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Dog brain studies provide clues to understanding dementia
Dr. Denise A. Valenti Medical & Allied HealthcareAs man's best friend, dogs contribute to our social well-being throughout our lifespan. However, understanding how our canine companions age is also contributing to our medical well-being. It turns out an aging dog has a natural development of cognitive decline that parallels some of the human dementias associated with aging.
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Nonverbal animal communication: The fear freeze response
Dr. Myrna Milani Pet CareFear plays such a crucial survival function in all animals — including humans — that the physiological and behavioral changes associated with it are deeply rooted. Equally deeply rooted is the ability of many animals to detect fear-related changes in humans. Not so deeply rooted in some of us is the ability to detect fear-related changes in them.
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Forget devices, encourage employees to ‘bring your own pet’
Jessica Taylor Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementMillennials are projected to be the largest pet-owning generation, while also making up the largest generation in today's workforce. Acknowledging these trends of millennials and their pets, large companies like Amazon, Etsy and Google have adapted to allow pet-friendly workplaces.
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Nonverbal animal communication: The homecoming
Dr. Myrna Milani Pet CareImagine yourself interacting with an adorable but apprehensive puppy brought in for a first examination. Ask yourself if what you see and hear communicates your total confidence in yourself and the animal to deal with whatever life dishes out. Or does it communicate something else?
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Understanding the significance of signage
Dale Willerton and Jeff Grandfield RetailEntrepreneurs can't just open a location and expect customers to beat a path to their door. Those customers need to be able to find them. One of the easiest methods to ensure your business is conspicuous is by means of signage. While you may envision a large sign prominently identifying your place of business, don't assume your landlord will agree. Commercial landlords may, in fact, prefer to decrease your amount of signage and will often reject tenant requests for more or larger signage.
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Companion chemistry: When the ‘rescue’ bond has a negative…
Dr. Myrna Milani Pet CarePractitioners routinely sprinkle their client communication with words that carry a particular emotional change for themselves, their clients or both. Sometimes both assign the same charge to the same word; other times the same word may carry different charges for each.
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When veterinary science ‘bytes’ bite back
Dr. Myrna Milani Pet CareMost veterinarians recognize that science is an ongoing, often dull and repetitive process during which subsequent findings may support or refute those of previous studies. Most also recognize that science reporting by the news media may present study findings in audience-friendly "bytes" with attention-grabbing headlines that may create false impressions.
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Is glycemic index a relevant tool for evaluating pet food?
Jennifer Adolphe, Ph.D. Pet CareGlycemic index has become a common tool to evaluate pet foods. However, as with many trends in the human and pet food industries, it is often used without a full understanding of its meaning and proper usage. The glycemic index originally was developed in the early 1980s to rank human foods based on their effect on blood glucose levels. The glycemic load is calculated by multiplying the glycemic index of a food by its carbohydrate content.
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A more positive approach to dog training
Dr. Roger Mugford Pet CareThe art and science of dog training is rooted in a simple truism: Animals repeat behaviors that have a pleasurable outcome and avoid those that are unpleasant. This is my principle of "payoffs" vs. "penalties," which governs the way people learn and which also perfectly applies to our dogs. Both people and dogs like good food, company and home comforts, but avoid pain, social embarrassment or hunger. Good management of payoffs and penalties creates better behaved people — and pets.
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How much protein should pet food contain?
Jennifer Adolphe, Ph.D. Pet CareVisit any Internet message board about pet nutrition and you will more than likely find a heated debate about protein — pros, cons, good sources, bad sources and more opinions than you ever wanted to know. Proteins are the building blocks of your pet's body and consist of chains of amino acids joined together. They can range in size from only a few amino acids to large, complex molecules in which the amino acid chains are intricately folded. Why are proteins such a hot topic for pet nutrition?
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