Kissing bugs (Triatoma) and the skin

Kissing bugs (Family Reduviidae) can be the source of nocturnal dermatologic wounds in the mid to southern latitudes in the United States. The insects are obligate blood feeders and though the bites may be asymptomatic, a variety of dermatologic eruptions or death from anaphylaxis can result. The various dermatologic forms of the bite can be mistaken for herpes zoster, erythema multiforme and the ubiquitous catch-all diagnoses of "spider-bite."

Triatoma are predominantly nocturnal and feed off of a sleeping person's exposed human body parts.

Typically, they position themselves next to the recumbent human, rather than on top of the host, to feed with the proboscis being the only contacting body part. Subjects describe the bite of Triatoma as virtually painless with a slight tingling sensation.

In laboratory observations, the insects fed for 8 to 15 minutes on humans before repletion and interfeeding duration was typically 3 weeks. However, the insects were able to survive 3 to 6 months between meals.

Why do cats have an inner eyelid as well as outer ones?

The third eyelid of cats plays an important role in maintaining the health of their eye surface. In fact, it is so important that among mammals and birds the norm is for a species to have a third eyelid and those lacking one--such as humans and some of our fellow primates--are the true oddities in nature.
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Make the Most of a Dog's World

While the nation bitterly debates Iraq troop levels, medical care for the indigent and the need for college football playoffs, there is one thing everyone agrees on: We love our dogs and cats beyond all reason and will pamper them in sickness and in health.

No longer do most dogs get old hambones or bags of kibble in their bowls in the backyard. Today they have come under the scrutiny of big-time marketers who see them as monetizable targets akin to cute little kids. On television and Web sites and in splashy direct-mail campaigns, households are encouraged to lavish pets with organic meat, resort vacations, designer clothes and cosmetics, psychotherapy and specially formulated water. It's goodbye Fido, hello Fidollarbill.

The apotheosis of pets for financial purposes has been going on for some time, of course, but only recently has it launched into the stratosphere as an accelerating multibillion-dollar business. Americans spent $36 billion on food, shelter, health care and luxuries for their pets last year, which is about twice the GDP of Costa Rica.

The pet industry is one of the fastest-growing subsectors in the entire U.S. economy, growing by as much as 6% a year.

The Norwegian Puffin Dog

In order to run down and kill wolves, the people of Ireland bred the powerful and long-legged Irish Wolfhound. When they needed something to chase ill-tempered badgers into their holes to exterminate them, Europeans bred the feisty, short-legged dachshund. But five hundred or more years ago, the people on the northern coast of Norway had a different kind of prey to contend with: humble puffins.

In order to hunt puffins, the Norwegians bred a unique dog. The resulting Lundehund was an extraordinary animal with some unparalleled gifts. For all its uniqueness, the Lundehund is vanishingly rare. It has been so close to extinction that at one point there were only five of them in existence.

Twenty good reasons not to have a pet raccoon

The purpose of this site is to provide factual information about the issues involved with having a pet raccoon.
Aside from the last two paragraphs on this page, all of the information on this site is established fact and is intended to help people make an informed decision when considering the raccoon as a pet.

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Max collars top dog name in N.Y. in 2006

Max has collared the title of top dog name in New York City again. The name was engraved on 1,228 of the 101,274 dog licenses issued last year by the health department.

Lucky fetched second spot. Princess took third, and hot on her tail were Rocky and Buddy, leaving the Top 5 names unchanged from 2004.

Mixed breeds, with 7,374 new licenses, outnumbered other varieties in 2005. They were followed by Labrador retrievers. Pit bulls and Shih Tzus captured the third and fourth places, clawing their way up from fourth and fifth the year before. German shepherds were the fifth most popular breed, down from third place.

Goat Facts

Some interesting facts about goats:

• Worldwide, goats provide people with more meat and milk than any other domestic animal.
• Goat meat is called Chevon or Cabrito and is a red meat that is lower in cholesterol and fat than beef, pork, lamb or chicken.
• Goat milk is more easily digested than cow’s milk.
• A goat’s tail turns up while a sheep’s tail turns down.
• Male goats are called “bucks” or “billies” and female goats are called “does” or nannies”.
• Goats are pregnant for five months and normally have two kids at a time.
• Goats can grow to be 8–12 years old.
• Goats are known as “browsers” (eating twigs, leaves and bark) but they also do well grazing grass.
• Goats weigh 5-10 pounds at birth and grow to 75-200 pounds when mature.
• 5-7 Goats can live on the amount of feed it takes to feed one cow.
• There are about one billion goats worldwide!
• The domestic goat is in the family Bovidae, genus Capra, and is of the species Hircus.

An Otter Family Album

For the past 23 years, Scott Shannon has observed 5 generations of river otters in California.
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Batty Discovery: The Longest Tongue

One nectar bat can launch its tongue three and a half times its body length, longer than any other mammal and second only to chameleons among vertebrates, scientists recently discovered.

The tube-lipped nectar bat (Anoura fistulata) was discovered in the cloud forests of the Andes of Ecuador, and first described last year.

But it wasn’t until recently that scientists realized the tongue of this bat extends twice as far as its family members. They suggest this long licker evolved to feed on a flower where the nectar is hidden at the end of equally long funnels. That gives the nectar bat sole pollinating rights to the flower.

Ten most and least intelligent dog breeds

Most Intelligent –
These breeds on average require less than 5 repetitions to understand a new command. They obey first commands 95 % of the time or better.

With #1 being the most intelligent
# 1) Border collie
# 2) Poodle
# 3) German shepherd
# 4) Golden retriever
# 5) Doberman pinscher
# 6) Shetland sheepdog
# 7) Labrador retriever
# 8) Papillon
# 9) Rottweiler
# 10) Australian cattle dog

Least Intelligent –
Require more than 80 repetitions to understand a new command. Obey first commands less than 25 % of the time.

With the least intelligent breed at number 10
# 10) Afghan houndAfghan
# 9) Basenji
# 8) Bulldog
# 7) Chow chow
# 6) Borzoi
# 5) Bloodhound
# 4) Pekingese
# 3) Mastiff
# 2) Basset hound
# 1) Shih tzu

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Giant Carnivorous Centipedes

The world has many moist, warm, and dark cavities where phobia-inspiring organisms quietly lurk. The tropical climate of South America's Amazon jungle has an unnaturally large number of such pockets, and consequently that region is home to unnaturally large specimens.

One such example is the Scolopendra gigantea, a venomous, red-maroon centipede with forty-six yellow-tinted legs. These centipedes are the largest in the world, and they are more commonly known as Amazonian giant centipedes due to their massive size. Adults commonly reach lengths of over thirty-five centimeters– the length of a man's forearm. Not only are these creatures very swift runners, but they are also highly adept climbers, a skill which allows them to scale walls to enjoy some surprisingly ambitious prey.

Your Bi-Lingual Kitty

Adult cats, living apart from humans, have very clear communication with one another. It is spoken mostly through scent, then through facial expression, complex body language, and touch.

Vocal communication involves caterwauls for mating, chattering upon spotting prey, hissing to ward off an intruder, or shrieking when hurt or terrified. Meowing is not part of this language. Meow-ese, it would seem, is a language developed exclusively for humans.

The only meowing in the cat world is done between mom cat and her young kittens. A kitten’s tiny “mew” is a cute, endearing sound, used to solicit attention and care from mom cat.

So why do cats have two “languages?”