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Pets & Pesticdes
You may not realize that the use of pesticides can make your pet sick. These are poisons designed to kill living things and can be as deadly to pets as they are to pests. I lost a dog once because she ate snail poison which tatses very sweet. It had been applied a month earlier. Be careful! It's a tough loss.
Here's some words of advice from, "Safer Pest Control Project".
HOW TO PROTECT YOUR PET

1. Never apply pesticides when pets are on the lawn
2. Use natural lawn care techniques. You don't need all that chemical stuff when treating your yard. for more information see SPCP's "Natural Lawn Care Factsheet"
3. Remove all feeding bowls, water dishes and pet toys from any area before applying a pesticide.

1. identify the chemical
2. determine exposure, whether diluted or from concentrate, and how much time has elapsed since application
3. take the product with you to the vet
4. save vomit for possible analysis

This is A good Dog

Thought you might like to know about this dog
and his story.
I especially like the ending ........




The K9 above is Brutus, a military K9 at
McChord AFB..
He's huge - part Boxer and part British Bull
Mastiff and tops the scales at 200 lbs. His
handler took the picture. Brutus is running toward
me because he knows I have some Milk Bone
treats, so he's slobbering away! I had to duck
around a tree just before he got to me in case he
couldn't stop, but he did.

Brutus won the Congressional Medal of Honor
last year from his tour in Iraq . His handler and four
other soldiers were taken hostage by insurgents.
Brutus and his handler communicate by sign
language and he gave Brutus the signal that meant
'go away but come back and find me'.

The Iraqis paid no attention to Brutus.

He came back later and quietly tore the throat out of one guard

at one door and another guard at another door.

He then jumped against one of the doors repeatedly (the guys were
being held in an old warehouse) until it opened. He
went in and untied his handler and they all escaped.
He's the first K9 to receive this honor. If he knows
you're ok, he's a big old lug and wants to sit in your
lap. Enjoys the company of cats..
K-9 Congressional Medal of Honor Winner


Thought you'd find this interesting.
Talk about animal intelligence and bonding with humans!

A Pet's Ten Commandments............ Be sure to read them too.

Remember that pets can't do a lot of things for themselves and
that they depend on you to make their life a quality life!
A PET'S TEN COMMANDMENTS.........
1. My life is likely to last 10-15 years. Any separation from you is
likely to be painful.

2. Give me time to understand what you want of me.

3. Place your trust in me. It is crucial for my well being.

4. Don't be angry with me for long and don't lock me up as punishment.

You have your work, your friends, your entertainment,

but I have only you.

5. Talk to me. Even if I don't understand your words, I do understand
your voice when speaking to me.

6. Be aware that however you treat me, I will never forget it.

7. Before you hit me, before you strike me, remember that I could hurt
you, and yet, I choose not to bite you.

8. Before you scold me for being lazy or uncooperative, ask yourself if something

might be bothering me. Perhaps I'm not getting the right food, I have been in the

sun too long, or my heart might be getting old or weak.

9. Please take care of me when I grow old. You too, will grow old.

10 On the ultimate difficult journey, go with me please. Never say you
can't bear to watch Don't make me face this alone. Everything is
easier for me if you are there, because I love you so.

8/18/10

Joe Rao
SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist
SPACE.com joe Rao
space.com Skywatching Columnist
space.com – Fri Aug 13, 6:15 pm ET
The "dog days" of summer officially came to an end this week, but few people know what the expression really means. The phrase actually has a celestial origin.

Some will say that summer's "dog days" signify hot sultry days "not fit for a dog," while others suggest it's the weather in which dogs go mad.

But the "dog days" are actually defined as the period from July 3 through Aug. 11 when the Dog Star, Sirius, rises in conjunction (or nearly so) with the sun.

(This sky map shows where to find Sirius at sunrise in mid-August. Sirius is the brightest star in the night sky.)

As a result, some felt that the combination of the brightest luminary of the day (the sun) and the brightest star of night (Sirius) was responsible for the extreme heat that is experienced during the hieght of the summertime. Other effects, according to the ancients, included droughts, plagues and madness.

A more sensible view was put forward by the astronomer Geminus around 70 B.C. He wrote: :"It is generally believed that Sirius produces the heat of the 'dog days,' but this is an error, for the star merely marks a season of the year when the sun's heat is the greatest."

Dog star, Nile days

In ancient Egypt, the New Year began with the return of Sirius. It was, in fact, the "Nile Star" or the "Star of Isis" of the early Egyptians.

Interestingly, some 5,000 years ago, this "heliacal rising" (appearing to rise just prior to the Sun) occurred not in August, as is the case today, but rather on, or around June 25. When they saw Sirius rising just before the Sun, they knew that the "Nile Days" were at hand. Its annual reappearance was a warning to people who lived along the Nile River.

The star always returned just before the river rose, and so announced the coming of floodwaters, which would add to the fertility of their lands. People then opened the gates of canals that irrigated their fields.

Serious about star Sirius

Priests, who were the calendar keepers, sighted the first rising of the Dog Star from their temples. At the temple of Isis-Hathor at Denderah is a statue of Isis, which is located at the end of an aisle lined by tall columns.

A jewel was placed in the goddess' forehead. The statue was oriented to the rising of Sirius, so that the light from the returning Dog Star would fall upon the gem. When the priests saw the light of the star shining upon the gem for the first time, they would march from the temple and announce the New Year.

In the temple appears the inscription: "Her majesty Isis shines into the temple on New Year's Day, and she mingles her light with that of her father Ra on the horizon."

This week, just before sunrise, Sirius might again be glimpsed rising just above the southeast horizon for those living in mid-northern latitudes. At more southerly latitudes, Sirius is already conspicuous, twinkling above the horizon at dawn.

Sirius is the brightest star of the constellation Canis Major, the "Greater Dog" in Latin. According to Burnham's Celestial Handbook other names for it include "The Sparkling One" or "The Scorching One."

The star appears a brilliant white with a tinge of blue, but when the air is unsteady, or when it is low to the horizon as it is now, it seems to flicker and splinter with all the colors of the rainbow. At a distance of just 8.7 light years, Sirius is the fifth-nearest known star. Among the naked-eye stars, it is the nearest of all, with the sole exception of Alpha Centauri.


The Brightest Stars in the Sky
Gallery - Stars and Galaxies
Beginner Astrophotography Telescopes
Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York.



Military Dog Returns from Iraq Traumatized
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colorado

Gina was a playful 2-year-old German shepherd when she went to Iraq as a highly trained bomb-sniffing dog with the military, conducting door-to-door searches and witnessing all sorts of noisy explosions.

She returned home to Colorado cowering and fearful. When her handlers tried to take her into a building, she would stiffen her legs and resist. Once inside, she would tuck her tail beneath her body and slink along the floor. She would hide under furniture or in a corner to avoid people.

A military veterinarian diagnosed with her post-traumatic stress disorder - a condition that experts say can afflict dogs just like it does humans.

"She showed all the symptoms and she had all the signs," said Master Sgt. Eric Haynes, the kennel master at Peterson Air Force Base. "She was terrified of everybody and it was obviously a condition that led her down that road."

A year later, Gina is on the mend. Frequent walks among friendly people and a gradual reintroduction to the noises of military life have begun to overcome her fears, Haynes said.

Haynes describes her progress as "outstanding."