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Knight Watch: Is It Reigning Cats And Dogs?
By Knight Pierce Hirst
During his victory speech Barack Obama told his daughters they’d bring a puppy to the White House. Of the 43 preceding presidents only 2 – Arthur and Pierce – didn’t have White House pets. Coolidge had a menagerie that included an antelope, a bobcat, 2 lion cubs, a donkey, a goose, a wallaby and a pygmy hippopotamus. John Quincy Adams had an alligator and Harrison had 2 opossums. Taft had a cow that provided his milk and Wilson had sheep that took care of the White House lawn. What this means is the White House doesn’t always qualify as a dog house. According to both the American Kennel Club and the SPCA, dog owners choose dogs that have similar personalities to theirs. According to scientific studies, if you have a beagle, you’re curious; if you have a Chihuahua, you’re mischievous. Cocker spaniel owners are affectionate, golden retriever owners are social and poodle owners are detail-oriented. What all dog owners seem to have in common is devotion to their canines. In spite of the recession, 2008 spending on pet supplies was expected to reach $10.5 billion - $.6 billion more than 2007. That gives new meaning to the economy going to the dogs. According to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, there’s no such thing as a hypoallergenic dog. In fact, the amount of dander in dogs’ skin varies within the same breed. Although poodles are thought to be low allergen producers, a study found that one poodle produced 60 times more allergens – almost the highest of all breeds. Although frequent dog bathing, replacing carpeting with wood flooring and using high-efficiency air filters lower allergen levels, allergy sufferers usually know within 2 weeks if a dog will trigger a reaction. By then, however, sufferers usually hope love will conquer all. Finally, dogs and cats aren’t the only animals whose eyes glow in the dark. Deer, cow, horse and ferret eyes glow too. They glow because of tapetum lucidum, a reflective surface behind the retina which helps with night vision. Light entering the eye is meant to hit a photoreceptor that transmits information to the brain. When the light misses its target, the tapetum bounces it back to try again. Animals’ eyes glow different colors because of different substances in tapetums and varying amounts of pigment in retinas, but scientists are in the dark about why humans don’t have tapetums that glow.
This intel first appeared on: http://knightwatch.typepad.com
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PLEASE VISIT THE CONTRIBUTOR'S WEBSITE
Knight Watch
KNIGHT WATCH IS A HUMOROUS 400 WORDS
knightwatch.typepad.com
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