Animals - cute photos, funny stuff,, -news, research

[flea dip]

One article I read about this today said that human possess the same genes for smell that dogs do, but that we just don't utilize them in the way that dogs do. And for that, I'm grateful - things that smell bad now would probably smell ten times worse if our sense of smell was as strong as that of dogs.

Study: Cats cannot taste sweets

No sweet sensation

Study: Cats cannot taste sweets - Monster and Critics Site

Cats' Finicky Ways Linked To Genes - KGO

United States and British researchers announced Monday they have found a defective gene that makes it impossible for cats to taste sugar or other sweets.

Researchers at Philadelphia`s Monell Chemical Senses Center in collaboration with Britain`s Waltham Center for Pet Nutrition found a defect in a gene coding for part of the mammalian sweet taste receptor can account for cats` indifference to sweets.

Xia Li, a molecular geneticist at Monell, said the mammalian sweet receptor is composed of two protein subunits, known as T1R2 and T1R3. Each is coded for by a separate gene.

In the study, reported in the July inaugural issue of PLoS (Public Library of Science) Genetics, the researchers show a defect in the gene encoding the T1R2 protein in domestic cats.

Monell researchers also detected the same gene defect in tigers and cheetahs, suggesting it is common throughout the cat family.

"This type of gene is known as a pseudo gene and is somewhat like a molecular fossil," said Li. "It presumably once coded a functional protein, but no longer does so."

[Ironshadow]

well, the cat has evolved into a total carnivore, unlike the dog and other carnivores, which it is related to far up the evolutionary branch- The cat did so to fill that predatory niche inaccessable to animals that were unable to climb, claw, leap, and perform other tasks that would put other species within predatory range- its carbohydrates would be provided in the gut contents of the animals it consumes, while other predators routinely rely on fruits, grain, roots, etc. when prey is not available.
Cats do crave and will consume carbohydrates as sweet as corn and cantaloupes when on an artificial diet, because they are not obtaining carbohydrates from kills.

[flea dip]

I've had two cats over my life time, and both of them have been known to knibble on grass in the yard from time to time.

My previous kitty liked cheese flavored Dorito chips.

The dog we used to have? He was like Mikey, and he'd eat about anything.

One quasi-exception:
When I was a kid, I'd give him the black parts from the Oreo cookies (I liked only the white sugar part). The dog would eat some of the cookies, but after awhile, he got tired of them.

My mom told me years later she'd find the dog burying the cookies in the yard.*

*Um, that is, she told me that information years later. Not that the dog would take the cookie and then wait several years to bury it. (I come from the Dave Barry school of writing, sorry.)

[Ironshadow]

actually, chocolate, raisins, etc, is high in oxalic acid, which is harmful to other animals (esp. dogs). Chocolate is relatively good for humans because the particular form of o. acid is not as bad as other foods.

Maybe Fido read the book, who knows.

[The 1 Not Fooled]

I was just going to say, I thought chocolate was very harmful to dogs? For those of us that are addicted to sweets, where could we acquire this cat gene?

[Ironshadow]

have some complex carbs and meat and it'll go away.

[flea dip]

See, I looove chocolate, and the black parts of Oreo cookies never tasted like chocolate to me; they tasted like card board. I'm not even sure if the black parts of Oreos contain chocolate?

I was just a kid when I gave that to my dog, I wasn't aware back then that chocolate was harmful to dogs... I've heard conflicting reports about it, though.

I've read that even a small amount of chocolate can be harmful to dogs, but I've read other articles which say it's a myth, and still others say, it's harmful only if a single dog were to eat 600 trillion pounds of it in one sitting.

I wish I couldn't taste sweets, it would make dieting that much easier. But then, I'm also a sucker for pizza, lasagna, alfredo sauce, and potato chips.

My curent kitty seems to favor sea food. Out of all the canned flavors we feed him, he goes nuts for "ocean fish."

And that is the worst smelling out of the flavors, IMO, so of course that's his favorite

[The 1 Not Fooled]

I haven't watched this yet, but I thought I'd post it so I could check it out later. I know some of you will enjoy it as well:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ860P4iTaM

[flea dip]

I watched a show on Animal Planet about fat pets a few days ago.

I've tried looking up pages or pictures of Archie, a huge cat in Britain that was on the show, but I've not been able to find anything on him on the internet so far.

I did find photos and stuff of other fat pets.

I know it's bad for their health to be overweight, but I think these rolly-polly kitties and dogs are adorable

'Monster' Cat In China Weighs 33 Pounds

A 33-pound cat in Qingdao, China, is being described as a "feline monster" because of its 31-inch waist and large size, according to a report.

The 9-year-old cat from the Shandong Province is so heavy it needs the help of its owner to get onto a bed. However, the cat is in surprisingly good health despite its weight, Local 6 News reported.

The cat's owner said it has no interest in eating fish but prefers to eat six pounds of chicken and pork each day.

Fat Pets Gallery

Feline Medical Curiosities: Dwarf Cats, Giant Cats, Fat Cats - has more photos

Here are photos of the 33 pound cat from China:


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The owner helping the cat get on the bed (the cat can't do it by himself):

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Measuring the kitty with a tape measure:

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Someone else's fat kitty:


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[Former Fan]

My cat used to be normal until we got her fixed, then she started piling on pounds. It used to actually hurt to have her stand on my lap because she was so heavy ( though not anywhere as big as that Chinese cat). She has started to lose weight in recent years due to her old age.

I think Youtube has a video of the original Chinese-language broadcast of the cat story.

[flea dip]

more photos of the fat Chinese cat:

This is a larger, better quality photo than the one I posted above:

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Other fat cats:


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Fat dogs:


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[flea dip]

Does Your Dog Know English?

.... Astute owners who notice their dog’s linguistic talent have tried to develop it further by teaching words rather than commands.

Some dogs are able to find their ball when the owner says, “Where’s your ball?”

Some dogs appear to have an extensive vocabulary and can follow detailed directions like, “go to my desk and bring me my pen.”

While this ability astounds dog owners, and anyone watching, scientists have tested dogs who show such prowess, and the findings are less or more impressive, depending upon how you look at it.

Dogs can learn many words, without a doubt, especially names of objects or commands.

But to follow more complex directions, dogs rely on other skills. According to Stanley Coren in How to Speak Dog, a dog will listen to your words, and watch your subtle, even subconscious body language, and then add his most reasonable guess to figure out what you want him to do.

In the above command, for example, the dog may know what a pen is because his owner taught him that word-object association.

The person giving the direction made a subconscious glance in the direction of the desk, which told the dog which way to go. Most dogs are masters at reading body language.

The dog goes to the desk and sees the pen.

The most reasonable and obvious thing for a good, well-trained dog to do with an object, is to retrieve it.

This creates a very convincing illusion that the dog understood English well enough to follow a complex command.

In How to Speak Dog, to test the theory that dogs rely more on our body language than words, a dog was told to go to one place, but the person speaking glanced in a different direction.

The dog always went to where the person was looking.

Dogs may never have a complete command of our spoken language, but their ability and interest in listening to our words and observing our body language in order to do what we ask of them, to ultimately please us, is really truly impressive.

[knightmuzic]

Cats can understand better than we think, as well. They just choose to listen when it pleases them.

Dogs are all about impressing their masters. So, if they understand a command, they'll follow it when you give it.

[flea dip]

The Cute Project

So many cute critters on view.

[flea dip]

Yahoo has these listed as the most popular animal videos (I've not yet looked at any of them):

Kitten in a Boot
-there's a still from the movie of the kitten, and she's adorable

Surfing Duck

Gizmo the Boxing Cat

Hamster Loves Fries
-this one sounds cute

Doggie Tag

Dramatic Prairie Cat

[flea dip]

Cute Overload

Adorable Kitten

[flea dip]

Trust me, you'll want to visit this page and see the photos!

Anteater Coolness

[flea dip]

Several cute and funny hamster photos on this page

[flea dip]

Funny animal photos


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[SouthwestRanger]

Wednesday, October 08, 2008
By Sally Kalson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"Opus," the cartoon penguin liberals love and conservatives love to hate, is about to sail into the Antarctic sunset.




Berkeley Breathed, Opus' creator, is ending his comic strip career to concentrate on children's books. The last "Opus" strip will appear Nov. 2. Readers will be invited this Sunday to go to berkeleybreathed.com to guess the location of the penguin's "final paradise." A cash prize is implied but not specified.

"I'm destroying the village to save it," Breathed wrote in an e-mail sent late Monday to the Los Angeles Times. "Opus would inevitably become a ranting mouthpiece in the coming wicked days. ... The Michael Moore part of me would kill the part of him that was important to his fans."

Sally Kalson can be reached at skalson@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1610.


OPUS LINK

SR: Well I'm neither fully Liberal or Conservative but I loved the wry commentary offered by Opus the Huge Nosed Penguin and such memorable characters as Steve Dallas the hapless Babe Magnet and Bill the Cat....

Loved every time I opened the funnies and read the latest tales from Bloom County and collected all the Trade Paperbacks such as TALES TOO TICKLISH TO TELL...

Opus....it's been fun

And how many members have a stuffed Opus sitting on their PC, Coffee Table, or tucked away in storage ?