The Dalmatian's History in Fire Service

“The Dalmatian is a very physical breed, with a strong, muscular body, and able to run great distances without tiring. The Dalmatian also has what seems to be a natural calming effect on horses. This trait about the breed was seen very early on, and soon the Dalmatian was identified with horses. Possibly horse mounted warriors or hunters first used the breed in their activities. During the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries when the mode of travel was by horse or by carriage, the Dalmatians became a society dog, and trained to run along side women's carriages. They became known as Coach dogs or Ladies dogsbecause of this. In fact, the term coaching is referring to how the Dalmatian will take up position justoff the side and towards the rear of a horse and run with them.

In the 1700's, dalmatians were used to protect horses that pulled English stagecoaches. Typically two dalmatians would run next to the horses as they pulled the coach. When other dogs tried to run out and scare the horses, the dalmatian team would chase them away. Over the years, dalmatians formed a close bond with horses.

During this time, horse theft was very common. Because of the potential for theft, stagecoach drivers would typically sleep in a hammock strung between two stalls where they would watch for thieves. However, because of the bond between the dalmatians and the horses, the driver could sleep in a hotel or house if he owned a dalmatian. Why? Because the dalmatians would sleep with the horses and guard against horse theft.

It is during the era of horse drawn fire apparatus that the Dalmatian becomes forever tied to the Fire Service. These fire house horses were required to spend hours at a time at a fire scene, or hours inside the fire house waiting for a call, and despite many misbeliefs, these fire house horses were not broken down old hags, but fine spirited horses. The Dalmatian became the horses pet as it were, to help keep them calm. There are many reports and stories of seeing a fire team rushing to the scene of a call, with a Dalmatian or two running between the horse teams. Once on the scene of the call, the Dalmatian took over as guard dog, insuring that nothing was stolen from the apparatus. The Dalmatian is a very loyal breed to its owners, and an admirable foe when challenged.

Because of the dog/horse bond, the dalmatian easily adapted to the firehouse in the days of horse-drawn fire wagons. Since every firehouse had a set of fast horses to pull the pumper, it became common for each group of firefighters to keep a dalmatian in the firehouse to guard the firehouse and horses. When the alarm came in, the dalmatian led the way for the horse-drawn pumper. In this way, the dalmatian became the firefighters' companion and a symbol of the fire service. Today, dalmatians are still found in many firehouses in England, Canada, and the United States.

Because of this loyalty, the Dalmatian continued in the Fire Service once the horses were replaced with mechanical apparatus. Today, in many large cities, the Dalmatian is the guard dog of the fire truck while at the scene of fires and rescues. In its long history in the Fire Service, there are also reports of how the Dalmatian has rescued trapped firefighters or victims. Overall, the Dalmatian is a brave and valiant dog.”

(http://www.local1259iaff.org/dalmatians.html)

Soothing the Depressesd

Calming the Anxious and Soothing the Depressed
Everybody runs into negative feelings at times, including fear, stress, and anxiety, but some people are hit harder than others, and studies show that animals may be able to help. Animal-assisted therapy has been shown to have at least a moderate effect on improving the emotional well-being of humans.

According to a large 2007 study in the journal Anthrozoös, researchers have successfully used animals to calm patients prior to a potentially frightening medical procedure; help patients with post-traumatic stress disorder conquer their fears; and decrease symptoms in people suffering from depression. How does it work? A 2000 study in the Journal of Psychiatric Research found that positive interaction with dogs can give a boost to the brain chemicals that lower blood pressure, which could be the biological basis behind these animal-assisted therapies.

Cat Age Equivalency

Kitten birth to 6 months
A kitten that is 0-1 month old is equivalent to a human that is 0-1 year of age
A kitten that is 2-3 months old is equivalent to a human that is 2-4 years old
A kitten that is 4 months old is equivalent to a human that is 6-8 years old
A kitten that is 6 months old is equivalent to a human that is 10 years old

Junior 7 months to 2 years
A cat that is 7 months old is equivalent to a human that is 12 years old
A cat that is 12 months old is equivalent to a human that is 15 years old
A cat that is 18 months old is equivalent to a human that is 21 years old
A cat that is 2 years old is equilavent to a human that is 24 years old

Prime 3-6 years
A cat that is 3 years old is equivalent to a human that is 28 years old
A cat that is 4 years old is equivalent to a human that is 32 years old
A cat that is 5 years old is equivalent to a human that is 36 years old
A cat that is 6 years old is equivalent to a human that is 40 years old

Mature 7-10 years
A cat that is 7 years old is equivalent to a human that is 44 years old
A cat that is 8 years old is equivalent to a human that is 48 years old
A cat that is 9 years old is equivalent to a human that is 52 years old
A cat that is 10 years old is equivalent to a human that is 56 years old

Senior 11-14 years
A cat that is 11 years old is equivalent to a human that is 60 years old
A cat that is 12 years old is equivalent to a human that is 64 years old
A cat that is 13 years old is equivalent to a human that is 68 years old
A cat that is 14 years old is equivalent to a human that is 72 years old

Geriatric over 15 years
A cat that is 15 years old is equivalent to a human that is 76 years old
A cat that is 16 years old is equivalent to a human that is 80 years old
A cat that is 17 years old is equivalent to a human that is 84 years old
A cat that is 18 years old is equivalent to a human that is 88 years old
A cat that is 19 years old is equivalent to a human that is 92 years old
A cat that is 20 years old is equivalent to a human that is 96 years old
A cat that is 21 years old is equivalent to a human that is 100 years old

Holiday Hazards

Holiday season plants to avoid:

Lilies found in holiday flower arrangements can be deadly to your cat. Many types of lily, such as Tiger, Asian, Japanese Show, Easter, Stargazer, and the Casa Blanca, cause acute kidney failure in cats.

Poinsettias generally have low toxicity. If ingested, poinsettias irritate the mouth and stomach, causing mild vomiting or nausea.

Mistletoe can have a cardiovascular (heart and blood vessels) toxic effect. More commonly, however, mistletoe ingestion usually causes gastrointestinal upset.

Holly ingestion can cause vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, and lethargy.

Please call your veterinarian for advice in all cases to ensure that your pet doesn't need emergency veterinary care.



Hazards around the christmas tree:

Christmas tree water often contains fertilizers, that, if ingested, cause stomach upsets. Stagnant tree water can have extremely high bacterial content, which can cause vomiting, nausea, and diarrhea, if ingested.

Electric cords should be hidden or covered safely. If they were chewed, they could electrocute your pet.

Ribbons or tinsel can get stuck in the intestines and cause intestinal obstruction if ingested.

Batteries contain corrosives. If ingested they can cause serious ulceration to the mouth, tongue and intestines.

Glass ornaments can cut the tissues of the gastrointestinal tract if ingested.

Holiday Pet Pics with Santa

Photographic portraits of pets with Santa will be offered Sunday, December 5 from 2:00-5:00pm at the Frederick County Humane Society, 217 West Patrick Street in downtown Frederick. Portraits will be provided in electronic format for a cost of $10. Proceeds from the project will benefit programs of the Humane Society.

Pet Pix will take place during the Santa Paws Bazaar, in which local vendors of specialty merchandise will display their wares at the Santa Paws Baazar. Participants include Tomboy Tools, Scentsy, Bling Bags and the Frederick County Humane Society's Crafters Guild. Vendors will cpontribute a portion of sales to FCHS.

No advance registration is rquired. Plentiful street parking is available. Pet owners are asked to have their pets in a secure carrier or on a non-retracting leash.

For more information, please call 301-694-8300 ext. 203.

Imitation is Flattery

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, dogs often shower us with praise. New research has just determined dogs automatically imitate us, even when it is not in their best interest to do so.

The study, published in the latest Proceedings of the Royal Society B, provides the first evidence that dogs copy at least some of our body movements and behaviors in ways that are spontaneous and voluntary.

In other words, they can't really help themselves when it comes to copying people.

"This suggests that, like humans, dogs are subject to 'automatic imitation'; they cannot inhibit online, the tendency to imitate head use and/or paw use," lead author Friederike Range and her colleagues conclude.

It's long been known that humans do this, even when the tendency to copy interferes with efficiency.

"For example," according to the researchers, "if people are instructed to open their mouths as soon as they see the letters 'OM' appear on a screen, responses are slower when the letters are accompanied by an image of an opening hand than when they are accompanied by an image of an opening mouth."

In a scientific first, Range — a University of Vienna researcher in the Department of Cognitive Biology — and her team tested this phenomenon on dogs. Ten adult dogs of various breeds and their owners, from Austria, participated in the experiments.

All of the dogs received preliminary training to open a sliding door using their head or a paw. The dogs then watched their owners open the door by hand or by head. For the latter, the owner would get down on the floor and use his or her head to push up or down on the sliding door.

The dogs were next divided into two groups. Dogs in the first group received a food reward whenever they copied what the owner did. Dogs in the second group received a food reward when they did the opposite.

All of the dogs were inclined to copy what the owner did, even if it meant receiving no food reward.

"This finding suggests that the dogs brought with them to the experiment a tendency automatically to imitate hand use and/or paw use by their owner; to imitate these actions even when it was costly to do so," the authors report.

The scientists suggest owners would do well to match their own body movements, whenever possible, to tasks at hand during training sessions.

For example, if an owner is trying to teach a dog to shake "hands," the person might have more success if he stretched out his own hand to demonstrate. The observing dog would then be inclined to stretch out a paw, mirroring what the human did. At that point, a food reward could be offered to the dog, reinforcing the behavior.

The owner is reinforcing bonding and cooperation with the dog, too.

"Researchers have known that human beings prefer the behavior of other people who subtly imitate their gestures and other affects," said Duane Alexander, M.D., director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child and Human Development.

Alexander worked on another study showing that non-human primates automatically imitate each other. Certain birds do this, too, but it may be very rare in the animal kingdom for one species to almost subconsciously imitate the behavior of a completely different species.

The dog-human bond may therefore have few, if any, parallels.

"Dogs are special animals, both in terms of their evolutionary history of domestication and the range and intensity of their developmental training by humans," Range and her team explain.

"Both of these factors may enhance the extent to which dogs attend to human activity," they added, "but the results of the present experiment suggest it is the latter — training in the course of development — which plays the more powerful and specific role in shaping their imitative behavior."

Call for Blood Donors

Due to the current economy, EVBB is in dire need of donations to stay open. EVBB is not a non-profit organization, so donations are not tax-deductible. However, we hope that you believe that our mission is important and that you will help us try to Save EVBB.*Please help us eliminate the need for caged blood donors, promote all-volunteer blood banks, and save dogs' lives. For more information please go to evbb.com.