HOW TO TRAIN DOGS TO AVOID SNAKES.

A vet, a dog trainer and a snake wrangler have teamed up for a unique series of training sessions aimed at teaching dogs to avoid potentially deadly snake encounters.Veterinarian Dr Shey Rogers hopes to see fewer clients this year.We had all of our dogs bitten by the same snake. And one of them actually got bitten twice in two weeks, so we were definite that we didn't want to have to go through that again.Dr Shey Rogers, Youngs Siding veterinarian Her Youngs Siding practice on Western Australia's south coast has become a meeting place for local dog owners eager to trial snake avoidance training."Basically my philosophy is prevention is better than cure," Dr Rogers said."I'd rather not see dogs come in here with snake bites and then have to treat them." Dr Rogers engaged Perth-based dog trainer Seth Pywell and snake wrangler Marcus Cosentino to run the sessions after all three of her dogs were bitten by a snake, one of them fatally, on her family property earlier this year. "We had all of our dogs bitten by the same snake. And one of them actually got bitten twice in two weeks, so we were definite that we didn't want to have to go through that again," Dr Rogers said."It was a very emotional process and a very expensive process as well.Venomous and non-venomous species are used in the training, from the placid Tiliqua Rugosa (shingleback lizard) to the deadly Notechis Scutatus (tiger snake) But it is not just dogs that are in need of protection : read more here,http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-25/protecting-pets-and-wildlife-training-teaches-dogs-avoid-snakes/6973094 Snake avoidance training is a relatively uncommon practice in Australia.Over two sessions, dogs are exposed to a range of reptiles and are taught to associate the creatures with a low-level electric shock delivered by a remote training collar.When a dog goes for it, it’s generally the bobtail that will come off worse.Marcus Cosentino, snake wrangler. The theory is that the next time the dog sees or smells the same reptile, it will avoid all contact.During training sessions, dogs are rewarded with treats when they choose the right behaviour."The dog's natural response is that of investigation," Mr Pywell said."We're teaching the dogs that investigation brings consequences and if they avoid it, it brings rewards."

POULTRY GUT HEALTH KEY TO REDUCED ANTIBIOTIC USE IN PRODUCTION.

Chicken guts health at a bacterial level could improve poultry health and reduce the need for antibiotics.Central Queensland University senior lecturer in microbiology Dana Stanley is looking into ways to improve the gut health of chickens and other agricultural animals.Dr Stanley's aim was to identify products in the gut which help chickens absorb more energy from seed and put on more muscle. The research was also finding ways to improve gut health so chickens would be more resistant to disease, which would reduce the need for the antibiotics used to prevent the spread of pathogens such as campylobacter and salmonella.The findings have implications for human health as well as animal health.There is a growing field in human research on the influence of intestinal bacteria on health. She said there was huge interest in finding alternatives to antibiotic use, including using natural products. Read the research here;http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-03/chicken-gut-health-could-be-secret-to-improved-poultry-health/6909410

Agribusiness and bitcoin wealth.

Queensland Egg Farmer Lays the Foundations For Agriculture Bitcoin Economy.

A chicken farmer on Queensland's Sunshine Coast wants his customers to pay him using the online currency, Bitcoin.  Bitcoin is a form of digital currency, which is created and held electronically.

Mark Burgunder, an organic chicken egg farmer at Conondale, is already using the virtual currency in his business.Mr Burgunder said he wants to create a local Bitcoin economy amongst Sunshine Coast farmers and consumers.

Bitcoin is an electronic currency that is not backed by a central bank, it is backed by a network of computers and mathematics.


 Bitcoins are stored on a Bitcoin wallet, which can be accessed via computer, phone or on a card similar to a credit card.

They can also be stored on debit cards, and can be used anywhere EFTPOS is available.  Read 

FOOD SECURITY AND SYNTHETIC FOOD.

Synthetic versions of beef, cheese and mayonnaise are being developed in the home of the biggest technology companies in the world, the Silicon Valley, California.Primary producers need to think about how to position their product in the market in competition with synthetic food, according to a new report released by the Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand Council. The council's Peter O'Reagan said primary producers should be aware of up and coming technology that may one day present competition to their product."They are using natural products because they are using chickpeas and soybeans.It has the potential to solve a lot of food shortage problems.The innovation has also caught the eye of local academics. Read more here;http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-10-30/synthetic-food-silicon-valley/6899350

Tiger befriends goat instead of eating it!!!

Animal activists have reportedly called on an animal park in Russia to separate a goat from a tiger that befriended it instead of eating it.The goat, since named Timur, was given to the tiger Amur (another name for Siberian tigers) as live food.The Far Eastern Safari Park, in the Primorsky region bordering the Sea of Japan and North Korea, said it gives predators twice-weekly meals of live animals."Tiger Amur knows very well how to hunt goats and rabbits," a keeper told the Siberian Times."But recently he came across a goat that he refused to hunt."Instead, Timur chased Amur out of his sleeping quarters, banishing him to sleeping on the shelter's roof. watch video here; http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-29/separate-tiger-and-goat-fans-urge/6984212

BROTHERS FREE TRAPPED EAGLE.!!!

Brothers Michael and Neil Fletcher found a bald eagle stuck in a trap near Windy Lake in Ontario, Canada, which tried to fly away when the two men approached. Michael and Neal wrapped a jacket around the eagle to calm it down, and then managed to free its talon. read more here: http://ftw.usatoday.com/2015/11/heroic-brothers-free-a-bald-eagle-from-a-trap-and-take-the-best-selfie-of-all-time,

HOW DOGS MAKE FRIENDS FOR THEIR OWNERS.

Thirty years ago, Paul Knott broke his neck in a car accident, landing him in a wheelchair and ending his career as a firefighter with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. Since then, he’s gone back to school, finished his degree, started working as a “data cowboy” (his words), trained people on dispatch systems (still for CAL FIRE), and raised three Australian shepherds.He got his first dog, Bear, shortly before the accident, and ended up training him as a service dog to get around his landlords’ “no pets” policy. Bear and his successors—first Ed, now Charlie—have accompanied Knott everywhere: to work, on errands, around town. And he’s noticed that on their wanderings, Charlie draws in a lot of new friends. In studies observing the reactions people get while out and about with dogs, researchers have found that strangers offer more smiles and friendly glances to people with dogs, and are more likely to approach and have a conversation with someone with a canine companion. In one study from 2008, people helped a stranger who dropped a handful of coins pick them up more often if he had a dog with him, and were more likely to give him money for the bus when he asked. People typically treat strangers in public places with what the sociologist Erving Goffman termed “civil inattention.” They may acknowledge each other with brief glances, but they’ll look quickly away. The glancer is recognizing that the other person is there, but signaling that he himself doesn’t want to interact, and also being respectful of the fact that the other person probably doesn’t want to interact, either.But dogs do not give a hoot about our elaborate, chilly social dances. They’ll interact with whomever they like, thanks very much. This helps break the barrier of civil inattention in two ways: One, if you see someone with a dog, and you like dogs, then you know you have something in common with that person, making them a little bit less of an unknown. And two, “it is as if the interactional openness of pet dogs … is highly contagious, infecting and transforming anyone who accompanies them in public into ‘open persons.’” read more here; http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/11/how-dogs-make-friends-for-their-humans/417645/