Minding Manners at the Dog Park |
October 6, 2008
Just for fun, say “park” and watch what your dog does. If there’s that happy dance and mad dash for the door, read on. Keeping the dog park welcome and safe for pups requires manners and a few rules to remember. Here are some basics:
Know thy Pup. Some pups just can’t hang at the dog park. Be honest if this is your guy. Super territorial dogs would probably rather play alone anyway. So make sure your dog plays well with others or pick another spot. There are plenty of great places to play solo in the area.
Follow the Rules. Make the Bay Area even more dog-friendly by obeying the park rules. We want more parks that welcome dogs in the area, not fewer.
Scoop Every Time. Come prepared with extra bags for your dog or others in need. It’s the least we can do to keep the park clean. Your dog may not mind, but no one likes to bring proof of the park home with them.
Squelch the Squeak. Since dogs sometimes have a hard time sharing, especially squeaky balls, consider bringing along a squeak-free toy when lots of others will be sharing the space.
Watch your Dog. Tempting as it is to chat on your cell phone or catch up with friends, make sure you keep an eye on your dog so you’ll be ready to intervene if necessary.
Unleash Your Dog. Dogs on-leash in off-leash areas can cause aggressive interactions with other pups at the park. Make sure to turn him loose in off-leash areas, or pick an on-leash only spot if you need to keep control.
Mind Your Manners. The dog park is a great way to make friends, but be sensitive to other dog people who come to relax quietly with their pets. Many like to enjoy the simplicity of park time and may not want to hear everything about your day. Be sensitive to the body language of those around you and follow cue.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Proper care of your dog's nose
Caring for Your Dog’s Nose | September 29, 2008
We know what you’re thinking. Nose care? What could I possibly need to do for my dog’s nose? Well, aside from the fact that it’s arguably the cutest feature on a pup, it’s also one of his most important ones too. Not only is his nose the canine equivalent of a fingerprint (note to pups considering a life of crime), it’s the first way dogs experience their world. From their very first puppy days, smell comes before their sight or hearing.
So since he’s following his nose from day one, it’s best to keep that little snout healthy. Here’s what to watch for:
Changes in Texture. Contrary to popular belief, a dry dog nose isn’t necessarily a cause for concern. But it’s smart to talk to your vet if you notice changes in texture such as a crusty or flaky skin, loss of color, sores or scabs of any kind.
Runny Nose. Pups don’t get colds like people do. So if your dog has a runny nose, it’s most likely an illness, allergy or even something stuck in his nasal passage. It’s definitely time for a trip to the vet.
Sneezing a lot. Occasional snorts and sneezes are normal for dogs, in fact – some dogs sneeze from excitement or nervousness that stimulates the nerves in the nasal passages. But if he’s at it a lot, it’s best to get him to the vet. It’s not too hard for an industrious pup to get a foreign body lodged in his nose. But getting it out is not a job for you since the skin on his sweet nose is super sensitive and likely to bleed heavily with the slightest nick.
Sunburn. Dogs, especially light-skinned ones, are at risk for sunburn and skin cancer just like us. That’s why it’s recommended to layer his little nose with doggie SPF before a sunny day outdoors. Read more about doggie sunscreen in our past tip.
Color changes. Believe it or not, the food or water bowls your dog eats and drinks from may affect the color of his nose. Plastic bowls can react with the skin, causing a color change. For this reason, and because they’re less likely to harbor bacteria, it’s highly recommended that you serve your dog’s food and water in stainless steel, glass or ceramic bowls.
The Scoop:
We all know dog's noses and snouts are just adorable – right up there with the paws. Take a quick look and you’ll agree:
www.dogsnoses.com
We know what you’re thinking. Nose care? What could I possibly need to do for my dog’s nose? Well, aside from the fact that it’s arguably the cutest feature on a pup, it’s also one of his most important ones too. Not only is his nose the canine equivalent of a fingerprint (note to pups considering a life of crime), it’s the first way dogs experience their world. From their very first puppy days, smell comes before their sight or hearing.
So since he’s following his nose from day one, it’s best to keep that little snout healthy. Here’s what to watch for:
Changes in Texture. Contrary to popular belief, a dry dog nose isn’t necessarily a cause for concern. But it’s smart to talk to your vet if you notice changes in texture such as a crusty or flaky skin, loss of color, sores or scabs of any kind.
Runny Nose. Pups don’t get colds like people do. So if your dog has a runny nose, it’s most likely an illness, allergy or even something stuck in his nasal passage. It’s definitely time for a trip to the vet.
Sneezing a lot. Occasional snorts and sneezes are normal for dogs, in fact – some dogs sneeze from excitement or nervousness that stimulates the nerves in the nasal passages. But if he’s at it a lot, it’s best to get him to the vet. It’s not too hard for an industrious pup to get a foreign body lodged in his nose. But getting it out is not a job for you since the skin on his sweet nose is super sensitive and likely to bleed heavily with the slightest nick.
Sunburn. Dogs, especially light-skinned ones, are at risk for sunburn and skin cancer just like us. That’s why it’s recommended to layer his little nose with doggie SPF before a sunny day outdoors. Read more about doggie sunscreen in our past tip.
Color changes. Believe it or not, the food or water bowls your dog eats and drinks from may affect the color of his nose. Plastic bowls can react with the skin, causing a color change. For this reason, and because they’re less likely to harbor bacteria, it’s highly recommended that you serve your dog’s food and water in stainless steel, glass or ceramic bowls.
The Scoop:
We all know dog's noses and snouts are just adorable – right up there with the paws. Take a quick look and you’ll agree:
www.dogsnoses.com
Wednesday, December 24, 2008
Baby, it's cold outside! Keep your pets warm!
Brrrr....
The forecast is for cold -- maybe even snow. While it's fun to frolic in the snow with our dogs, it's a time of year that can put pets' lives in danger. Here are tips to keep your four-legged family members safe in cold weather:
* Hypothermia kills pets in cold weather. Your pet needs to be kept someplace warm and safe from drafts. Bring all pets indoors when temperature reaches 30 degrees.
* Dogs and cats can get frost-bitten ears, nose, and feet if left outside.
* Dehydration is also common and deadly this time of year. Make sure your animals have access to plenty of water.
* Very young, very old, and sick animals need special attention and warmth in the cold weather; their systems can't handle the low temperatures as well as other animals.
* For most animals, it's OK to leave them inside your home with the heat off while you're at work. However, make sure they have plenty of beds and blankets, since the floor becomes much colder in cold weather.
* Don't let your pet play in water. It can drop your pet's body temperature severely. If your pet runs through a puddle or jumps into a pond, get him out as soon as you can and dry him off immediately. Wrap him in a blanket and get him indoors immediately.
* Make sure a cat hasn't crawled under your car seeking shelter and warmth near the engine. Open the car hood or slap it noisily before starting the engine to startle any animal sleeping there.
* Wipe your pet's paws when he comes back into the house because he can ingest salt, antifreeze or other potentially dangerous chemicals while licking his paws. His paw pads may also bleed from snow or encrusted ice.
* Keep your dog on a leash and under your control during walks in the winter weather, especially during a snowstorm. More dogs are lost during the winter than during any other season, so make sure yours always wears ID tags.
.
* Try using "pet friendly" antifreeze products and thoroughly cleaning up any spills. Even a teaspoon of traditional antifreeze can kill an animal.
* Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death. Even if you're leaving your dog in the car for a just short period of time, make sure your small or short-haired dog is wearing a warm coat or is wrapped in a warm blanket.
* Keep the local emergency veterinarian's and family veterinarian's telephone number handy.
I NEVER recommend that pets live outside. However, if that's what you feel you must do, at least:
* Give your outdoor dog a dry, elevated house with clean, dry bedding and a flap over the opening to keep drafts out.
* Consider adding a dog door to the garage with a soft cushion in the warmest corner.
* Make sure water bowls are not frozen. Check them periodically throughout the day.
* Use plastic food and water bowls rather than metal; when the temperature is low, your pet's tongue can stick and freeze to metal.
* Give outdoor pets more food. Outdoor dogs and cats need more calories in the winter to produce body heat, so increase the amount fed to these pets.
Thanks to the good people at the Oregon Humane Society and the DoveLewis emergency animal hospital for these tips!
The forecast is for cold -- maybe even snow. While it's fun to frolic in the snow with our dogs, it's a time of year that can put pets' lives in danger. Here are tips to keep your four-legged family members safe in cold weather:
* Hypothermia kills pets in cold weather. Your pet needs to be kept someplace warm and safe from drafts. Bring all pets indoors when temperature reaches 30 degrees.
* Dogs and cats can get frost-bitten ears, nose, and feet if left outside.
* Dehydration is also common and deadly this time of year. Make sure your animals have access to plenty of water.
* Very young, very old, and sick animals need special attention and warmth in the cold weather; their systems can't handle the low temperatures as well as other animals.
* For most animals, it's OK to leave them inside your home with the heat off while you're at work. However, make sure they have plenty of beds and blankets, since the floor becomes much colder in cold weather.
* Don't let your pet play in water. It can drop your pet's body temperature severely. If your pet runs through a puddle or jumps into a pond, get him out as soon as you can and dry him off immediately. Wrap him in a blanket and get him indoors immediately.
* Make sure a cat hasn't crawled under your car seeking shelter and warmth near the engine. Open the car hood or slap it noisily before starting the engine to startle any animal sleeping there.
* Wipe your pet's paws when he comes back into the house because he can ingest salt, antifreeze or other potentially dangerous chemicals while licking his paws. His paw pads may also bleed from snow or encrusted ice.
* Keep your dog on a leash and under your control during walks in the winter weather, especially during a snowstorm. More dogs are lost during the winter than during any other season, so make sure yours always wears ID tags.
.
* Try using "pet friendly" antifreeze products and thoroughly cleaning up any spills. Even a teaspoon of traditional antifreeze can kill an animal.
* Never leave your dog or cat alone in a car during cold weather. A car can act as a refrigerator in the winter, holding in the cold and causing the animal to freeze to death. Even if you're leaving your dog in the car for a just short period of time, make sure your small or short-haired dog is wearing a warm coat or is wrapped in a warm blanket.
* Keep the local emergency veterinarian's and family veterinarian's telephone number handy.
I NEVER recommend that pets live outside. However, if that's what you feel you must do, at least:
* Give your outdoor dog a dry, elevated house with clean, dry bedding and a flap over the opening to keep drafts out.
* Consider adding a dog door to the garage with a soft cushion in the warmest corner.
* Make sure water bowls are not frozen. Check them periodically throughout the day.
* Use plastic food and water bowls rather than metal; when the temperature is low, your pet's tongue can stick and freeze to metal.
* Give outdoor pets more food. Outdoor dogs and cats need more calories in the winter to produce body heat, so increase the amount fed to these pets.
Thanks to the good people at the Oregon Humane Society and the DoveLewis emergency animal hospital for these tips!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Winter grooming helps horses shine!
From myhorse.com
Winter Grooming Helps Horses Shine
A good daily grooming is essential for healthy horses—especially in winter. Daily grooming helps a horse build a healthy coat, fight off fungus and makes weight loss and wounds easier to spot. It also builds a strong bond between humans and horses.
As the weather cools and in some climates dampens, you’ll need to pay particular attention to your horse’s hooves. Horses that stand in damp paddocks develop thrush and scratches, both of which can be easily prevented with a little daily maintenance.
If you want to give your horse a bath when the weather is cool, you still can—provided you have a few of the right tools. Following is a brief guide to cool weather grooming and bathing techniques.
1) Curry (using a circular motion to lift the dirt) and brush your horse every day. Use a rubber curry comb and a longer bristled brush to lift off the dirt. Use a soft brush around his face. After you’ve given him a good rubdown, you can spray him with a non-silicone grooming solution to keep further dirt at bay and rub him down with a clean towel.
2) Pick his hooves daily. Apply a dilution of Lysol disinfectant (2 oz. to 1 gallon of water), dilution of bleach, or a commercial thrush product, every week.
3) To give a horse a winter bath, work in sections and with the hottest water available that your horse can stand. A stock tank heater and a bucket work well for this purpose. As you finish each section of the horse, rub off the excess water and cover with a towel. When you’re totally finished, cover the horse (and the towels) with a fleece cooler and walk him in a warm place until he’s dry. A good rule of thumb is not to bathe a horse if it’s colder than 55 degrees.
Winter Grooming Helps Horses Shine
A good daily grooming is essential for healthy horses—especially in winter. Daily grooming helps a horse build a healthy coat, fight off fungus and makes weight loss and wounds easier to spot. It also builds a strong bond between humans and horses.
As the weather cools and in some climates dampens, you’ll need to pay particular attention to your horse’s hooves. Horses that stand in damp paddocks develop thrush and scratches, both of which can be easily prevented with a little daily maintenance.
If you want to give your horse a bath when the weather is cool, you still can—provided you have a few of the right tools. Following is a brief guide to cool weather grooming and bathing techniques.
1) Curry (using a circular motion to lift the dirt) and brush your horse every day. Use a rubber curry comb and a longer bristled brush to lift off the dirt. Use a soft brush around his face. After you’ve given him a good rubdown, you can spray him with a non-silicone grooming solution to keep further dirt at bay and rub him down with a clean towel.
2) Pick his hooves daily. Apply a dilution of Lysol disinfectant (2 oz. to 1 gallon of water), dilution of bleach, or a commercial thrush product, every week.
3) To give a horse a winter bath, work in sections and with the hottest water available that your horse can stand. A stock tank heater and a bucket work well for this purpose. As you finish each section of the horse, rub off the excess water and cover with a towel. When you’re totally finished, cover the horse (and the towels) with a fleece cooler and walk him in a warm place until he’s dry. A good rule of thumb is not to bathe a horse if it’s colder than 55 degrees.
Justice is served in case involving Princess cruises that killed a pregnant humpback whale
Princess Cruise Lines pay $750,000 over the death of a Humpback whale in Alaska.
06/05/2007 00:00:00 news/Dead-Whale-Cruise-Ship
January 2007.
United States Attorney Nelson P. Cohen has announced that Princess Cruise Lines pled guilty to a charge of knowingly failing to operate its vessel, the Dawn Princess, at a slow, safe speed while near two humpback whales in the area of Glacier Bay, Alaska.
Princess was sentenced in federal court in Anchorage, Alaska, to pay a $200,000 fine and to pay $550,000 to the National Park Foundation as a form of community service. In addition, Princess was sentenced to serve a term of one-year probation which will expire when the required payments are made.
The following facts were established: On the afternoon of July 12, 2001, Princess Cruise Lines cruise ship, the Dawn Princess, was in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (Park) ending a day in Park waters. At approximately 2:40 p.m., at the mouth of Bartlett Cove several miles inside the Park, the vessel slowed to five knots so that two Park rangers could be transferred from the Dawn Princess to a Park Service boat.
After dropping off the rangers, the vessel remained within Park waters for twenty-five more minutes until, at 3:05 p.m., it crossed the Park boundary and turned north into Icy Strait. During the vessel's transit of Glacier Bay, two licensed Southeast Alaska pilots were aboard, as required by Alaska law. During this transit, the vessel’s bridge was occupied by one of the pilots, a naturalist, the ship's captain and the usual complement of crew. The weather was clear, the winds were light and the vessel was moving against an incoming tide.
Humpback whale facts
* The humpback whale (Magaptera novaeangliae) is a warm-blooded baleen (filter feeding) marine mammal that can live 45-50 years in the wild, grows to about 50 feet long and can weigh 30-50 tons. Females reach sexual maturity at 4-7 years and give birth to a single calf every 1.3 years that remains with its mother for a year or longer. Humpbacks are well known for their ‘songs’, which are considered the most complex vocalizations in the animal kingdom.
* Commercial whaling, which continued through the mid-20th century, reduced the worldwide population of humpback whales from an estimated population of 125,000 animals to fewer than 5,000. The current worldwide population is estimated to be approximately 20,000. Of these, approximately 6,000 humpback whales make up the North Pacific population, most of which summer and feed in Alaskan waters and migrate in the fall to Hawaiian waters where they bear their young. In 2001, only 100 humpback whales were observed in the Glacier Bay/Icy Strait area. The North Pacific population will have to grow to over 9,000 animals before it is likely to be considered for removal from the list of endangered species.
According to passengers and bridge crew, two humpback whales were spotted from the bridge a short time after the rangers were dropped off. When first spotted, the whales were approximately 700 yards (between 1/4 and ½ mile) off the vessel's port (left) bow, headed to the right on a course that could intersect the ship's route. The whales dove and surfaced at least twice as they drew near the Dawn Princess, but did not change course. The Dawn Princess continued accelerating and did not change course. Within 100 yards of the Dawn Princess, one whale ‘dived deep’, but the other did not.
Just before passing out of sight under the vessel's prow, the second whale appeared to begin a terminal dive. Some persons aboard the ship reported feeling the ship shudder, others reported no shudder or any other indication that the vessel struck the whale. The naturalist and captain ran to the starboard bridge wing to look for the whales. The captain noticed that the vessel was traveling at 14 knots. The whales were not seen again. The vessel made no report of a possible collision to the National Park Service or any other government agency. The close encounter was not mentioned in the vessel's log
The next day, on July 13, the naturalist e-mailed a colleague, saying she thought the Dawn Princess may have struck a humpback whale the day before. The naturalist related the essential events and added that she thought the ship was traveling at 15-18 knots and was outside the Park boundary when the whale was struck. She wrote that the whales seemed to be unaware of the vessel and that ‘as the ship passed by there was no sign on the bridge that we might have made contact.’ She reported that she was told later by friends below decks that they heard a ‘resounding thud.’
On July 14, the Dawn Princess captain, in response to a question, told another pilot aboard the vessel that he was uncertain whether the Dawn Princess hit a whale the day before.
On July 16, a Park naturalist discovered a dead, bloated humpback whale floating in Glacier Bay within Park waters, near the area through which the Dawn Princess had transited four days earlier. The carcass appeared to have recently surfaced. The Park Service towed the carcass to Pt. Gustavus, where it was beached pending a necropsy.
On July 22, a marine mammal expert from California examined the whale carcass, finding massive blunt trauma injuries to the right side of the animal's head, including a fractured skull, eye socket and cervical vertebrae, consistent with a vessel collision. A fetal skeleton was found in the whale. That is, the whale was carrying a calf. The whale was identified from fluke markings as ‘Whale #68,’ which had been sighted many times in the past and was known to frequent the area.
On August 6, a vice-president for Princess Cruise Lines called the Park Superintendent and said that the Dawn Princess had a close encounter with two whales on July 12, 2001 and the company was investigating the matter. On the same day, Princess Cruise Lines imposed a fleet-wide speed limit of 10 knots for vessels transiting Icy Strait.
The unlawful taking (killing) of humpback whales is prohibited by both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The ‘slow, safe speed’ regulation, under which this case was charged, was implemented in 2001 to support the ‘anti-taking’ provisions of the two laws. Thus, a knowing failure to maintain a ‘slow, safe speed’ when near humpback whales constitutes a violation of the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act and carries the identical penalties of the taking violation. Such conduct is a federal Class A misdemeanour violation of law, punishable (for a corporation) by a fine of up to $200,000, restitution in an amount to be determined by the Court, and up to five years probation.
‘The specific purpose of the regulation under which this case was charged is to require vessels to reduce speed when they are near humpback whales in order to avoid collisions that could kill these endangered leviathans. In this first-of-its-kind prosecution, prosecutors from this office and the Environmental Crimes Section of the Department of Justice, along with special agents and investigators from the Park Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration engaged in a thorough and detailed investigation, often with the assistance and cooperation of Princess.’ said Mr. Cohen.
Tomie Lee, Superintendent of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, expressed satisfaction at the outcome of the case. ‘It’s been a long time coming,’ she said, ‘but we support both the outcome and the diligence shown by the prosecutors and investigators in this landmark case. As well as being a majestic and endangered species, the humpback whale is also a public symbol of Glacier Bay,’ she added. ‘Protection of these resources is of paramount importance to us. So when we began to hear witness reports of a cruise-ship colliding with a whale and then learned that this particular whale, whom researchers had first identified in 1975 and nicknamed ‘Snow’ because of her fluke markings, died of injuries consistent with a ship-strike, we began a dialoge with Princess and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and proceeded diligently with our investigation, so we could be sure to get things right. While these kinds of criminal convictions can result in a loss of federal contracts to service visitors in a national park, in this case we feel Princess has stepped up and made significant, voluntary operational changes that protect whales and the marine environment..’
06/05/2007 00:00:00 news/Dead-Whale-Cruise-Ship
January 2007.
United States Attorney Nelson P. Cohen has announced that Princess Cruise Lines pled guilty to a charge of knowingly failing to operate its vessel, the Dawn Princess, at a slow, safe speed while near two humpback whales in the area of Glacier Bay, Alaska.
Princess was sentenced in federal court in Anchorage, Alaska, to pay a $200,000 fine and to pay $550,000 to the National Park Foundation as a form of community service. In addition, Princess was sentenced to serve a term of one-year probation which will expire when the required payments are made.
The following facts were established: On the afternoon of July 12, 2001, Princess Cruise Lines cruise ship, the Dawn Princess, was in Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve (Park) ending a day in Park waters. At approximately 2:40 p.m., at the mouth of Bartlett Cove several miles inside the Park, the vessel slowed to five knots so that two Park rangers could be transferred from the Dawn Princess to a Park Service boat.
After dropping off the rangers, the vessel remained within Park waters for twenty-five more minutes until, at 3:05 p.m., it crossed the Park boundary and turned north into Icy Strait. During the vessel's transit of Glacier Bay, two licensed Southeast Alaska pilots were aboard, as required by Alaska law. During this transit, the vessel’s bridge was occupied by one of the pilots, a naturalist, the ship's captain and the usual complement of crew. The weather was clear, the winds were light and the vessel was moving against an incoming tide.
Humpback whale facts
* The humpback whale (Magaptera novaeangliae) is a warm-blooded baleen (filter feeding) marine mammal that can live 45-50 years in the wild, grows to about 50 feet long and can weigh 30-50 tons. Females reach sexual maturity at 4-7 years and give birth to a single calf every 1.3 years that remains with its mother for a year or longer. Humpbacks are well known for their ‘songs’, which are considered the most complex vocalizations in the animal kingdom.
* Commercial whaling, which continued through the mid-20th century, reduced the worldwide population of humpback whales from an estimated population of 125,000 animals to fewer than 5,000. The current worldwide population is estimated to be approximately 20,000. Of these, approximately 6,000 humpback whales make up the North Pacific population, most of which summer and feed in Alaskan waters and migrate in the fall to Hawaiian waters where they bear their young. In 2001, only 100 humpback whales were observed in the Glacier Bay/Icy Strait area. The North Pacific population will have to grow to over 9,000 animals before it is likely to be considered for removal from the list of endangered species.
According to passengers and bridge crew, two humpback whales were spotted from the bridge a short time after the rangers were dropped off. When first spotted, the whales were approximately 700 yards (between 1/4 and ½ mile) off the vessel's port (left) bow, headed to the right on a course that could intersect the ship's route. The whales dove and surfaced at least twice as they drew near the Dawn Princess, but did not change course. The Dawn Princess continued accelerating and did not change course. Within 100 yards of the Dawn Princess, one whale ‘dived deep’, but the other did not.
Just before passing out of sight under the vessel's prow, the second whale appeared to begin a terminal dive. Some persons aboard the ship reported feeling the ship shudder, others reported no shudder or any other indication that the vessel struck the whale. The naturalist and captain ran to the starboard bridge wing to look for the whales. The captain noticed that the vessel was traveling at 14 knots. The whales were not seen again. The vessel made no report of a possible collision to the National Park Service or any other government agency. The close encounter was not mentioned in the vessel's log
The next day, on July 13, the naturalist e-mailed a colleague, saying she thought the Dawn Princess may have struck a humpback whale the day before. The naturalist related the essential events and added that she thought the ship was traveling at 15-18 knots and was outside the Park boundary when the whale was struck. She wrote that the whales seemed to be unaware of the vessel and that ‘as the ship passed by there was no sign on the bridge that we might have made contact.’ She reported that she was told later by friends below decks that they heard a ‘resounding thud.’
On July 14, the Dawn Princess captain, in response to a question, told another pilot aboard the vessel that he was uncertain whether the Dawn Princess hit a whale the day before.
On July 16, a Park naturalist discovered a dead, bloated humpback whale floating in Glacier Bay within Park waters, near the area through which the Dawn Princess had transited four days earlier. The carcass appeared to have recently surfaced. The Park Service towed the carcass to Pt. Gustavus, where it was beached pending a necropsy.
On July 22, a marine mammal expert from California examined the whale carcass, finding massive blunt trauma injuries to the right side of the animal's head, including a fractured skull, eye socket and cervical vertebrae, consistent with a vessel collision. A fetal skeleton was found in the whale. That is, the whale was carrying a calf. The whale was identified from fluke markings as ‘Whale #68,’ which had been sighted many times in the past and was known to frequent the area.
On August 6, a vice-president for Princess Cruise Lines called the Park Superintendent and said that the Dawn Princess had a close encounter with two whales on July 12, 2001 and the company was investigating the matter. On the same day, Princess Cruise Lines imposed a fleet-wide speed limit of 10 knots for vessels transiting Icy Strait.
The unlawful taking (killing) of humpback whales is prohibited by both the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The ‘slow, safe speed’ regulation, under which this case was charged, was implemented in 2001 to support the ‘anti-taking’ provisions of the two laws. Thus, a knowing failure to maintain a ‘slow, safe speed’ when near humpback whales constitutes a violation of the Endangered Species Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act and carries the identical penalties of the taking violation. Such conduct is a federal Class A misdemeanour violation of law, punishable (for a corporation) by a fine of up to $200,000, restitution in an amount to be determined by the Court, and up to five years probation.
‘The specific purpose of the regulation under which this case was charged is to require vessels to reduce speed when they are near humpback whales in order to avoid collisions that could kill these endangered leviathans. In this first-of-its-kind prosecution, prosecutors from this office and the Environmental Crimes Section of the Department of Justice, along with special agents and investigators from the Park Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration engaged in a thorough and detailed investigation, often with the assistance and cooperation of Princess.’ said Mr. Cohen.
Tomie Lee, Superintendent of Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve, expressed satisfaction at the outcome of the case. ‘It’s been a long time coming,’ she said, ‘but we support both the outcome and the diligence shown by the prosecutors and investigators in this landmark case. As well as being a majestic and endangered species, the humpback whale is also a public symbol of Glacier Bay,’ she added. ‘Protection of these resources is of paramount importance to us. So when we began to hear witness reports of a cruise-ship colliding with a whale and then learned that this particular whale, whom researchers had first identified in 1975 and nicknamed ‘Snow’ because of her fluke markings, died of injuries consistent with a ship-strike, we began a dialoge with Princess and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and proceeded diligently with our investigation, so we could be sure to get things right. While these kinds of criminal convictions can result in a loss of federal contracts to service visitors in a national park, in this case we feel Princess has stepped up and made significant, voluntary operational changes that protect whales and the marine environment..’
What is Oregon doing to help with the stunted population growth of frogs?
Oregon spotted frog released into the wild to halt population crash
23/09/2008 12:06:50
news/sept_2008/oregon_spotted_frog_wdfw
Oregon spotted frog. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
In an effort to re-establish their populations in Washington State, approximately 500 Oregon spotted frogs were released into the wild after spending the first seven months of their lives in a captive rearing program.
September 2008. Biologists from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and the U.S. Army released the frogs into Dailman Lake on the Fort Lewis Military Reservation in Pierce County in a collaborative effort to return the state-endangered frog to a portion of its historic habitat.
Tiny frogs
The frogs, which weigh less than an ounce and are marked with a nontoxic dye, were collected as eggs in March and nurtured in captivity at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park to improve their chance of survival once they return to the wild.
"This is the first-ever captive rearing and release program for the Oregon spotted frog in Washington and represents a significant first step in our joint effort to help recover this fragile species," said Harriet Allen, WDFW endangered species program manager.
The captive-rearing strategy, called "head starting" is based on the premise that juvenile frogs are thought to be less vulnerable and better able to survive when released back into nature, Allen said. "Also, previous studies in British Columbia show that releasing large numbers at the same time has been the most successful approach," she said.
The Oregon spotted frog - devastated by habitat loss, predation and disease
The Oregon spotted frog historically ranged from south-western British Columbia to north-eastern California. The frog is now believed to have disappeared from California and Oregon's Willamette Valley and has suffered significant declines elsewhere in its historic range. Loss of habitat, predation by non-native species such as the American bullfrog, and disease have decimated its numbers, which prompted listing it as a Washington state-endangered species in 1997.
Dailman Lake
Through a partnership with the Fort Lewis Fish and Wildlife Program, the Dailman Lake area was chosen for reintroduction because it contains diverse wetlands connected to a stream system capable of supporting and sustaining a frog population, said Jim Lynch, wildlife biologist at Fort Lewis.
As a first step in the project, biologists collected fertilized eggs last spring from breeding areas in Klickitat and Thurston counties, which are the only known areas with existing populations within the frog's historic range in Washington. They were then transported to Northwest Trek Wildlife Park and Oregon Zoo for rearing and monitoring. Frogs reared at the Oregon Zoo will be released at the site at a later date.
The goal of the reintroduction program is to establish a self-sustaining population of Oregon spotted frogs at Fort Lewis and set the stage for a structured recovery effort that will continue for several years, Lynch said.
The reintroduction program was first developed in 2007 through a collaborative effort by WDFW, Fort Lewis, Northwest Trek Wildlife Park, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, Oregon Zoo, Washington State Department of Transportation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Woodland Park Zoo, Port Blakely Tree Farms, Washington Department of Natural Resources, NW Zoo & Aquarium Alliance, U.S Geological Survey, Mountain View Conservation & Breeding Centre and The Nature Conservancy.
The project's start-up coincides with efforts by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, which is highlighting 2008 as the Year of the Frog to mark a major conservation effort to address global amphibian extinction, Lynch said.
"Frogs are found in all parts of the world and are known as sentinel animals by alerting us to serious environmental and climate changes that can affect all species," Lynch said. "They also play an important role in balancing ecosystems and when they disappear from their habitat, that ecosystem is disrupted."
Activities related to the reintroduction program are being funded through grants from the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and the Association of Zoo & Aquarium's amphibian fund.
23/09/2008 12:06:50
news/sept_2008/oregon_spotted_frog_wdfw
Oregon spotted frog. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
In an effort to re-establish their populations in Washington State, approximately 500 Oregon spotted frogs were released into the wild after spending the first seven months of their lives in a captive rearing program.
September 2008. Biologists from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) and the U.S. Army released the frogs into Dailman Lake on the Fort Lewis Military Reservation in Pierce County in a collaborative effort to return the state-endangered frog to a portion of its historic habitat.
Tiny frogs
The frogs, which weigh less than an ounce and are marked with a nontoxic dye, were collected as eggs in March and nurtured in captivity at Northwest Trek Wildlife Park to improve their chance of survival once they return to the wild.
"This is the first-ever captive rearing and release program for the Oregon spotted frog in Washington and represents a significant first step in our joint effort to help recover this fragile species," said Harriet Allen, WDFW endangered species program manager.
The captive-rearing strategy, called "head starting" is based on the premise that juvenile frogs are thought to be less vulnerable and better able to survive when released back into nature, Allen said. "Also, previous studies in British Columbia show that releasing large numbers at the same time has been the most successful approach," she said.
The Oregon spotted frog - devastated by habitat loss, predation and disease
The Oregon spotted frog historically ranged from south-western British Columbia to north-eastern California. The frog is now believed to have disappeared from California and Oregon's Willamette Valley and has suffered significant declines elsewhere in its historic range. Loss of habitat, predation by non-native species such as the American bullfrog, and disease have decimated its numbers, which prompted listing it as a Washington state-endangered species in 1997.
Dailman Lake
Through a partnership with the Fort Lewis Fish and Wildlife Program, the Dailman Lake area was chosen for reintroduction because it contains diverse wetlands connected to a stream system capable of supporting and sustaining a frog population, said Jim Lynch, wildlife biologist at Fort Lewis.
As a first step in the project, biologists collected fertilized eggs last spring from breeding areas in Klickitat and Thurston counties, which are the only known areas with existing populations within the frog's historic range in Washington. They were then transported to Northwest Trek Wildlife Park and Oregon Zoo for rearing and monitoring. Frogs reared at the Oregon Zoo will be released at the site at a later date.
The goal of the reintroduction program is to establish a self-sustaining population of Oregon spotted frogs at Fort Lewis and set the stage for a structured recovery effort that will continue for several years, Lynch said.
The reintroduction program was first developed in 2007 through a collaborative effort by WDFW, Fort Lewis, Northwest Trek Wildlife Park, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium, Oregon Zoo, Washington State Department of Transportation, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Woodland Park Zoo, Port Blakely Tree Farms, Washington Department of Natural Resources, NW Zoo & Aquarium Alliance, U.S Geological Survey, Mountain View Conservation & Breeding Centre and The Nature Conservancy.
The project's start-up coincides with efforts by the Association of Zoos & Aquariums, which is highlighting 2008 as the Year of the Frog to mark a major conservation effort to address global amphibian extinction, Lynch said.
"Frogs are found in all parts of the world and are known as sentinel animals by alerting us to serious environmental and climate changes that can affect all species," Lynch said. "They also play an important role in balancing ecosystems and when they disappear from their habitat, that ecosystem is disrupted."
Activities related to the reintroduction program are being funded through grants from the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and the Association of Zoo & Aquarium's amphibian fund.
How important are sea otters really?
Orca killing Sea otters means Bald eagles kill more birds
04/10/2008 15:15:06
birds/birds_september_2008/bald_eagle_smith
Sea otters are a keystone species, filling such an important niche in ocean communities that without them, entire ecosystems can collapse. Scientists are finding, however, that sea otters can have even further reaching effects that extend to terrestrial communities and alter the diet and behaviour of another top predator: the bald eagle.
September 2008. In near-shore marine communities, kelp can reach heights of 250 feet and functions similarly to trees in a forest, providing food, homes and protection for fish and invertebrates. The most important enemies of these giant algae are tiny sea urchins, only inches in diameter, which live on the kelp and eat its tissue. When urchin populations become too large, they can defoliate entire kelp forests, leaving only barren remains.
Otters are major urchin predator
Enter the sea otter. Otters can eat the spiky urchins whole, making them the major urchin predator. The otters' presence keeps urchin populations in check and maintains the balance of the ecosystem.
Bald eagles
Scientists have known about these kelp forest community interactions since the 1970s. But in the October issue of the journal Ecology, Robert Anthony and colleagues report that the presence or absence of otters can also affect the diet of bald eagles, a neighbouring terrestrial predator. Anthony is an ecologist with the Oregon Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit of the U.S. Geological Survey and Oregon State University.
Bald eagles live in high densities along the Aleutian archipelago off the coast of Alaska and place their nests on islets, coastal cliffs and shoreline sea stacks. Historically, more than 90 percent of the eagles' food comes from the ocean. Sea otters once also occupied a large range of coastal marine environments near these islands, but in recent years, otter populations have declined in response to their own main predator.
Killer whales killing otters
"All of the available data point to increased numbers of killer whales as the direct cause of the sea otter decline in southwest Alaska," says co-author Jim Estes of the U.S.G.S. and the University of California at Santa Cruz. "The otter decline has caused a phase shift in the coastal ecosystem from a kelp dominated phase state to a deforested phase state."
Eagles switch diet to birds
This shift means many fewer kelp forest fish for the eagles to eat. In response, the eagles have adjusted their foraging tactics. Anthony and his colleagues surveyed remains of bald eagle prey in their nests during 1993 and 1994, when otters were abundant and the kelp forests were healthy, and in 2000, 2001 and 2002, when otters were scarce and the kelp forests had collapsed. They found that when otters were abundant, eagle prey consisted of predominantly kelp-forest fish and sea otter pups. When the otters were rare, however, the proportion of marine birds in the eagles' diet was much higher.
Anthony explains that because the eagles defend territories in dense patches along the coastline and there are few terrestrial animals to eat, they must be flexible in what they hunt.
"These bald eagles are opportunistic foragers as a consequence of their evolutionary history," he says. "They've developed foraging territories they defend against members of the same species along these coastlines, and the terrestrial environment provides very little for them. So they forage over the open water."
Anthony and his colleagues also found that the eagles had more young on average during 2000-2002, a fact that Anthony believes might be a result of a high caloric content in the eagles' increasingly seabird-dominated diet.
"Across the range of this species, their diet can be quite varied, but here it appears as though the change in diet had either a neutral or positive effect," he says. The propensity of the eagles to adapt quickly to a changing environment may have allowed them to flourish, but Anthony also cautions that adapting to this scenario might be difficult for more specialized predators.
The results are the first to show that the presence or absence of otters influences a terrestrial animal, and that the complex food web linkages can reach as far as five different food chain levels: from sea otters to sea urchins, kelp, marine fish and finally bald eagles.
"Top-down linkages can be very distant from their origin," says Anthony. "The effects of top predators can ripple throughout the ecosystem in ways we're just beginning to understand."
04/10/2008 15:15:06
birds/birds_september_2008/bald_eagle_smith
Sea otters are a keystone species, filling such an important niche in ocean communities that without them, entire ecosystems can collapse. Scientists are finding, however, that sea otters can have even further reaching effects that extend to terrestrial communities and alter the diet and behaviour of another top predator: the bald eagle.
September 2008. In near-shore marine communities, kelp can reach heights of 250 feet and functions similarly to trees in a forest, providing food, homes and protection for fish and invertebrates. The most important enemies of these giant algae are tiny sea urchins, only inches in diameter, which live on the kelp and eat its tissue. When urchin populations become too large, they can defoliate entire kelp forests, leaving only barren remains.
Otters are major urchin predator
Enter the sea otter. Otters can eat the spiky urchins whole, making them the major urchin predator. The otters' presence keeps urchin populations in check and maintains the balance of the ecosystem.
Bald eagles
Scientists have known about these kelp forest community interactions since the 1970s. But in the October issue of the journal Ecology, Robert Anthony and colleagues report that the presence or absence of otters can also affect the diet of bald eagles, a neighbouring terrestrial predator. Anthony is an ecologist with the Oregon Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit of the U.S. Geological Survey and Oregon State University.
Bald eagles live in high densities along the Aleutian archipelago off the coast of Alaska and place their nests on islets, coastal cliffs and shoreline sea stacks. Historically, more than 90 percent of the eagles' food comes from the ocean. Sea otters once also occupied a large range of coastal marine environments near these islands, but in recent years, otter populations have declined in response to their own main predator.
Killer whales killing otters
"All of the available data point to increased numbers of killer whales as the direct cause of the sea otter decline in southwest Alaska," says co-author Jim Estes of the U.S.G.S. and the University of California at Santa Cruz. "The otter decline has caused a phase shift in the coastal ecosystem from a kelp dominated phase state to a deforested phase state."
Eagles switch diet to birds
This shift means many fewer kelp forest fish for the eagles to eat. In response, the eagles have adjusted their foraging tactics. Anthony and his colleagues surveyed remains of bald eagle prey in their nests during 1993 and 1994, when otters were abundant and the kelp forests were healthy, and in 2000, 2001 and 2002, when otters were scarce and the kelp forests had collapsed. They found that when otters were abundant, eagle prey consisted of predominantly kelp-forest fish and sea otter pups. When the otters were rare, however, the proportion of marine birds in the eagles' diet was much higher.
Anthony explains that because the eagles defend territories in dense patches along the coastline and there are few terrestrial animals to eat, they must be flexible in what they hunt.
"These bald eagles are opportunistic foragers as a consequence of their evolutionary history," he says. "They've developed foraging territories they defend against members of the same species along these coastlines, and the terrestrial environment provides very little for them. So they forage over the open water."
Anthony and his colleagues also found that the eagles had more young on average during 2000-2002, a fact that Anthony believes might be a result of a high caloric content in the eagles' increasingly seabird-dominated diet.
"Across the range of this species, their diet can be quite varied, but here it appears as though the change in diet had either a neutral or positive effect," he says. The propensity of the eagles to adapt quickly to a changing environment may have allowed them to flourish, but Anthony also cautions that adapting to this scenario might be difficult for more specialized predators.
The results are the first to show that the presence or absence of otters influences a terrestrial animal, and that the complex food web linkages can reach as far as five different food chain levels: from sea otters to sea urchins, kelp, marine fish and finally bald eagles.
"Top-down linkages can be very distant from their origin," says Anthony. "The effects of top predators can ripple throughout the ecosystem in ways we're just beginning to understand."
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