Welcome to our only weekly (ish) segment: The Week in Tweets! This is where I summarise my weekly tweets (from my Twitter account) and choose my favourite as the Tweet of the Week.
Tweet of the Week
Stanley Coren (best known as the author of The Intelligence of Dogs, How Dogs Think and a range of other books) runs a fascinating blog, often delving into dog science, called The Canine Corner. Though I often read this blog with interest, it is his recent post, “Can Dogs Predict Earthquakes?“, that really fascinated me. What was so interesting is that Coren was actually researching another area through a survey and noted anomalies in dog behaviour surrounding an earthquake event. Coren goes into a lot of detail, but basically concludes that dogs can hear high pitched sounds with an earthquake, and that’s why some dogs react. My basic summary doesn’t do his research justice – please have a read, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy as much as me!
Animal Rescue and Sheltering
The Poodle and Dog Blog poses an interesting question in their post, “Do all dogs really need a home? The stroies of two remarkable dogs“. A really interesting question and thought-provoking stories.
The one good thing about tax time? Tax deductable donations!
A Nathan Winograd classic: Debunking pet overpopulation.
YesBiscuit! explains: “What “no kill” means to me“.
I’ve had a busy week tweeting a number of SavingPets articles. These are: “Overpopulation disguises the true cause of shelter killing“, “Why Australian No Kill advocates need to watch their language“, and “Protecting good dogs from bad laws“.
And I had a couple from Wisconsin Watchdog too: “Compassion please! For pets and people” (about rhetoric surrounding people who struggle to reclaim their animals from holding facilities) and “Virtual re-homing – outside of the box and the shelter” (on encouraging people wanting to rehome their pets to ‘do it themselves’ instead of taking a pet to a shelter).
A tear jerker video: Puppy rescue in Afghanistan by U.S. troops.
Not strictly dog, but quite relevant to rescue: a video called “Tough Love” on socializing feral kittens so they avoid euthanasia and find new homes.
Tessie’s Not-So-Excellent Adventure – on a lost dog, with messages of prevention.
From Love and a Leash, talking about Stevie Wonder: Their foster that seemed to have found a new home… “The saga of Stevie Wonder Part 2“. (Also, a post on treats potentially being dangerous when befriending a shy dog.)
Dog Training and Behaviour
A nice summary of clicker training from Maggies Farm.
Love this instructional video from Victoria Stillwell on Puppy Mouthing.
Another one for those training puppies: Creating a resource guarding issue (how taking food away from puppies may be teaching them the wrong things!).
Another one from Stanley Coren’s blog: “Is punishment an effective way to change the behavior of dogs?”
Denise Fenzi talks about deprivation and its use in dog training.
Dr Sophia Yin with a good article: Dominance in dogs is not a personality trait.
Video of the Ashleigh & Pudsey Final on Britains got Talent 2012 (yes, I’m a bit late to the party on this one).
Put a muzzle on it: Advice from the Fearful Dogs blog.
Meet the Kuzzle (when a Kong meets a muzzle).
Dog Science
Calling all dog experts: What kind of dog is that?
Disagreeable people prefer aggressive dogs, study suggests.
Handler beliefs do not affect police dog detection outcomes (full article available).
Why do some people reject science? (with interesting insights on dog-science)
Dog Health
When is the right time to have Fido fixed?
Voting (with your wallet) for better canine health care.
Diamond pet foods to grieiving pet parent with dead dog: show us the proof or get lost.
Physiologic urge or taste preference: Why do dogs eat grass?
Common misconceptions about pet food.
Dog Breed Stuff
Do hypoallergenic dogs really exist?
Creation of the Pekingese dog (video).
Right of Reply – response to FAQ on Rutland Manor’s website.
A video of the Canine Alliance’s first meeting. The Canine Alliance was formed following the refusal of challenges on health grounds in Crufts 2012. Really interesting meeting.
Alert: USDA proposal to regulate hobby breeders.
Dogs and Child Safety
Doggone Safe has been very active of late, producing lots of good content. Like:
Tip of the Day: Learn to tell the tale from the tail
Tip of the Day: Get off your bike if a dog chases you
The Babysitter Rules
Tip of the Day: Teach kids to be a tree
Stop Puppy from Biting Part 3
And the Dogs and Babies blog: First posted “‘Cute’ dog and baby photos feed the fantasy” Then a guide to “Should you share that cue dog and baby photo?”
Teaching toddlers to “respect” the family dog.
3 day old infant dies in dog bite incident.
Patricia McConnell’s thoughts on Preventing Dog Bites.
Another Maggies Farm link: Breed Specific Legislation – Part 2 – Why BSL is the wrong approach.
Other Dog Stuff
When puppies fall from the sky.
Oil sketches of Freddy the border terrier.
I’ll miss you forever (get your tissues out).
CAWS have a number of pet care fact sheets for download (hint: I wrote the dog ones!) http://companionanimalwelfaresociety.org.au/fact-sheets/
What does your dog see? You might be surprised.
Other Stuff
Bezoar stones and mustika pearls - unusual objects formed in animals and plants.
Exercise and addiction: Fun Run: People, it seems, have evolved to be addicted to exercise.
Clover being a frog dog near the fire.
Leafy sea dragon! at Melbourne Aquarium. I had never seen one of these endangered beasts before, in the flesh, and I, sadly, probably won’t ever see another.
All set for a road trip! I make little signs for each of my dogs crates for a road trip, with their names and emergency contact details.
Never thought this would happen! Myrtle the border terrier has been tough to get happy around other dogs, and Jake the greyhound would chase her when he arrived! Got them to the point of sharing couch cuddles. 
Very proud of them.
Thank you for sharing my article: Physiologic urge or taste preference: Why do dogs eat grass?
Dr PM
Thanks for commenting, Patrick. Your link got a lot of attention on Twitter. It answers an age old question.
Thank you for sharing my post “Why Do Some People Reject Science” from my WordPress blog. This is a cool site, and I’m happy to follow it.
Hi Anne. Thanks for writing a great article for me to share!