Parliament Speaks out for Ostrich Rights

German parliamentarians stood up for the rights of ostriches, calling on the government to lay down minimum standards under which the birds should be kept before being killed for their meat. The Bundesrat upper house asked for existing animal protection legislation to be fleshed out to include the ostrich. The bird has become a popular dish for Germans seeking alternatives to traditional meat and poultry after a number of Europe-wide health scares. The regional government of Schleswig-Holstein, which is home to 20 ostrich farms, said studies had shown the birds, which can grow up to six feet tall and weigh up to 330 pounds, each need 2,150 square feet of space. It said safeguards were also needed to ensure the animals, usually found in Africa, do not freeze in cold German winters.

Microchip Your Pet

Anyone who has ever owned a pet knows how quickly it can become a cherished member of the family. And anyone who has ever lost a pet knows the pain of heartbreak.
According to the National Council on Pet Population Study and Policy, only about 16 percent of dogs and 2 percent of cats find their way back from shelters to their original owners.
While traditional pet identification methods are still recommended, they have limitations. Tags can fade, rust, or get scratched, making them impossible to read. Collars can come off or, even worse, get caught on something while your pet is wandering about, causing him physical harm. Fortunately, there is a relatively new technology available that may give pets a better chance of being reunited with their owners. It is called the microchip identification system, or microchipping.
How Microchipping Works？With microchipping, a veterinarian uses a hypodermic needle to inject a tiny computer chip containing a unique identification number just under your pet's skin between the shoulder blades. The number on the computer chip is then entered into a national database along with the corresponding contact information for your pet.
If your lost or stolen pet is found, any animal hospital, shelter, or humane society can use a microchip scanner to read the unique ID number contained on the chip. The veterinarian or shelter worker then phones the database or accesses it on a computer and enters the number on the microchip. The database matches the identification number to your name and phone number so that you can be contacted with the location of your pet.
While the price for microchip implantation can vary, it often falls between $25 and $40. Microchips are convenient, safe, and reliable.Implantation is simple and routine.The chip can't be lost or damaged, and it lasts for the pet's lifetime.
A microchip won't work unless your pet is properly scanned by a microchip reader. There are some shelters and veterinarians in the United States that don't have readers yet. Until recently, each brand of microchip could only be read by its own brand of microchip scanner. Not all shelters and veterinarians have the new universal readers.
Microchip scanning is not 100 percent effective. Microchips should be scanned before being placed in a pet to ensure that the unique identifying number is readable

Do Fish Never Sleep?

When you think of sleep, you think of eyelids closing over your eyes. But most fish do not close their eyes, yet they do sleep.
Most fish sleep by keeping very still in the water. In this way ,their bodies rest, just as your body does while you are asleep. But when a fish sleeps, it is not the same deep, sound sleep that you are accustomed to, and a slightshake in the water will disturb it.