Cattle

Posts Tagged ‘euro’

The history of the Shih Tzu dog breed spans more than hundreds of years and finds it very beginnings in China. Today, the dogs are still trusted companions of millions of families with young children because of the same reasons they were once the favored canine choice of imperial ladies-in-waiting and royalty.

It is believed that the origins of Shih Tzus go back nearly 3,000 years when the country of Tibet gifted the dogs to the Imperial palace of China. There are many historical reports that talk about “under table” dogs who ate up the scraps and kept their keepers (usually eunuchs who oversaw many of the Imperial household functions) of anything or anyone approaching the castle.

The appearance of Shih Tzus resembles that of a lion, which also suggests they hailed from further west. Today, the breed of Shih Tzus is also known largely due to the efforts of the last Imperial Empress of China. For some 50 years, until the early part of the 20th century, she ruled the vast empire which was comparable to the modern China of today.

During this time, the Empress also enacted a breeding program to create the perfect lineage of Shih Tzus, Pugs and Pekinese as well. Detailed accounts that been maintained for many years, contain vivid descriptions and breeding notations. Though it is believed that some of the eunuchs who actually physically cared for the dogs cross bred them, the results were a surprisingly varied line of Shih Tzus. It was in this process that three distinctive sub-breeds within the larger Shih Tzu breed, would eventually emerge.

When the pressures of Europe and modernization took effect, the results eventually forced out what had been an unpopular regime, the Shih Tzus were taken from the palaces by the overthrown Imperial family and recently ousted eunuchs. During this time period, many of the dogs were exported out of China.

With the dawning of the early 20th century, the breed suffered hard times and was nearly wiped out, they are believed to have become extinct in China. It is believed that only around 11 dogs were able to escape to the west. In locations throughout western Europe, breeding began in the 1930’s through the 1950’s, this resulted in millions of dogs being produced and replenishing of the breed. Because of this significant rise in population, the Shih Tzu breed is somewhat likely to have congenital health issues.

It is interesting to note that Shih Tzus in the United Kingdom are mostly descended from a single cross breed with a straight-legged Pekinese during the 1930’s. As a result of this, most of the Shih Tzus in the UK are a little bit taller than others found all over the world. Other than this fact, it is a living tribute to the Empress as to how much variation is still in existence today, in the various coat color combinations still witnessed in the breed.

Though somewhat noisy, Shih Tzus are still great at keeping a household alerted to anyone approaching. Furthermore, Shih Tzus were selected to be docile and easy to handle. Because they were bred exclusively to form close bonds with human beings, Shih Tzus are extremely loving and happy to follow you around all day long.

Description: The Great Pyrenees is a large, shepherding dog. The dog will be between 27 and 32 inches at the withers and will weigh up to 110 pounds. The bitch is a little smaller, measuring 25 to 29 inches and with a weight of 80 to 100 pounds. This dog has a medium long double coat consisting of a dense under layer and a coarse, weather proof guard coat. The Great Pyrenees has a double dew claw on the hind feet. This dog can live for 9 to 12 years. The Great Pyrenees is also known as the Pyrenean Mountain Dog and Chien de Montagne Pyrenees.

History: The original stock that led to the Great Pyrenees probably came from Eastern Europe or Asia. The ancestors of the Great Pyrenees are the Maremmano and the Hungarian Kuvasz. This dog was used in the Pyrenees Mountains of Spain and France for nearly 5,000 years as a herding dog. It was not until the 19th century that the breed became known to the outside world. The Great Pyrenees was used not to herd sheep in the way a Border Collie will, but to live with the sheep and provide protection against wolves and bears.

Temperament: While the Great Pyrenees becomes attached to its human family, it will always be a somewhat independent dog. It will never be as needy of affection as most dogs because it was bred to stay with the sheep and protect them. Older children are recommended for this dog breed. This dog had to be able to make decisions on its own, without human direction. The Pyrenees is very protective of its human companions as well as any sheep it has in its charge. This dog needs a strong leader and must be trained while young, as it is very strong when adult and can be difficult to control if it does not understand its limits. This dog has a tendency to wander.

Health Issues: The Great Pyrenees can suffer from hip dysplasia, as can most large dog breeds. This breed is also subject to bloat or stomach torsion. Symptoms of this will be acute discomfort and attempts at vomiting that are unproductive. The dog must be given medical attention at once to save its life. Smaller meals and a rest time after eating are thought to help prevent bloat.

Grooming: The coat of the Great Pyrenees should be brushed out several times a week and should be checked for burrs and other debris. The under coat is shed once a year and more intensive grooming is called for at this time. As the ears are floppy and can retain moisture in the ear canal, they should be checked every week and cleaned if necessary.

Living Conditions: The Great Pyrenees is totally unsuitable for apartment living. This large dog needs space and likes to roam. While the Pyrenees gets quite attached to its human family, it is a dog that does not need intensive interaction with people. It was developed to be a guardian of sheep in isolated pastures and carried on most of its work without the presence of a human. This dog loves cold weather and enjoys being outside in winter.

We want our dogs to live as long as possible, but the truth is, certain dog breeds live longer than others. If you are in the market for a new pet, following is some information that could help in this decision making process.

From breed to breed, the age of a dog varies, but the average life span of the North American or European dog is about 12 years of age.8 years. For the last 100 years there has been an increase in life span of dogs thanks to better foods and medical care.

Larger dogs like the Saint Bernard live shorter lives than smaller dogs because physically, the bodies of larger dogs are more stressed than the bodies of smaller dogs. Medium sized dogs can live to be between 11 to 14, while very large breeds live only 8 to 12 years. some small dogs can live up to 22 years of age, but the average is from 14 to 22.

The life expectancy of any particular dog is also determined by the stresses in its everyday life – just like humans. of course, this includes physical and psychological stresses, what the dog eats and how well you take care of your dog.

While a Labrador Retriever may live an average of 12.6 years, some people report their Labs having lived much longer. Smaller breeds such as a Lhasa Apso or a Miniature Poodle, have a life expectancy of around 14.8 years of age. Yet there are some poodles that live to be more than 18 years old.

Have you ever tried to add up how old your dog is in “human’ years? In reality, the seven years to one human year is a myth, or a dog that is 20 would be 140 years old. Even basing the lifespan on 100 years, a small dog’s age would roughly be five years to every human year, so five times 20 would be 100 years. No one formula for a dog to human age conversion has ever been scientifically analyzed.

Typically, a one year old puppy that has reached full growth is usually sexually mature, although it might still need to fill out, just like human teenagers. A two year old dog is equal to about another 3 to 8 years in terms of mental and physical maturity, while each year thereafter is equal to around four or five years in human terms.

As a dog gets on in years, it is critical to take good care of the animal, and make it comfortable as it approaches its last days. You will know when your dog stops eating, its breathing becomes difficult, and other pets begin to snap at it or ignore the animal. The time may have come to plan a pet memorial service and think about taking it to the vet to be put down and out of its pain.

When your dog dies, you can help it live forever in the hearts of your family by conducting a pet memorial. Purchasing a dog urn, to put cremains in is one way to remember your friend. Pet urns are each as unique as your pet, and can fit nicely into a home, or be used in an ash spreading ceremony.

Dn’t forget, your pet will live long in the memories of those who truely loved it.

The evolutionary history of the horse is one of the most-covered subjects in modern biology. And no wonder – of all modern animals, the horse has behind it the most intact and visible family tree.Our story begins millions of years ago – with the Perissodactyls.

No, not “pterodactyl” – those clawed flying relics of the dinosaur age as imagined in B-movies and The Flintstones. The “Perissodactyls” are hoofed animals with an odd number of toes on each foot (they are also distinguished by their tooth structure); this group of animals is itself, say scientists, descended from the same ancestor as the tapir and the rhinoceros but, unlike these animals, gradually adapted to life on drier land than the tropical forests preferred, even today, by the rhino.

One creature’s evolution often influences that of other creatures in its environment, and this was true of the equids (the horsey branch of the Perissodactyl family tree), who began eating grass as this new crop began to flourish. Such a diet favored the spread of new sorts of equids who had larger teeth.

Likewise, the equids – adoption of a dry, steppe-like habitat, where predators lived and where the comparative lack of foliage made it harder to hide, encouraged the survival of those equids who ran the fastest. Gradually longer-legged equids with a long third toe (which allowed for greater running efficiency) began to predominate. The Mesohippus species of 40 million years ago reflect this trend.

It’s a common – but disastrous – mistake to see evolutionary history as a smooth straight-line progression from early to middle to modern versions of an animal, with the modern animal taken as the final copy of the earlier animals’ rough draft, as if we were viewing successive sketches of Michelangelo’s David in a line that ended with the real statue.

In fact, though, most equid species lived their day and died, without having any influence on today’s horse; they existed in their own right, and we shouldn’t think of the modern horse as the “goal” of all this equine living and dying. Many genealogical lines simply ran out, while one (leading to our horse) happened to survive; but it could as well have been any, or all, of the others, given slight modifications in some habitat a million years ago or so.

In any case, of the many horselike species whose fossils have been found, it’s thought that Plesippus – a species descended from the earlier Dinohippus – is the father of the modern horse. This species responded to falling North American temperatures by heading, either to South America or across the Bering Strait from North America to Eurasia, about 2 and a half million years ago, with a few staying behind in North America.

Somewhere toward the end of the Tertiary period or at the beginning of the Quaternary – that’s scientists’ talk for the beginning of the most recent Ice Age, roughly 1.8 million years ago – descendants of Plesippus gave rise to offspring different enough from their sponsors, and like enough to our modern horses, that scientists have dubbed them Equus stenonis, the first “true” horse.

They crossed into North America and survived for millions of years, perhaps giving rise to the other ancient horses known to have inhabited the area during this period – the super-sized Equus scottii giganteus, whom the present author swears he is not making up (they seem to have exceeded modern horses in size). But all North American horses died out, rather inexplicably, around 11,000 years ago – at the same time as many other kinds of animals, and for reasons scientists have yet to discover. Was it some mega-virus of the ancient world? Or, a more tantalizing possibility, did humans (arriving on the North American scene, according to some theories, at about this time) hunt them to extinction?

In any case, horses had no purchase on this continent until after European colonization of the Americas began in 1492; for this long period, then, from 11,000 BCE to 1491, the horse’s development took place in Eurasia instead. (Another tantalizing thought – after the colonizers had reintroduced horses to Mexico, the southwestern US, and Peru, some indigenous tribes told stories about how “the grass remembers” these new animals.

Did these people groups retain some memory, perhaps through myth and legend, of the long-gone North American horse?)

The outline of horse-history given here is just one sketch, based on one strand of scientific theorizing. Like those ancient Perissodactyls giving rise to many species of not-quite-a-horse, most of which flourished in their time and died without contributing in any way to the development of modern horses, scientific speculation as to the origin of any species will include many interesting, intelligent “dead ends.” So who knows.

A popular theory, the “Four Foundations” theory, suggests that at some point long predating the horse’s disappearance from North America, four basic types of horses developed in Europe (from those Plesippi, perhaps, who crossed from North America to Eurasia before the last Ice Age began). Warmblooded, forest-dwelling horses and draft horses of northern Europe, plus taller, slimmer Asian horses and pony-sized Tarpans, are considered, in this theory, to be the “basic” horses from which all others are descended.

Ball Pythons are now drawn from the wild and sold as pets. Taking care of ball pythons is expensive and requires patience.

Ball pythons or python regius are found along the edges of Western and Central Africa’s forest lands. They are either on the trees or grounds. Although they are termed as royal pythons in the European countries, they are referred to as ball pythons in the US because of the curling habits. They tend to curl up and pull their heads firmly in the center when nervous
Ball pythons are crepuscular, meaning they are more active at dusk and dawn. Similar to most pythons, ball pythons are gentle and curious snakes. They also have anal spurs like the ones found in boas.

These lone claws that appear on the sides of their vents are formerly their hind legs. The snakes lost their legs in evolution millions of years ago. Males possess longer spurs and smaller heads compared to the females.
If you plan to have one as a pet, it is best to buy a captive-born. If not, then go for well-feeding juvenile, adult or sub-adult breed.

In selecting a ball python, select one with a firm clear skin, clean vents, round-shaped body, and clear eyes. When handled, it should actively flick its tongue.

In selecting a housing for your hatchling, a 10 gallon glass tank with a hinged glass top and fixed screens should do the trick. Take note that snakes are regarded as escape artists. Ball pythons are cunning and powerful in breaking out. Hence, for a young adult, you need a 20 gallon glass tank. For a full adult, you need a 30 gallon glass tanks already.
When selecting an appropriate substrate, you can initially use paper towels. It can be easily replaced or removed when soiled. If your Ball Python is imported, you would need to monitor its feces and check it for mites.

Once established, use a fir bark or shredded cypress. Never use aspen and pine shaving because this can lodge in your snake’s mouth while it eats. It may cause respiratory and other serious problems.

You need to monitor these shavings closely. When it gets wet and soiled, pull it out immediately, to prevent the growth of fungus and bacteria.
Place a hiding area for your ball python. You can buy a half-log at any pet store. An alternative can be an upside down plastic opaque container or an empty cardboard box.

Keep the tank warm, 80 to 85 degrees F in the daytime. At night, keep it at 73 to 75 degrees F. You can buy reptile heating pads at any drug store. As an alternative, you can buy incandescent light bulbs in metal and porcelain reflector hoods. Never use a hot rock because bBall pythons are prone to thermal burns.

Make sure your snake gets ambient humidity. You can check this using a hygrometer. Get this up to 50%. When your snake sheds, it needs higher humidity. You can increase the enclosure humidity to about 60-65%. By bathing your snake in a warm bath when its eyes clear, they will completely shed in 24 hours.

For hatchlings, you can feed it with a 10 day old mouse. For the larger ones, you can feed them larger pinkie rats or pre-killed mice.
Always provide a fresh bowl of water inside the tank.

Ball Pythons can live for many years. Amidst coming of age, they need to remain active and alert. In captivity, most snakes die for reasons related to their care and maintenance. Some causes include contact with lighting and heating elements, improper temperature, lack of needed veterinary treatment and care, no access to regular water and careless handling among others.