What Does A Dog's Tail Wag Mean?

As more scientists study dog behavior, the more they find that a wagging tail means more to a dog than "I'm happy". The dog's tail can provide a lot of insight into the dog's emotional state, both positive and negative.

Dogs in general are more sensitive to movement than they are to colors or shapes, so they communicate with each other mainly with body movement. Many dogs have distinct tails - whether bushy, white-tipped, or very long - and this may be for the purpose of having their tails more visible to other dogs. Research shows most dogs don't wag their tails when alone because there's no need.

Of course, there are different dog "dialects" based on tail shape, natural tail height, and breed, but here are some general tail meanings:

*

What Does The Tail's Position Mean?

Straight & Horizontal: Attentive & Alert
Angled Upwards: Dominant & Threatening
Middle: Relaxed
Lowered: Submissive, Worried, or Sick
Tucked Under Body: Scared

*

What Does The Wagging Type Mean?

Speed: The faster the tail wags, the more excited the dog is
Width of Wag/Sweep: The wider the wag, the more positive the dog is

Wag With A Right*-Bias: Relaxed
Wag With A Left*-Bias: Anxious
*Right & Left from the dog's perspective

Narrow, Slow Wag: Tentative, Curious
Broad Wag: Friendly, Pleased
Medium-Height, Slow Wag: Insecure
Quick "Vibrating" Wag: Ready To Act/Attack/Run
Circular Wag: Extremely Excited

Of course, there are many more combinations, but hopefully this has shed some light on your dog's behavior. If you see a dog moving its tail and are still unsure of whether s/he is excited by you or threatened by you, look for other body clues, such as a tense torso or relaxed ears to get a clue into what the dog may be feeling.

[Sources: Psychology Today, QuickandDirtyTips.com, Animal Planet]

Lions And Ligers And Liligers, Oh My!

I just learned today that not only do "ligers" (half-lion and half-tigers) exist, but now so do the babies of lions and ligers: "liligers".

This little girl was born in a zoo in Siberia, and is thought to be the first liliger in existence. It's the first one in captivity at least. She's too cute! And she has a pretty great name.



And if that's not cute enough, she's being raised by a common domestic cat, since her mother stopped producing milk. Can you imagine her cuddling with her adopted cat-mama? My heart just exploded. :)

source: abcnews.com

Lifeguard Dog

Here are some fun facts that I learned about the Newfoundland dog, from the Animal Planet show "Dogs 101":

- Newfoundlands are excellent swimmers, with large bones to keep them afloat, strong legs to battle ocean currents, a waterproof double coat to protect them from the cold, webbed paws, and extremely large lung capacities. Their droopy jowls allow them to breathe while swimming, even when carrying something in their mouths.

- Newfoundlands love retrieving things from the water, so much so, in fact, that they are often trained to be lifeguards. Also, a Newfoundland saved Napoleon Bonaparte when he fell overboard from his ship on the way back to France from exile in Elba.

- Newfoundlands love being with children, and are extremely gentle and patient with them. They are very smart, loyal, and aim to please. "Nana" from Peter Pan was a Newfoundland.

- The largest Newfoundland was 6'-long and weighed 260 pounds (the size of a baby elephant)! They typically weigh in at about 150 pounds.

It's like having your very own huge cuddly teddy bear - that can save your life!

If I thought I could handle that much dog, I would be very tempted to get one!

Do Cats Only Meow At Humans?

My brother once told me that adult cats only meow to talk to humans, so I decided to see if he was right. And he seems to be!

What are you saying, kitty?

Here are the ways that cats communicate:

1. Meowing
They naturally meow just as kittens to get their mother's attention. But as a result of domestication, it appears that they have learned to meow at humans for the same reason!

2. Purring
Most of the time, cats purr because they are happy.  They sometimes purr when they are feeling sick or during stressful moments.

3. Hissing/Growling
Cats hiss or growl when they are angry or want to threaten other animals or humans. They typically will attack with their claws and paws if whoever they are hissing at doesn't back off.

4. Chirping/Chattering
This is a "bird-like" noise that cats can make while watching potential prey. Some have thought that the cats are imitating birds or mice, but the accepted theory is actually that they are simulating the biting motions they'd do if they actually caught the prey.

5. Caterwaul
Cats make this "crying baby" or howling noise to signal to other cats that they are in heat. In rarer occasions, cats will caterwaul to get their owner's attention, like if they are behind a door and need to be loud.

6. Body Language
There are so many ways cats use their body to communicate, I feel as though it may be their primary source of communicating, especially with other cats, who instinctively know what their bodies are saying.  Here are a few examples, some of which could be confusing to humans:

• Lying on their back: this could mean submission and trust, or that they want to attack with all four claws, or just that's how they feel comfortable
• Puffed tail: the cat is surprised or scared; they can also arch their backs and puff out their back hair to look bigger to whatever they feel threatened by
• Tail-twitching: this could mean they are hunting, or they are irritated, or they are excited, or they are playing
• Flattened ears: the cat is feeling threatened
• Nose-touching: this could just be a friendly greeting, or they are marking their territory
• Licking: the cat is trying to bond with another cat or sometimes with their human owner
• Pawing: this could mean they are showing affection or contentment or curiosity, or that they are comforting themselves, or that they are marking their territory

There are tons of other ways cats communicate to each other by whisker position, tail height, and other body movements.

7. Scent
Cats claim territory by territorial marking or by rubbing their scent on people or objects.

All that to say (since it seems I have strayed from the original question): it appears that past kitten-hood, cats mainly meow to humans, and use a variety of other methods of communication to deal with other cats and other animals.

It's pretty smart of them, actually. Cats must have figured out at some point that humans communicate well with noise... and don't always read their body movements correctly!

[source: wikipedia]

ps. Check out this cat who somehow learned to bark... yet didn't want their human owner know! I guess cats have a great ability to learn how to communicate the most effectively.

Red Panda Name Origin

I actually learned this facts from The Detroit Zoo!

My family went recently and became obsessed with the Red Panda. Let me show you why:

So cute. Since they are small and more raccoon-like than bear-like, I wondered how they was related to a Panda Bear. Turns out, they aren't!

"Panda" in Japanese means "bamboo eater". Since that's the main source of food for the Red Panda, that's how it got it's name, in the same way the Panda Bear got it's name.

Maybe since they aren't "bears", we can get one as a pet? These people did (click here)!

Man, I want one so badly. :)

Soap Bubbles Repel Mosquitoes

Lifehacker Lessons, #4

Topic:

"Repel Mosquitoes with a Bubble Machine"

(from 5/31/11)

Summary:

Mosquitoes don't like soap, so bubbles are a perfect way to keep them away. This is a much more fun and interactive method of mosquito-prevention than Citronella or Deet.

From Lifehacker:

According to [the weblog] DIY Life, mosquitoes are repelled by soap solutions (hence their disdain for dryer sheets), and a bit of soap suds will do a good job of shooing them away... Some blogs recommend adding a bit of lemongrass oil to your bubble mixture for more powerful repelling.

For other anti-mosquito tips (and myths), check out DIY's list of prevention methods here.

(note #8: an iPhone app that emits a mosquito-repelling noise??)

Christmas Factoid 3: Santa's Reindeer

Male reindeer shed their antlers at the beginning of winter. Therefore, it appears that all of Santa's reindeer (as traditionally depicted) are female!

I guess with names like Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, etc., that shouldn't be too surprising. :)

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

[source]

Cooties!

I don't know about all of you, but I always assumed that a "cootie" was just a vague imaginary disease that kids use to alienate each other. Not so!

Cooties are actual things, defined as "body louses", which are small insects that are usually parasitic.

It was a general term that began in World War I (circa 1917) to describe any number of vermin (lice, fleas, etc) that a soldier could pick up living in the trenches. The word is thought to have come from the Austronesian word "kutu", which means "lice". Soldiers who traveled to Polynesia, the Philippines, or Malaya could have brought the word back west.

Kids picked up the term later for fun.

That information certainly makes this game from my childhood more logical. :)

Aw, they look so happy!

Bonus fun fact: One early 20th Century treatment for cooties was a pickle-juice-solution bath! Maybe it would also work for this bedbug outbreak? Anyone want to try it?

[source]

Pumpkin Pie!

I found out a random series of facts via my friend Mike, which he heard via the "Pumpkin Pie" episode of Good Eats:

Here's Mike's direct quote:

Pumpkins are a great source of Beta Carotene. Beta Carotene is what your body turns to Vitamin A. Speaking of Vitamin A, a polar bear's liver has enough Vitamin A to kill youuuu.

So there you go. :) Thanks Mike!

Brilliant Birds?

Not just a pretty face!

My mom passed on some interesting information about parrots from USA Today. Apparently, not only are they good-looking, but they also have brains!

Excerpts from the article:

We all know that some birds can talk, but can they understand, too? Are they doing more than just "parroting" sounds? Harvard University research associate Irene Pepperberg has been studying those questions for nearly 30 years. The short answer: Yes.

Her African Grey parrot, Alex, can identify 100 different objects, seven colors, five shapes and quantities up to six and can understand concepts like bigger/smaller and absence.

The article put parrot-intelligence on par with that of great apes, whales, dolphins, and young children! The parrots researchers followed even had certain types of movies or television shows they preferred.

Not only that, but Pepperberg is convinced that parrots can consciously amuse themselves by tricking humans with their noises (such as imitating the phone and watching someone answer it)!

Nuts, huh?

Why Do Birds Sing?

I don't think that bird is saying what you think he is!

I saw a play this weekend and one of the characters had a line saying something like, "Birds don't sing for practice; they sing because they are happy or sad." I wondered, "Really?"

According to Highlights magazine, bird sing to communicate different messages to each other. Usually the male is chirper, and he can sing to:

- claim property.

- attract a mate of the same kind.

- warn other birds to stay away from his family.

Birds only seem to sing to others of their own breed, because that is their only real competition. A sparrow, for example, won't try to steal the mate of a cardinal.

Sometimes birds can also use their singing to identify themselves:

Two scientists who studied white-throated sparrows found that these birds can even tell the difference between songs of individual birds of their own kind. White-throated sparrows have songs that seem to say “I’m your neighbor” or “I’m a stranger” or “I’m your neighbor to the west.” Other kinds of birds could tell neighbors from strangers by their songs, too.

So, there you go. They communicate a lot, but it doesn't seem like "happiness" or "sadness" is their motivation. But I guess the line in the play would have had a much different emotional impact if it read, "Birds don't sing for practice; they sing to claim territory or attract a mate!" :)

Cat Scratch Fever

The other day, I was playing with my friends' cat and she scratched me across the lip. As I tried to stop the bleeding, the phrase "cat scratch fever" entered my mind and I had no idea what it meant.

For an answer, I looked to my favorite disease controlling center- the, uh, Centers For Disease Control:

Cat scratch disease (CSD) is a bacterial disease caused by Bartonella henselae. Most people with CSD have been bitten or scratched by a cat and developed a mild infection at the point of injury. Lymph nodes, especially those around the head, neck, and upper limbs, become swollen. Additionally, a person with CSD may experience fever, headache, fatigue, and a poor appetite. Rare complications of B. henselae infection are bacillary angiomatosis and Parinaud's oculolandular syndrome.

It's typically cured by antibiotics and is really only dangerous for people with a compromised immune system.

Hmmm. Not as exciting and/or as crazy as I thought it would be. It's no taxoplasmosis... but then again, nothing really is thankfully. :) At least it's not worth being too concerned over!

Sleep Like An Animal

Anyone else tired after last night's festivities?

Well, if you need an excuse to nap, just look to nature. The most protected animals (or the ones in the least fear of getting attacked by predators) get to sleep the most. Lions, for example, can regularly sleep for up to 17 hours a day. Bats, who can hide in caves, sleep around 19 hours per day.

I think, since I feel relatively safe from predators (besides possibly my bosses if I don't show to work!), I am going to follow the animals' example this weekend!

you've got the right idea, little buddy!

Jumbo The Elephant

Another fun fact from one of my favorite authors, Bill Bryson:

You may know that the largest elephant ever kept in captivity was a circus elephant named Jumbo. However, many think that he was named Jumbo because of his size. Actually, the word "Jumbo" got its meaning of "oversize" from the elephant!

Jumbo was named when he was born in 1861, when no one could predict his adult size. He got the name from "mumbo jumbo", which was a West African term for "witch doctor" and later an English term for "gibberish". It was probably just meant to be a silly name for the baby elephant. Little did his namers know that Jumbo would eventually grow to be over 11'7" tall, and PT Barnum would promote him so much that "jumbo" would become synonymous with "huge"!

want!

bonus: In the Disney film Dumbo, Dumbo's mom's name was "Mrs. Jumbo" and she named him "Jumbo, Jr". Due to his huge ears, he got the nickname "Dumbo". I can only assume that these names all were inspired by the original Jumbo himself. That elephant ended up being pretty influential!

Michigan Wolverines

The state of Michigan has associated itself with the wolverine in many ways:

- One of Michigan's nicknames is "The Wolverine State".

- At different times, Detroit's baseball and football teams were called the "Wolverines".

- The University of Michigan's mascot is the Wolverine.

- The state animal is the Wolverine.

But, ironically, wolverines don't typically live in Michigan. As a matter of fact, there has only been one confirmed sighting of a wild wolverine in Michigan in the last 200 years (it was seen in the "thumb" in 2004)!

So what's the deal? How did Michigan get linked to the wolverine?

Here's the explanation from the official State of Michigan website:

Why is Michigan sometimes called "The Wolverine State"?

Michigan has long had an unofficial nickname: "The Wolverine State." However, evidence seems to show that if wolverines ever lived in Michigan, they would have been rare. We don't know exactly how the state got the nickname, but two stories attempt to explain it.

Some people believe that Ohioans gave Michigan the nickname around 1835 during a dispute over the Toledo strip, a piece of land along the border between Ohio and Michigan. Rumors in Ohio at the time described Michiganians as being as vicious and bloodthirsty as wolverines. This dispute became known as the Toledo War.

Another reason given for the nickname is a story that has Native Americans, during the 1830s, comparing Michigan settlers to wolverines. Some native people, according to this story, disliked the way settlers were taking the land because it made them think of how the gluttonous wolverine went after its food.

Well, there you have it. It's all about the reputation, I suppose! I wonder if most Michiganians or U of M students realize what being a "wolverine" actually implies. They seem like vicious little animals! Maybe that was the point? :)

A Nurturing Leopard Seal

This is an incredible story. And it makes me want to have a pet Leopard Seal!

More of the story is available on the National Geographic website.

[via SerialBus]

Bald Eagles - Safe Again!

For as long as I can remember, our glorious national symbol and distinguished bird, the Bald Eagle, has been close to extinction. Not anymore! According to Reader's Digest:

Bald Eagle populations in the Lower 48 states have increased 25-fold since the 1960s, thanks to an array of federal protections. America's national bird was taken off the endangered species list in 2007 and joins the American alligator, the Yellowstone grizzly bear, and the peregrine falcon as species that have recovered thanks to conservation efforts.

Yes!!! Conservation efforts work! I am glad my kids and grandkids will likely see a Bald Eagle in person one day. :)

Live long and prosper, little eaglets!

Are Black Cats Lucky?

Black cats have a long history of symbolism in the world. The most well-known in the United States is summed up well by Wikipedia:

The black cat in folklore has been thought to shape shift into humans to spy and bring information and ingredients (such as rosemary) to their witches to use in spells.

Therefore the cats are considered "bad luck" or a "bad omen" (and as a result are the least adopted kittens in the US!).

However, the award-winning astronomer Stephen James O'Meara debunks some of these myths in his book Are You Afraid Yet?: The Science Behind Scary Stuff. He claims that black cats may actually be good luck (as quoted in his interview on NPR's "Here & Now"):

"[Researchers have found that black cats] have a specific gene which helps them to fight diseases so they [live] longer. In fact, humans have the same gene within our own bodies and it may actually help us lead to antidotes."

Good! I knew I always found black cats intriguing for a reason. :)

Next week as Halloween approaches, I'll throw in some more Halloween mystery explanations. Enjoy!

How To Eat A Banana Like A Monkey

I haven't personally tried it yet, but it looks very intriguing!

Why Do Cats Rub Their Faces On Things?

I have never owned a cat, but I have lived with 3 as a result of various roommates having cats, and I am currently cat-sitting until November. As a long-term dog owner, I can say with certainty that cats are bizarre. :)

Don't get me wrong, I love having them around, and their bizarreness leads to a lot of hilarity, but they just think very differently than I do.

Case in point: I have noticed that when a friendlier cat come up to me, they rub their faces against my hand and pants and the chair I am sitting on and everything else in sight. My conclusion has always been that "awww, this kitty wants me to pet her face". That's not what's happening at all.

The cat is rubbing her scent on me, through scent glands around her mouth. Once she's rubbed her scent on me, she considers me "hers". Every time I wash my hands (pants, chair, etc), she feels she needs to reclaim me, to feel like "this is mine. I belong with this."

That seems to be one of the reasons cats like scratching things (like the couch), too. They also have scent glands on their paws and use their claws to rub their scent in (they doubly mark their territory by scratching: they also are visually altering the furniture to look like "theirs").

I guess it's better than spraying. :)