Dogs Have Magical Powers…

Dogs seem to have magical powers which have benefited humans for ages. We will tell you how. When it comes to getting fit, a person’s best friend might be a four legged one. Experts say studies show dog owners walk more, walk faster, and are more likely to enjoy an active lifestyle because of their companion animal. Research has proved time and again that pet owners tend to be healthier and happier than those who do not have pets at home. They not just have higher survival rates following coronary heart disease; they are also believed to be less prone to death due to heart attack.



Pets are great stress busters too. They are good companions, who listen to all your woes without any complaints! Besides the therapeutic value of keeping a pet, they are known to do wonders to a child’s development. Children who own pets develop a nurturing behavior, positive self-esteem and an enhanced all-round development.

Pets are known to be much more perceptive than human beings. They pick up even the subtlest of body signals, especially of their owners. They can easily gauge your disposition from the smell of your body. Some pet facts:


1. Pet owners visit the doctor less than those who do not own pets.

2. Pet owners are said to have lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels than non pet
owners.

3. Pets reduce stress, anxiety and loneliness especially among single owners.

4. Walking with a dog or sharing space with a dog fills the pet owner with a sense of
security.

5. Children who own pets are known to have positive self-esteem and better cognitive
development. They tend to have al all round development.

6. Companionship of pets helps one deal better with some serious illness or death in the
family.



As we can see, pets and animals have always benefited the mankind. It is always in our favor to save them and nurture them. Let’s save them, let’s save the animal kingdom!

Mob Kills Tiger Again

Despite India’s dwindling tiger population and the massive amount of resources spent to raise awareness about tiger conservation, a tigress was killed in Chhattisgardh state when with better planning she could easily have been tranquilized and released into the wild.



After six hours of being pounded by stones, when the bloodied tigress collapsed in a heap, a delirious cry broke out in Aamagon Bagrutola village. As forest officials took away her carcass, villagers took out a victory procession to celebrate the killing!



Who is to blame for these brutal killings of defenseless animals? Why the forest officials did not resist the move of villagers to kill the tiger? These are the questions which remain unanswered. Can’t the government, which claims to spend so much money in the name of tiger conservation, educate the locals about the importance of wildlife conservation?

A special drive to educate the general public, needs to be launched immediately. We have to make people understand that the conservation of wildlife is essential for the survival of the mankind. The forest officials need to be armed to fight off the menace of hostile crowds, and smugglers who kill helpless animals and trade off their body parts. What the government needs is an honest and sincere approach to end this mayhem of such majestic animals.

A Little Reprieve for Animals

It is heartening to know that the government of India has been taking good steps towards the safety of stray animals and even pets. Some time back a strict law was proposed that anybody involved in cruelty against animals will be heavily fined and even imprisoned. Similarly, mutilation of pets for cosmetic reasons has been made an offence. An advisory sent out by the Animal Welfare Board of India to veterinary councils, colleges, kennel clubs and other institutions likely to carry out such procedures states that practices like docking of tails and cropping of ears will now be punishable with both a fine, or imprisonment, or both.



Traditionally, Doberman, boxer, Great Dane and Cocker Spaniel pups have been subjected to tail docking, but veterinarians say there is no reason for this practice to continue. In fact, there is no reason for humans to inflict any kind of injury or cruelty to animals as they have been companions to humans from the beginning, and have contributed to the civilization in ways more than one.

Though the government initiative is laudable, simply making laws against animal cruelty is not going to help. We will have to ensure that these laws are enacted in the best ways. There should be task forces or committees to make sure stray animals and pets are not being tortured by whimsical people. It will largely depend on the people to understand that animals feel pain and have emotions like us humans, and that they deserve our love and compassion. A drive to educate people about animals and how they are needed for our own survival is going to help a great deal in this direction.

A Ray of Hope – Wild Animals & Birds Rescued in India

Over 150 wild animals & birds were rescued in a raid conducted in the Jama Msjid area of Delhi by the police. In all, 55 rabbits, 42 rare pigeons, 5 ducks, 5 fighter cocks and 30 exotic birds of the budgriger variety were found squashed in tiny cages and were being sold by a poacher to some local buyers.



Animal smuggling rackets are on the rise and Delhi has become a hot spot of such activities. In fact, the whole world has become a market for these smugglers who catch animals and birds, and sell them for their skin and flesh. According to animals activists in India, smugglers breed these animals and birds in rural India, and then bring them to big cities from where they are further smuggled to Pakistan and Arab countries.

Rare pigeons are sold at a very high price while ducks are sold to farmhouses. Duck meat has become highly popular and is sold for slaughter. Rabbits are sold as pets and exotic birds are sold for shows! Tigers are sold for every part of their body!



This cruel treatment of innocent animals and birds is outrageous. The government and the authorities concerned have to be more vigilant and try their best to stop this cruelty meted out to animals and birds. Let us not forget that the Earth belongs to them as much as it belongs to us.

The Human – Animal Conflict

With a human population bursting at its seams, more and more people are settling in areas that were once the habitat of elephants, big cats and other wild animals. This has resulted in human – animal conflicts. Consequently, issues of animal conservation and mitigation are becoming more important.



Some time ago, hundreds of flamingos died of electrocution as they were flying into high – voltage electricity cables passing over their habitat n the outskirts of Bhavnagar city in Gujrat, India. This mass electrocution was apparently triggered by stray dogs as they chased the flamingos and the panic – stricken birds collided with the wires overhead.

We need to save these animals and birds for our own sake, if not out of compassion. Compassion is ruled out for us humans as we have killed and traded our lower cousins, animals and birds, for thousands of years. We talk of love and peace, and in the same breath murder millions of animals everyday to enjoy tasty dishes made out of them. Can we really have love and peace in the world when our whole existence seems to depend on hatred, cruelty and cold-blooded killing of animals? Isaac Bashevis Singer puts it correctly, “There will be no justice as long as man will stand with a knife or with a gun and destroy those who are weaker than he is”.

Trout Vanishing from Himalayan Rivers

The condition of the Trout in the snow-fed streams of the Himalayas – the natural habitat of the fish – is getting worse and their number declining. Local conservationists say it is getting increasingly difficult to find trout in the Himalayan rivers where it once abounded. While natural calamities seem to have played a part in the dwindling numbers, so have human activities.



The story of the rarer brown trout is more dismal. The brown trout is found in rivers like the Beas, Tirthan, Sainj, Ravi, Uhl and Bapsa – all in Himachal Pradesh – besides certain spots in Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir. And locals with an interest in preserving them insist their numbers have rediced alarmingly.



Like all breeds of trout, brown trout spawns in winter, normally between October and January. The eggs are deposited in gravel dug-up by female fish. Excessive rainfall or floods wash the eggs away, which hits the trout population badly. Excessive silting in the aftermath of rains, floods, poaching and hydro-projects in Sainj river have dealt a further blow to the fish.

As for poaching, officials say it isn’t logistically possible to man the entire course of a river and monitor what the locals are up to. Fisheries department officials say they are trying to control poaching and plan to undertake seed stocking.



While these efforts by the Fisheries department are good, more efforts need to be made in order to preserve the trout and the environment I the long run. Locals need to be educated about the importance of saving the fish and its positive effects on the eco-system. Strict measures also need to be taken against poaching the fish.

Nightingales May Become Extinct in 30 Years...

The nightingale - made immortal in an ode by famous British poet John Keats - could become extinct within 30 years, scientists have predicted. Population of the bird that has been an inspiration for generations of poets and romantics, has drastically gone down by more than 90% in the last 40 years, says the study by the British Trust for Ornithology.



The bird would be upgraded to " red status" - signifying the highest degree of conversation concern. The nightingale's decline has been blamed on the population explosion of the muntjac deer, which has reduced the availability of the bird's habitat in the woods.

The muntjack is a small deer native to Asia, including Sri Lanka, India, China and Japan; and was introduced to Britain by accident when some escaped in 1925 from the Duke of Bedfordshire's estate. Pressures on its habitat in sub-Saharan African, where the bird goes during winters, as well as along its migration route to UK have contributed to the threat. The trust is searching for solutions to halt the bird's extinction. It has launched the Nightingale Appeal and a CD of the bird singing, profits from which will go to research.




Courtesy: TOI