Cats and their Whiskers?...Facts you must know

I came across this funny yet highly educative article by Suz  Redfearn  and  decided to share it with you guys here. Whiskers in Cats are actually more than you think and their importance cannot be over emphasized.

Those stiff hairs on your cat’s face and legs don’t just add to her cuteness -- they have real work to do. Whiskers are GPS and radar systems for your cat.

“They are a powerful and important part of how a cat senses the world,” says W. Mark Cousins, DVM, the founder of a veterinary clinic in New Orleans.

 

How They Work

Each thick whisker is filled with tiny, supersensitive nerves that help your cat judge distance and space. It’s how she makes decisions like: Is this box too small to get inside? How far do I need to jump to reach that counter?

It’s also how she detects what’s around her. “Cats that are blind can navigate rooms very well by just walking around and letting their whiskers get a sense of where they are spatially,” Cousins says.

The follicles -- the sacs that hold the hairs -- are deep, with lots of nerve endings that send messages to the cat’s brain.

There’s also a sensory organ at the tip of each whisker. It picks up vibrations in the environment that help the cat sense where she is and what other creatures are around her.

Most whiskers are rooted in the thick pads on the upper lip, but smaller sets are in the eyebrow area, along the chin, and near the feet.

The ones on the sides of the nose are the same width as your cat’s body; they help her figure out whether a space is wide enough to squeeze through.

Whiskers on the back of the legs help your cat climb trees.

 

What’s Your Cat’s Mood? Watch Her Whiskers

A complex set of muscles on the face moves whiskers back and forth.     

The way a cat arranges them will tell another animal -- or us humans -- how she’s feeling. When a cat is relaxed, her whiskers will remain still, sticking straight out from the side of her head. If she is curious or is on the hunt, she’ll press them slightly forward. Cats that are nervous or upset will pin the whiskers back toward the face.

 

Whiskers Don’t Need Trimming!

Like other hairs on a cat’s body, whiskers shed. That’s normal. But you should never trim them.

A cat with cut whiskers will become disoriented and scared.

“If you cut them, that’s like blindfolding someone, taking away one of their ways of identifying what’s in their environment,” says veterinarian Jane Brunt.

Basic Nutritional needs of Puppies

Guessed you just acquired that puppy or perhaps your Dog just whelped and you are looking for pointers on how to feed your new puppy? Keep this in mind: a puppy's nutritional needs are a lot different from an adult dog. He needs to get enough nutrients to fuel his speedy growth.

A puppy needs food made just for puppies. You can also feed your puppy commercially-prepared dog food that's labeled for "all stages of life." Like the common ones in the market
The number of feedings a day depends on your pup's age:

• 2 to 3 months old : 4 meals a day
• 3 to 6 months: 3 meals a day
• 6 to 12 months (up to 24 months for the largest breeds): 2 meals a day

Common health problems in Dogs

Dogs they say is man’s best friend, the onions is therefore on man to take care of his friend. But, how can you take care of a friend you don’t understand and know much? Most often than not Dogs easily come down with one or more of these problems at the same time.

Our dog are faithful companions, and they depend on us for good care. To help your canine friend live a healthy life, you should know some of the most common health problems dogs face, their signs, and what you can do about them.

Ear Infections in Dogs

Ear infections are a common canine health problem, and they can be caused by allergies, yeast, ear mites, bacteria, hair growth deep in the ear canal, and more. Symptoms your dog may have with an ear infection  include:

• Head shaking or head tilting
• Ear odor
• Vigorous scratching
• Lack of balance
• Unusual back-and-forth eye movements
• Redness of the ear canal
• Swelling of the outer portion of the ear
• Brown, yellow, or bloody discharge

Always take your dog to the veterinarian if you think he has an ear infection. In most cases, cleaning and medicating the ear canal will quickly clear up an infection. However, surgery can be needed for chronic infections or if forceful head shaking results in the rupture of a vessel within the outer part of the ear.

RABIES ALERT - Watch out that Dog might just have been infected.

 Many people love Dogs and therefore keep them as pets  and companion animals. However care and due diligence is needed in order to safe guide the health of both animal and owner. As you may be aware, rabies is a common occurrence in this part of the world, so there is the need to educate Dog owners  on what rabies is and how to prevent or mitigate its effects if at all there is a confirmed case. 

Rabies in a layman’s definition is a contagious and fatal viral disease of dogs and other mammals, transmissible through the saliva to humans and causing madness and convulsions.

Rabies is a severe, and often fatal, viral polioencephalitis that specifically affects the gray matter of the dog's brain and its central nervous system (CNS). The primary way the rabies virus is transmitted to dogs in the United States is through a bite from a disease carrier: foxes, raccoons, skunks, and bats. Infectious virus particles are retained in a rabid animal's salivary glands to better disseminate the virus through their saliva.

Once the virus enters the dog's body, it replicates in the cells of the muscles, and then spreads to the closest nerve fibers, including all peripheral, sensory and motor nerves, traveling from there to the CNS via fluid within the nerves. The virus can take up to a month to develop, but once the symptoms have begun, the virus progresses rapidly. This inflammatory infection also has zoonotic (i.e. transferable from man to animal) characteristics and can therefore be transmitted to humans.

Who is most at risk?
People that work closely with wildlife, veterinarians, and travelers are at the highest risk of exposure. Fortunately, there is a vaccine that is available to protect high-risk people. Animals that come into contact with wildlife and are not vaccinated are at a higher risk of infection. While the risk of coming into contact with the virus is very low, it nevertheless does exist. Because of the movement of carriers, there is always the risk of exposure.

Snail farming exposed - a complete free guide to profitable snail farming

Snail farming is the rearing of snails in captivity. The snails are confined in an enclosure and most of their requirements like feed; water and lime are supplied on a regular basis by the farmer.

Snail

On maturity, the snails are harvested, processed and consumed by the farmer or sold. Since the seasonality of supply of snails from the wild limits their use for meat on a continuous basis, the need for organized small or large scale snail farming has become imperative

Snail farming in Nigeria is one of the most neglected and yet one of the post profitable animal rearing business anywhere in the country. It provides one of the finest opportunity to make good money at a very short time. But why are Nigerians not yet fully engaged in this money making animal rearing? The reason is ignorance.

Most people in Nigeria still have the believe that snail can only be picked in the bush. The culture of going to the bush to pick snails in the villages during raining time has been there for generations. So, it has been difficult for people to come to term that snail can actually be kept and grown at home.

16 Questions you must ask yourself

This post serves as a follow up to my last post "how do i know what dog to buy". The honest and holistic appraisal of this questions i believe would help the intending Dog owner to make an informed choice as regards selection.

What best describes you or your family's level of activity?

A.	Very Active

B.	Moderately Active

C.	Somewhat Active

D.	Not Active At All

E.	I'm not active but the children are very active

F.

I live alone and there are no children in my home. I enjoy a nice walk but nothing to extreme

2.

What best describes your home?

A.

Apartment

B.	Town home with yard

C.	House with yard

D.	House with large yard

E.	We live on a farm

3.	Are there children in the home?

A.	Yes under age 6

B.	Yes between the ages of 7 - 12

C.	Yes over the age of 12

D.	No I live alone

E.	No but we often have children vistiors

4.	What best describes the size dog you prefer the most ?

A.	Yes under 10lbs but still needs to be a great family dog

B.	Anything under 20lbs that does well with all members of the family

C.	Doesn't matter any size is fine as long as suits me and my family

D.	I like very large breeds that also make great family dogs

E.	I need a guard dog who doesn't get too big in size

F.	I live alone and would like to find a small dog under 10lbs

G.	I live alone and love big dogs

5.	How watchful should a dog be?

A.	I prefer quiet dogs even if someone comes to the door

B.	Its nice to be notified when someone arrives but a bark or two is enough

C.	Warning barking is great when there is a wagging tail behind it

D.	I think a dog should protect the home and the family

E.	Since I live alone it would be nice to have a watch dog but I prefer having a small dog

How do i know what Dog to buy ? - am so confused.

Owning a dog is a wonderful thing. Not only do dogs provide lasting companionship and unconditional love, they’ve also been known to lower blood pressure and reduce stress. And of course, a dog will make sure you get out and take walks every day. Living with a dog has also been known to boost the social skills and confidence of children and adults alike.

That said, the decision to bring home a dog warrants careful consideration. Dogs come in all shapes and sizes, and not all breeds are the same. Some dogs need more exercise than others, and some breeds may be predisposed to living with a family. Plus, some dogs are great for apartments, and some need a little more space to feel at home

Profitable fish farming - facts you must know

Are you enthusiastic about starting a business in the agriculture sector? Do you need a sample catfish farming business plan template? Then below is an in-depth guide for starting a catfish farming business in Nigeria or anywhere else.
here is so much money to be made in aquaculture (Tilapia fish farming, catfish farming, shrimp, prawn and lobster breeding); if done right. There are so many businesses you can invest in and still make huge profits! You don’t have to bang your head developing software’s or importing and exporting; you can go into catfish farming, and still be successful.
Catfish farming is a lucrative form of fish farming business. I have seen several unemployed folks make it through this business; you too can also be successful if you understand the real keys to success.

Six Reasons Why Catfish Farming is a Profitable Business

i. Fish is one of the cheap sources of protein and a good substitute for meat. In fact, no meal is consumed in Nigeria without fish or meat. Secondly, fish is a source of white meat and is recommended by health practitioners over red meat.
ii. The population of Nigeria is about 150million and this population is estimated to overtake that of the United states by year 2050. Now what does this mean for catfish farmers? The truth behind this statistics is that there is a ready market for fish and the demand for fish cannot be met by local producers alone.
iii. There are a lot of recreation centers in Nigeria especially restaurants, fast food outlets and bars; and fish (Point and Kill or Fish barbeque) is one of the favorite food on the menus of these hangouts. You can even make money by focusing on being a regular catfish supplier for these restaurants and bar.
iv. The operating cost for catfish farming (feed and maintenance) is very low especially when compared to poultry farming.
v. In the month of December 2013, the federal government of Nigeria implemented and enforced a law banning the importation of frozen fish. This move was made to encourage the local production of fish. Now the truth is that the demand for fish cannot be met by local producers alone, so there is presently a market gap waiting to be filled by smart entrepreneurs who can be bold enough to venture into fish farming.
vi. There is a massive support and established credit line put in place by the federal and state governments for farmers (both crop and livestock farmers). Also, there is a fund set aside every year by the Central Bank of Nigeria and other commercial banks in Nigeria to encourage and support farmers.

 

Dog Fever - signs and care

You may have heard that you can tell whether your dog has a fever by feeling his nose -- cool and wet is good, hot and dry means fever -- but it’s not that simple. In fact, dog fever often goes unrecognized or undetected.

One reason it can be difficult to detect fevers in dogs is that their normal body temperature is naturally higher than in humans.

What Is a Dog Fever?

The normal body temperature for dogs is between 38.3 C and 39.1 C, compared to 36.4 to 37.5 C for humans. This means your dog may feel feverish to you even when his temperature is completely normal.

The word “fever” is typically used to describe elevated body temperature caused by infection or inflammation. A temperature of more than 39.4 C is considered a dog fever.

When dogs have high temperatures that are the result of hot external temperatures or excessive exercise in humid conditions, the condition is referred to as hyperthermia or heat stroke. When temperatures reach  41 C (106 F), serious and fatal complications can occur.

Diagonistic Tests for some poultry diseases

The following rapid tests for poultry diseases are available from some of the laboratories within the country especially some the universities where veterinary medicine courses are being offered. Though most of these These cost-effective tests are the result of a Poultry CRC project undertaken at The University of Melbourne.

Farmers can therefore avail themselves of these services especially in cases where they are not sure of the kind of outbreak on their farm

Recent Bird Flu outbreaks in Nigeria - the facts you must know

 

1.  According to the words of the honorable minister of agriculture, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina: “We are currently not in a state of any epidemic, let Nigerians feel free to eat chicken and eggs” we have little reason to be worried about being infected by the bird flu virus presently.

2. The bird flu virus (H5N1) is spread when wild birds pass the virus along to birds such as chickens or ducks that are being raised for human consumption. While the wild birds do not seem to be affected by the virus, the livestock that contract the virus get very sick and many die.

3.Typically, avian or bird flu is not passed from birds to humans. However, in the past ten years, there have been hundreds of cases of bird flu in humans.

4. Most cases of bird flu virus (H5N1) infection are thought to have occurred as a result of direct or close contact with sick or infected poultry.

5. To prevent possible infection, avoid direct contact with poultry; also cook poultry and their products properly before consumption – to kill any bird flu virus, if present.