Discover Magazine (August 18, 2024): The latest issue features
Climate change is putting parasites — the unseen pests running our planet — in peril, but a small band of scientists is fighting to save them from extinction. By Kate Golembiewski
Help researchers understand the underpinnings of dog personality and behavior with these Citizen Science projects.
By Françoise Mouly, Art by Ana Juan, May 16, 2022
It is thought that cats lived alongside people for thousands of years, hunting the rodents that inevitably accompany human settlements, before they deigned to become domesticated—a state that many cat owners can attest feels provisional to this day. One research paper on the history of the house cat observes, “Let us just say that our cats do not take instruction well. Such attributes suggest that whereas other domesticates were recruited from the wild by humans who bred them for specific tasks, ancestors of domestic cats most likely chose to live among humans because of opportunities they found for themselves.”
Online pet retailer Chewy has seen a surge of growth over the past year as millions adopted new pets. WSJ spoke with Chewy’s CEO to learn how the company handled the pandemic pet boom. Illustration: Jacob Reynolds/WSJ
Taylor Swift crashes the Jellicle Ball as Bombalurina to sing “Macavity” in Tom Hooper’s 2019 adaptation of Cats, the musical by Andrew Lloyd Weber. As she drugs the Jellicles with catnip, only Macavity (Idris Elba) is left in the running to become Old Deuteronomy’s (Judi Dench) Jellicle choice.
CATS: Oscar®-winning director Tom Hooper reimagines Andrew Lloyd Webber’s record-shattering musical. Starring James Corden, Judi Dench, Jason Derulo, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Ian McKellen, Taylor Swift, Rebel Wilson and introducing Royal Ballet principal Francesca Hayward. With a world-class cast of dancers showcasing styles from classical ballet to contemporary, hip-hop to jazz, street dance to tap, this film reimagines the stage musical for a new generation. You will believe in the fun and magic of Cats.
My Virtual Veterinarian connects pet parents with veterinarians for video and chat appointments. Through our platform, pet parents can access their primary veterinarian, or find a different veterinarian who is available for virtual veterinary appointments.
From Cell.com “Trends In Ecology & Evolution” (Feb 22, 2020):
The value of domestic cats as predators-in-residence certainly played a significant part in their global spread, as they were employed for rodent control on trade ships and in the outbuildings of emerging civilisations.
They are predisposed to form attachments with people during early developmental stages, tolerate the presence of humans, other cats, and other domestic animals far better than wilder felids, and exhibit distinctive behavioural traits (including vocalisations and body language) that facilitate effective interspecies communication…
Cats share a long history with humans but are remarkable among domesticated species in largely retaining behavioural and reproductive independence from people. In many societies, the cat maintains liminal status as both a domestic and a wild animal. An adaptive push-and-pull between wild and domestic traits corresponds with dual roles as companions and pest controllers, and with conflicted treatment in husbandry, management, law, and public discourse. To move forward, we must proceed by understanding that cats are not exclusively pets or pests, but both a central component of human societies and an important, often adverse, influence on ecosystems. Developing a collaborative ‘companion animal ecology’, in which human–animal domestic relations link to ecological processes, will enable sustainable management of this wild companionship.
From a Yahoo online article:
The percentage of boomers who own a pet grew from 50% to 54% between 2008 and 2018. Among the oldest boomers — those between 70 and 74 — the percentage of pet owners rose from 41% to 45%. In contrast, the percentage of pet owners between the ages of 18 to 39 dropped from 63% to 61% during that time frame. Among consumers 40-54, the percentage of pet owners held steady at 64%.
So what type of pet reigns supreme among boomers and seniors? Those over 55 appear to see the value in all types of pets, as the percentage of dog owners grew from 27% to 32% and the percentage of cat owners grew from 27% to 33% between 2008 and 2018. The percentage of owners of pets other than dogs and cats also increased going from 16% to 24% in the 10-year period.
Among boomers specifically, the percentage of dog owners has risen from 34% to 38% in the last decade, and the research showed that boomers are more likely to own dogs than other pets. Boomers are also getting new pets as opposed to simply aging with the pets they already owned. In fact, the data show that 1.4 million boomers own dogs that are less than one year old and another 5.2 million have dogs between the ages of 1 and 3.
To read more: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/baby-boomers-helping-fuel-pet-153954968.html
Boomers Daily 