

[Via Scientists turn to dogs to track, protect endangered animals | PRI.ORG.]

Tanner and Blair.

One day he was in the exercise yard when Blair, a labrador who’d been shot and was also in care, started to play, and something happened:

‘Blair all of a sudden seemed to realize that Tanner was blind and just started to help him around.’

The black labrador guides his pal around the enclosure and buildings, picking up his leash in his mouth when necessary to steer him to safety and play.

The friendship seems to have had a strong healing effect on both animals.

Blair, a formerly timid and nervous dog who came to the shelter after being shot, has become a stronger, more confident pooch thanks to his new-found responsibility.

Even more amazingly, Tanner’s seizures seem to have disappeared and now the two dogs board together, inseparable in their companionship.

[Via Stray labrador rescues blind pooch by becoming first canine-to-canine guide dog | Mail Online. Includes video.]

Migaloo the archeology dog. Photo downloaded and resized from Migaloo’s Photos on Facebook.

…The three-year-old female black labrador cross is believed to be the world’s first trained archeology dog.

She is destined to work on surveys of Aboriginal sacred sites across Australia …

Brisbane dog expert Gary Jackson trained the clever canine using 250-year-old skeletal remains from an Aboriginal burial site, on loan from the South Australian Museum. …

Migaloo has beaten the previous world record by 425 years.

[Via Migaloo the dog has a nose for archeology | News.com.au.]

Oshi and the nurofen – washing soda crystals.

We also discovered that Nurofen can be dangerous. One or both of our two dogs bust into a bag and ate a few of the pills, leading to a dash to the emergency vet and a large bill. No bad consequences though in that case. See Oshi the drug thief and his brush with harm.

But if your dogs has access to drugs such as marijuana that can cause a lot of problems too:

Drugged dogs being brought in for treatment — including in one case a chihuahua high on marijuana — are worrying Hamilton vets. …

Roaches [the butts of cannabis joints] had been regularly left on a coffee table and the chihuahua had developed a fetish for eating them — and loved the taste of cannabis.…

Treatment consists of inserting a drip for hydration and a highly absorbent charcoal solution taken orally every four to six hours.…

By far the most common form of dog poisoning was rat bait; …

Dr Lavis’s advice is to keep an eye on where dogs are at all times and when they are not being watched, keep them secure.

[Via Drugged Dogs In Hamilton Vex Vets - national | Stuff.co.nz.]

One of our neighbour’s dogs managed to eat some bait for hedgehogs. That led to at least 4 days in intensive care, huge bills and ongoing monitoring.

Watch out for what your dog’s eating. Some, like our little guy, will scoop up anything around and chew on it. Keep the drugs, legal and otherwise, and chocolate out of its reach.