Pets yawn more in response to owners’ yawns than strangers’, study says.

Dog owners who claim their pets know their feelings may be on to something: A new study shows that canines yawn more in response to their owners’ yawns than they do to strangers’ yawns.

That suggests dogs are “emotionally connected” to people, study leader Teresa Romero of the University of Tokyo said in a statement.

Scientists already knew that dogs sometimes yawn when they see people yawn, but it was unclear if that was considered a form of empathy or mild stress, as yawning can be caused by anxiety.

So Romero and her team set up an experiment in which 25 pet dogs watched both their owners and strangers yawn or pretend to yawn. (Read about why people yawn.)

The team ruled out stress when researchers saw no significant differences in the dogs’ heartbeats during the experiments, according to the study, published August 7 in the journal PloS ONE.

Not only did the dogs in the study yawn more in response to their owners’ yawns, they also yawned less when they saw fake yawns from their owners or from strangers, suggesting they were exhibiting true contagious yawning.

Contagious yawning occurs in humans, chimpanzees, baboons, and dogs. (See dog pictures submitted to National Geographic.)

In a similar study published last year, scientists found that people yawn more in response to the yawns of people they care about most.

In the case of people, scientists suspect that contagious yawning is a form of empathizing with people experiencing a feeling, which—in the case of yawning—usually means stress, anxiety, boredom, or fatigue.

Elisabetta Palagi, of the Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies in Rome, noted that the study is the first time that scientists have shown contagious yawning occurring between different species.

“This could be the result of a long process of domestication,” said Palagi, who wasn’t involved in the study. (Also see “Dogs’ Brains Reorganized by Breeding.”)

“Once more,” she said, the study “demonstrates that dogs are capable of empathic abilities toward humans.”

The daily “petwork pics” have been so popular on our facebook and twitter pages we’ve decided to introduce a new feature to the mysocialpetwork.co.uk website – picture awards.

This is how it works: everyday we’ll choose a special pet picture from the homepage to feature as our picture of the day to be shown to all our followers on our facebook and twitter accounts. The picture will also receive a special award banner on the mysocialpetwork.co.uk website for everyone to see. Cool huh!?

We love seeing all your gorgeous pets so keep uploading. The more pics you upload the better your chance of being pet of the day!

If you havent already liked our facebook page click here and you’ll receive all our petpics and funny videos etc: https://www.facebook.com/MySocialPetworkUK?ref=hl

And follow us on twitter here: twitter.com/Petworking

Love from,

Your Petworking Team x

The Animal Welfare Act & being prepared:

The Animal Welfare Act was passed in 2007. This has brought about significant changes to animal welfare law and responsible pet ownership. The Act covers the requirements of pet owners to ensure they care for their pet properly by providing the five basic needs, which are often called the five animal freedoms. Some exotic animals are relatively easy to care for such as stick insects whereas others need quite a lot of care and time to ensure their health and wellbeing. Find out prior to acquiring the new pet their average lifespan, adult size and ensure you are prepared to commit to looking after it. It’s best to purchase your pet from a specialist exotic pet shop where the staff will be able to ensure you can provide your pet with the below:

• Freedom from discomfort – a suitable environment, correct sized housing/ shelter, temperature, and somewhere in accordance with the species and its needs
• Freedom from hunger and thirst – a proper and balanced diet that meets the needs of the species- this also includes providing fresh water
• Freedom to express its normal behaviour – making sure the animal has enough space, proper facilities and the company of other animals of their own kind if deemed normal for the species
• Freedom from fear and distress – ensuring it feels safe and care with treatment avoids mental suffering or stress
• Freedom from pain, injury and disease – by providing the proper care and preventing them from getting ill or injured by making sure that they are taken to the vets if sick or injure.

Checklist:

• Equipment: Ensure you purchase all equipment required prior to buying or acquiring the animal.
• Feeding: Ensure that your exotic pet receives a balanced diet which provides all the nutrition it needs is vital. Invertebrates such as stick insects and snails require a balanced diet just like snakes and bearded dragons etc. As most species are not native to UK, supplements may often be neccessary to provide a balanced diet.
• Environment: It is essential that through research you understand how to set up a suitable environment for our pet. Snakes for instance are ectotherms and require additional light and heat sources for maintaining their health and wellbeing. Some animals require very much more effort to house than others – requiring a greater commitment from you.
• Space: Do you have enough available space? Arboreal (tree dwelling) reptiles and amphibians need more vertical space than terrestrial species (once that live predominately on the ground). Vivariums (tanks for snakes, lizards and similar) come in a range of sizes and some have fitted heat light or heat mats. For the health safety and wellbeing of the animal it is essential that flexes and cords and exposed lights are suitably covered to avoid burns or electrocution
• Habitat: For all exotic pets it is necessary to provide environmental enrichment – an area for them to hide away, and an environment that stimulates normal behaviour for example branches, rocks, suitable substrate, shallow bathing area.
• Temperature: You might need to provide a range of temperatures within the environment to allow the animal to control their body temperature by moving from a cold spot to a hot spot. Snakes, lizards and bearded dragons for instance need a place to bask- under a heat lamp as well as an area to hide and to bathe
• Lighting: Your exotic animal may very well require ultraviolet lighting as well as access to unfiltered sunlight.

Risks to be aware of; the following increase the likelihood of pet obesity:

•  Certain breeds (check with your vet)
• Older pets, the risk increases with age
• Neutered dogs
• Obesity is reported to be more common in females
• Obese owners may be more likely to have obese dogs

Obesity can lead to the following:

•  Mobility problems
• Diabetes
• Heart disease
• Respiratory distress
• High blood pressure
• Cancers

How to check for obesity (relevant to cats and dogs especially):

•  You should be able to see and feel the outline of your pet’s ribs without excess fat covering.
• You should be able to see and feel your pet’s waist and it should be clearly visible when viewed from above.
• Your pet’s belly should be tucked up when viewed from the side.

How to prevent obesity (it’s not rocket science!):

•  Regular exercise
• Choose the correct type and amount of food
• Regularly monitor the pet’s weight
• Limit or eliminate treats and table scraps
• Treat any contributing factors or diseases – other medical conditions can contribute to your pet’s obesity.

• Keep a water bowl near at all times. This may be a obvious one but dogs really need water when it gets hot. Letting the dog play in water as well, can give them a boost. Let them play with a sprinkler or a small pool.

• Make sure there is some shade for them. If you have a fence around your garden, clear around it so they can lay in the shade. Or make a canopy with a thin blanket for them. Raising the dog house in the shade will improve ventilation.

• Go swimming! Most dogs love a swim or at least a paddle. If you don’t have access to a river or lake try dipping your pooch’s paws in cool water or wrapping them with cloths soaked in cold water, you can also place these in their arm pits and on the back of their head.

• We recommend NEVER leaving you dog in a hot car. If you have to then always leave windows open for them and leave them some water. In heat it is dangerous leaving your dog in the car, and you could get in trouble with animal welfare.

• Limit exercise. If they are playing all day in the sun, it can really take a toll on them. You might consider skipping their daily walk or else you might want to take them early in the morning or later in the day when it’s cooler.

• Get them a hair cut. Thick haired dogs can have real problems in the heat so it would be a really good idea to get their fur cut. Go to a dog groomers to get it done properly; do not do it yourself!

• Watch out for sunburn. Dogs can get sunburned as well! You can get sunscreen just for your dog. Many short haired, and bald dogs suffer from sunburn. Make sure your dog has sunscreen if their fur is short.

• Avoid hot flooring. Pavement can get really hot in the summer and walking on it can hurt your dogs paws just as much as it would hurt your feet. Let them roam on grass if its available.Or get your dog a pair of booties for their feet.

• Check on your dog regularly. If your dog begins to show any signs of being too hot, get them well away from the sun. If they are showing signs of severe distress or getting blisters, contact your vet.

Overview

Lungworms are parasitic nematode worms that infest the lungs of vertebrates.

Lungworms migrate to their hosts’ lungs or respiratory tracts, and cause bronchitis or pneumonia. The lungworm will gradually damage the airways or lung tissue by inciting an inflammatory reaction inside the tissue. Ultimately, the parasites survive and reproduce in the respiratory tissues.

The science bit

Different species are found in cattle and deer (D. viviparus), donkeys and horses (D. arnfeldi), and sheep and goats (D. filaria). These animals have direct life-cycles. The lungworms in the superfamily Metastrongyloidea include species that infest a wider range of mammals, including sheep, goats and pigs but also cats and dogs.These include Metastrongylus elongatus (apri), found in pigs; Oslerus osleri found in dogs; and Aelurostrongylus abstrusus found in cats. Some of these have indirect, and complex, life-cycles; several of them involve slugs or snails as intermediate hosts, where the habit of sniffing at slug trails, or even licking them, causes the parasite egg to enter the dog’s respiratory tract.

Lifecycle

The general life cycle of a lungworm begins with an ingestion of infected larvae. The infected larvae then penetrate the intestinal wall where larvae migrate into the lungs through the bloodstream. The infected larvae reside in the lungs until the development into adult larvae. The eggs of the adult larvae hatch thus producing lungworm. These eggs that reside in the lungs are coughed up and then ingested back into the stomach and then into feces.

Symptoms

The most common symptom is coughing and other typical symptoms are wheezing and weight loss. These symptoms are caused by larvae that reside in the lungs where immunity develops and the accumulation of mucus cause blockage of the airway into the lungs.

Diagnosis

If an animal is suspected of lungworm infection, there are many ways to detect this parasitic infection such as performing one or more of the following techniques: a complete medical history including lung auscultation (stethoscope examination), doing a chest xray, fecal examination for detection of ova or larvae, examination of respiratory secretions for ova or larvae, and/or a complete blood count (CBC) to check for signs of increase in eosinophils

Treatment

• Lungworm infestations can cause significant distress to the animal but are usually treatable with drugs. Oxibendazole is commonly used as a prophylactic against these and other nematode infestations.
• If infected with lungworm parasite, an anti-parasite drug must be administered.
• In the case of a severe reaction, an anti-inflammatory drug of corticosteroids may be given for a brief period (3 to 10 days).
• To treat tissue inflammation, Prednisone is usually given (5–10 days). However, there are some side effects such as increased urination or appetite.
• The drug fenbendazole is usually administered to kill the parasite. It is very safe and does not harm the animal.

There are several different Lungworm parasites that have been identified. Although they all originate from the lungworm parasite, they are treated somewhat differently and requires a combination of various drugs to treat the parasite.

Prevention

Repeat chest X-rays in 2 and 4 weeks after treatment. Also, recheck a fecal sample to monitor for the presence of larvae or ova in 2 to 4 weeks. This will confirm if the parasite is still living inside the respiratory tissue.