Pets and Animals

Refine Search

Why do dogs chew their tails?

Allergies that cause a dog to bite its tail include skin irritations such as contact dermatitis that occur when dogs get into substances such as soap or pesticides. This is why it is crucial to keep a dog out of the yard for 24 to 48 hours after fertilizing.\nDogs also get bored. If a dog does not get enough activity in the form of outdoor exercise or stimulation, it often develops repetitive behaviors that mimic obsessive-compulsive disorder, and chewing on its tail is one sign.\nParasites like fleas often set up shop on the tail and start chewing, so the dog's chewing is just returning ..

Continue Reading

How long do rhinos live?

Rhinos often do not live out their full lifespans in the wild due to predation, poaching, habitat loss, natural disasters and disease. The greatest danger to rhinos comes from poaching. Rhino horn is traditionally used in China and Southeast Asia as medicine to treat blood disorders, fever and cancer. In some areas, poachers have decimated entire populations of rhinos. Because of their size, adult rhinos face little danger from predators, but crocodiles, wild dogs, hyenas and big cats sometimes prey on rhino young. Habitat loss due to illegal acquisition of wild land threatens rhinos in southe..

Continue Reading

Are there GPS chips for dogs?

Pet microchips are not GPS devices, as HomeAgain points out. Pet microchips are radio frequency identification implants. The microchip uses RFID and serves as the pet's ID. It cannot help the owner find his dog, but it allows the finder to return the pet to its owner by bringing it to an animal shelter or a veterinarian where the pet is scanned for identification. The shelter or vet then contacts the owner using the information on the pet's microchip.

Continue Reading

What is a Portia spider?

Portia spiders are native to India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, China, Southeast Asia, Australia and the Philippines. They hunt other spiders and are able to kill web-building spiders up to twice their own size. Their hunting tactics include web invasion, in which they enter another spider's web and mimic the vibrations of a trapped insect to lure the resident spider to them. Portia spiders also stalk other spiders, freezing when in another spider's visual field and continuing their advance when unobserved. When hunting other jumping spiders, Portia spiders mimic bits of leaf detritus until ne..

Continue Reading

Why are sloths so slow?

Sloths, which are the slowest mammals on earth, are found in the tropical rainforests of Central and South America. They travel, at most, only about 40 yards per day. Aside from their slow metabolic rate, sloths also have significantly less muscle tissue compared to other types of mammals of similar size, resulting in their having less strength and mobility. Sloths are so slow, in fact, that algae grows on the outer layer of their fur, providing them with camouflage while in the trees.\nThere are six species of sloths. They sleep for most of the day, sometimes for up to 20 hours. Sloths are ar..

Continue Reading

What is an AVID microchip number?

AVID is one of a number of manufacturers of implantable microchips used for animal identification. These chips are typically implanted by veterinarians. Many animal shelters also implant microchips in animals that have been adopted. These microchips provide a safe and permanent form of identification.\nOwners of animals implanted with a microchip, even microchips not manufactured by AVID, may enroll in AVID's PETtrac program, which is a registration and pet recovery service. Many animal shelters use microchip scanners during their intake processes, and animals with implanted microchips ar..

Continue Reading

How can you tell when a Molly fish is pregnant?

Molly fish are livebearers of the Poeciliidae family. They are colorful freshwater fish that are quite hardy. Molly fish get pregnant fairly often and can give birth up to once a month. After fertilization by a male, molly females can release live young each month for up to 6 months. The first birth is the largest with between 12 and 30 babies. The next month she will give birth to 50 percent fewer babies and so on.When pregnant, molly fish look larger around the abdomen. They grow bigger as they get further along in the pregnancy. As they get close to giving birth, their bellies may take on a..

Continue Reading

What holiday plants are harmful to cats?

The berries and spiny leaves of the holly plant are both toxic to cats. They contain saponins that when ingested can cause severe abdominal upsets, drooling and head shaking. The spiny leaves may also cause internal injury.\nLilies, such as the Easter lily and Tiger lily used in holiday bouquets, can cause fatal kidney failure in cats if ingested, even in tiny amounts. Cats that have been exposed to the flower’s pollen should be bathed. Symptoms of toxicity include vomiting, lethargy, loss of appetite, tremors and seizures. Treatment is administered by a veterinarian and may require aggressi..

Continue Reading

Do lions hibernate?

Animals hibernate when the days get shorter, temperatures drop to freezing, and food becomes scarce. An animal hibernates by going into a deep sleep, which allows it to conserve energy and reduces its need for food. During hibernation, the animal's heart rate and breathing decrease significantly. Some hibernating animals allow their temperatures to drop so low that they might appear dead. Some animals wake during hibernation for short periods of time to eat and eliminate, yet others can sleep without eating or eliminating for up to six months.

Continue Reading

How much does a gorilla weigh?

Variation in male weights potentially varies by 150 pounds between the largest and smallest males, but even the smallest male gorillas are 300 pounds or more. Females, on the other hand, weigh around 200 pounds with a smaller range in weight between them. LiveScience claims a top weight of 480 pounds for male gorillas, depending on subspecies, and a top weight for females of 215 pounds. LiveScience also claims that gorillas are the world's largest primates.

Continue Reading
Showing 2531 to 2540 of 10000 (1000 Pages)