On June 8, 1963, the Illustrated London News ran the following story about an exhibition at the gorilla house at The Bronx Zoo in New York City. The exhibit told visitors:
“You are looking at the most dangerous animal in the world. It alone of all the animals that ever lived can exterminate (and has) entire species of animals. Now it has the power to wipe out all life on earth.”
We love to tell dogs what to do, but we rarely consider whether they understand what we’re saying. Pet owners assume their dogs comprehend commands like sit, stay, or heel — even play dead and make me Instagram famous, for that matter — but without the ability to read their minds, no one can know for sure. An ingenious new study in Frontiers in Neuroscience, however, finds a way to determine which of our commands they actually understand.
Just looking at this video, makes me even more hungry.
Recent studies have found an increased presence of a tapeworm infecting coyotes, foxes, and rodents across the Canadian province of Alberta. The research was published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Led by the University of Calgary's faculty of veterinary medicine, the findings state that a parasitic tapeworm called Echinococcus multilocularis is now prevalent in Western Canada, including in urban off-leash dog parks in Calgary.
The tapeworm was first recorded in the area in 2012, and has long since been common in Europe. The tapeworms have also been present in wildlife found in Ontario, with the latest research suggesting the parasite has been present in the region for decades - now well established.
Echinococcus multilocularis is spread through the feces of coyotes and foxes that have eaten infected rodents such as mice and rats. Tapeworm eggs can be passed through their feces, which poses a risk to other animals that come into contact with it - including humans. Domestic pets such as dogs and cats can contract the parasite through contact with coyote feces or by also eating infected rodents. The worm can then be passed on to people via fruit, the handling of contaminated soil or through an infected pet’s fur.