Miss Chien – Flickr
You may judge me, if you wish, as one of those typical animal lovers who is too girly to like bugs and creepy crawlies.
Yet girly is never a word anyone who knows me would use to describe me. I have terribly slimy experiences with snails while being forced into helping my parents garden. I am scarred from childhood my friends.
Scientists have now discovered what we thought to be super-slow-slimy-snails are actually quite the movers.
Research conducted by Dr Dave Hodgson has found that:
They’re not that fast – but they’re fast enough to cover about 10m overnight
Although the idea that they harmlessly attached small LED lights to snails to research this paints a pretty picture for my garden!
theledlightingcompany – flickr
While these findings aren’t enough for us to start running for the hills as snails take over the world, they do mean there’s a new concern for dog owners.
Snails have been found to carry a parasite that can be deadly to our pooches. Snails can spread angiostrongylus vasorum – to you and me that’s a kind of lung worm.
With the number of snails increasing – by about 50% in the last year according to the Royal Horticultural Society – that could start spelling disaster for our domesticated canines.
We all know dogs get into everything they possibly can, and just like little kids, they explore the world with their mouths so it’s very easy for them to accidentally snatch up a snail. Be especially careful if you have a French breed they might be more partial to this new cuisine.
So dog owners be warned! Keep an extra keen eye on your pooches when they’re in the garden or sniffing about on walks, it could save their life!
You can read the BBC’s coverage here.
It appears it is not only us humans that are becoming the obese generation – but our pets are suffering from our greasy hands too.
While it may be cute all that weight does a lot of damage
According to the PDSA we are feeding our pets the junk food that we eat – surely not?
I wouldn’t dream of feeding my cats a curry or let them share my bag of crisps but apparently this is now the norm.
I am guilty of tit-bits here and there – my ragdoll cat enjoys the leftover crumbs of my haggis more than anything – but these are few and far between.
It’s all to easy to look at the adorable eyes of our furry friends and share our salty, fatty, sugary foods but, please, RESIST!
There are so many treats actually made for their own diets that are available that are far better. But watch out! Even those are dangerous!
The same rules apply for our pets as they do for us MODERATION.
I am passionate about this because a family member has suffered at the hand of losing her felines because they were so obese they couldn’t even clean themselves – what an awful way to live!
We cringe as we see extremely obese people struggling to walk – why do we find it funny for animals? In my eyes that’s just cruelty.
The PDSA said that we’re giving our pets “heart disease and diabetes” – that’ll rake up some hefty vet bills!
Defintely some snoring going on here!
Top tips!
– Use specially designed treats – no human food
– Keep it limited – moderation is key
– Keep it timetabled – your pet should get into the habit of having treats at the same time, that should reduce their begging at the dinner table
– Resist the puppy-dog eyes! It’s your habits that are to blame.
– Get the paws moving! Excercise is key, and it might get you out the house more often too!
Read the newsbeat from the BBCÂ here.
And for cuteness sake, here’s a blog dedicated to pictures of podgey poochesÂ
animalaffairs 