In Observance of World Animal Day, October 4, feast day of St Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals and the environment.
Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature - School on Blog
Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid (People's School-on-Air) with Ms Melly C Tenorio
738 DZRB AM, 8-9 evening class Monday to Friday
“Make
these dogs happy,” I told a group of schoolchildren who were taking art
lessons from me. I gave each of them a copy of a trace drawing of a
pair of dogs. The dogs looked sad, docile and there is something
pathetic about them.
With
pastel coloring instrument they accepted the assignment. In their
young minds I saw their pets at home. As I studied the expressions on
their faces, matched with their actions I noticed they were not only
coloring their pets, they were virtually “caring for their pets.”
Jamby, a Japanese Spitz, roams freely at home.
And
what do you think they did with these animals? How kind are these
children to them? How good are they as masters or friends – as pets?
These are the things I gathered from their drawings.
1. Unchain the dogs –
A young participant made a drawing of a chain being sawed off in order
to free the dogs. Truly there is nothing more important than freedom,
even for an animal. This is also true with animals. Aren't zoos today
moved to bigger spaces where the habitats of the animals are
simulated? In the African Safari tourists are taken out, caged in their
vehicles, while the animals roam free.
2. Build a doghouse –
Keep them from heat and cold. Give them a sense of security and
comfort. Give the doghouse some art and a bit of aesthetic sense. The
house is a status symbol but its functional features are foremost.
3. Provide a shade – A tree beside the doghouse is a magnificent scene:
a
bird’s nest atop, bridling and parent singing at feeding time, ripe
fruits hang, a kite is stuck up on a branch, a boy climbs to retrieve
it, leaves fall and form a litter on which the dogs lay. These and many
more, which the children drew, revive the childhood to every viewer of
their art works.
4. Give them bone –
If there is anything a dog is associated with, it is a big bone. Aesop
saw it fitting for a fable, a lesson about greed. For the dog however,
it is a form of security, as well as a plaything. Be sure you give your
pet food, fresh water and proper nutrition. Do not overfeed them.
5. Play with them, give a plaything –
I found out that many of my pupils drew themselves beside or playing
with their pets. Others drew cats and mice playing with their
dogs. Playing is universal among animals, tame or in the wild. Others
raced with them on the meadow.
6. Groom them –
Regularly bathe and comb them. Several drawings showed the dogs in
attire, one in a circus outfit, another in casual wear, one eating on
Chinaware. This is not rare because we often think of animal as human
beings. Read “Animal Farm” by George Orwell. Or see the movie,
“Babe.” Aesop’s fables are about animals that think like human beings –
or it could be the other way around, as Aesop wanted to drive a point,
quite often a painful lesson. Aesop was silenced because he was
unwittingly hurting people with his fable.
7. Teach them tricks and discipline –
A ball, a stick, an electronic gadget to open or close the doghouse,
are among the things the young participants included in their drawings.
There’s a saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” But children
always see their pets young. This means they are growing up together, and sharing new tricks.
8. Vaccinate your dog –
A participant drew a veterinarian administering an anti-rabies shot
on his young pet. Precaution is always important, because catching
rabies is dangerous.
Who
are these children mirrored by their drawings? And who will they be
through the keyhole of their imagination? How we regard our pets is what
we are and become.
Last days of Nikko, a Dobberman,
our guard for 15 years.
“A
starving dog at his master’s gate predicts the ruin of the state,” thus
William Blake in “Auguries of Innocence” tells us. I, for one, would
gladly meet with confidence and ease the master of a contented and happy
dog.
History of the Dog
Forty million years ago there were small, long tailed tree-climbing creatures called “Miacids”, according to David Lambert. These fierce animals prowled the forest; what we now know as North America. From the Miacids came three groups of descendants: Amphicyon (wolf-sized bears), Borophygus (hyaena-like creatures), and
Tomarctus,
(the long-legged dogs). It is the last group which led to all the
living breeds of domesticated dogs and to their wild relatives, foxes
and wolves.
No
one can exactly know how dogs evolved but fossils show that dogs were
helping human hunters as far back as 10,000 years ago. This means that
the dog has been a friend to man from the time of the Middle Stone Age.
Not
many people know how extensive is the dog, a man’s best
friend. Perhaps the reason is that as people move to live in the
cities, the original man-dog relationship evolved into mere friendship.
But through the years, dogs have remained helpful and loyal to man in the following ways:
1. Helpful Dogs -
Certain dogs are so intelligent and trustworthy they can be trained to
guide blind people around obstacles and through the city streets. The
German Shepherd, also known as Police Dog has a trained nose to detect
explosives and drugs. The Russian terrier Laika, was the first animal in space.
2. Working Dogs –
Shepherd dogs guard and round up flocks and herds. These are the
Collie, German Shepherd, Sheepdog, Maremma, Kelpie, Puli and Corgi.
3. Traveling Dogs –
The best known of these dogs is the St. Bernard. There is a stuffed
St. Bernard dog at the UST Museum of Arts and Sciences, a keg tied
around its neck. As long ago as the 17th century the monks
of St. Bernard de Menthon kept and bred dogs to guide and rescue
travelers from the snowdrift of the Swiss Alps. These dogs were the
ancestors of the St. Bernard we know today. Other mountain dogs are the
Bernese, Pyrenean and the Newfoundland. They pull heavy snow sleds over
great distances, herd reindeers, or just be plain good guards and
guides.
4. Guard Dogs – Guard dogs must be loyal, obedient, courageous and strong. Take the case of the Doberman. In the late 19th century
a tax collector, Louis Dobermann, used local dogs to breed an animal
that would guard the money he carried. The result was
the Doberman Pinscher, a fine dog that is proud, fast and fearless. Two
German dogs, the Rottweiler and the Boxer, and the Tibetan Mastiff are
equally fearsome watchdogs.
5. War Dogs –
Being carnivores dogs have the instinct for hunting and killing, which
means that they can be trained to fight. Even in ancient times dogs
were trained to attack enemies. Ten thousands dogs served with the
Allied Forces in World War II. War dogs include Bull Terriers, Bulldogs,
and the Molossus, a dog trained by the Greeks to attack the Persians.
6. Game Dogs –
Sporting dogs are the Springer, Spaniel, Setter, Retriever, and Hound.
Each breed has a special way of hunting. Spaniels flush out game from
grass and shrubs, while the Pointer, upon finding a game bird, stands
still with its head, body and tail pointed like an arrow towards the
quarry. Man first made friends with the dog through hunting. Both enjoy
the prize of the game.
7. Detective Dogs –
Dogs have very sensitive noses. The scent hound can track its prey by
its scent for hours and over a long distance. The Bloodhound is the
oldest of all scent sensitive hounds. Other detective dogs are the
Foxhound, Basset Hound and Dachshund.
The Danger of Rabies
The
great biologist, Loius Pasteur, succeeded in saving a boy bitten by a
rabid dog. From here the world found relief in combating the disease
through immunization. Today, anti-rabies vaccines are available in big
drugstores.
But
rabies is still one of the most dangerous killers and there is no cure
to it. That is why immunization is necessary. Have your dogs
vaccinated with anti-rabies. When a dog that has not been vaccinated
bites, the best way is to have the victim treated immediately with
anti-rabies serum.
Dog
meat eaters beware. The hidden killer lies in the dog meat. The
rabies virus is not readily killed by heat. Besides it is a common
practice to eat dog meat medium rare (kilawin) with the brain of
the animal mixed in with the rest of the ingredients. Many do not know
that the virus attacks the brain, therein it multiplies.
Dog Attack
In
the US alone there are thousands of reported attacks by dogs, some
leading to death. When my family had just transferred to the
subdivision we are living in now, our dogs chased and bit a boy in the
neighborhood. It was only a bruise but it was not an auspicious start
for us as new residents.
Here
are tips for avoiding dog attacks. When there is a menacing dog around
do not run. Stay calm and walk away slowly. A stick or anything to
fend off the dog can help. Avoid walking through a pack of dogs. Know
where the doghouse in the neighborhood is and try not to get near
it. Don’t just saunter through someone’s gate. Call first or use the
doorbell.
But, of course, the best way is to act like a boy scout by always staying alert, not only for dogs but any form of danger.
The Pet Dog Today
When you hear the word, askal, it means mongrel, although in common parlance is “street” or kalye dog.
Mongrels are dogs whose parents are of mixed breeds. Although coming
from a mélange of breeds, they sometimes tend to exhibit a dominant
bloodline. Mongrels may intentionally be crossbred to pure breeds to
improve the breed, with satisfactory results. Two good things about
mongrels are that they are resistant to local diseases, and are less
choosy with their food.
It
is also the mongrel that ordinary people raise as pets and source of
food at the same time. When grown and fattened they are slaughtered.
Dogs are sold for meat in many countries, but Americans and Europeans,
who keep dogs like members of the family, strongly detest this
practice. In the early nineties Congress received thousands letters
protesting the killing and eating of dogs. Among the appealing
institutions is the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals (RSPCA). Now and then we read news story about jeeploads of dogs
intercepted on the way to the slaughterhouse. If we have any knowledge
on this illegal act it is best to call the nearest police station.
Impact of the Art Workshop
The
art workshop for children in which I used the dog as an exercise to
demonstrate love for animals may be a simple way of changing attitudes
and developing values. Children are known to be very effective in
carrying out the multiplier effect of a lesson and we hope that they will carry this as they grow.
“Make
these dogs happy,” could mean a thousand dogs in the future, and a
thousand enlightened children who follow the footsteps of those who
unchained the dog, built a doghouse, gave a bone and, altogether, made
the world a kinder one for dogs.
x x x
