Dogs Forget Events within 2 Minutes, New Study Claims

Dogs are almost as forgetful as goldfish, according to a new study. They forget arbitrary events within two minutes.

Yeah, right. Then why do my two dogs rush into the kitchen when they hear food poured into their bowls? Why do dogs start freaking out the minute they realize they’re going to the vet?

According to “Animal Memory: A review of delayed matching-to-sample data,” published in a December issue of Behavioural Processes, dogs don’t remember specific events, but they do remember information that will help them survive, such as food locations.

Along with dogs, 24 other species — mammals, birds and bees — were included in the study. It was lead by Johan Lind, an ethologist at the Centre for the Study of Cultural Evolution at Stockholm University, Sweden.

The study tested the animals’ working memory, which it defined as “information about an event that is maintained for some time in the absence of reinforcement, and that can be used to guide behavior at a later time.” It focused on events with no biological significance, such as colored lights, visual patterns and sounds.

In layperson’s terms, “delayed matching-to-sample” (DMTS) refers to the process of showing an animal a sample stimulus (such as a colored light) for a few seconds, then removing it. After a timed delay, two comparison stimuli are shown to the animal. One matches the original stimulus while the other does not. The animal is rewarded with a food treat for choosing the one that matches the original stimulus.

“The data tell us that animals have no long-term memory of arbitrary events,” Lind told National Geographic. “We think humans’ ability to remember arbitrary events is unique.” This is known as episodic memory.

The study found that the average memory length was 27 seconds. Dogs’ memories were the longest, at 71 seconds, while bees’ were the shortest, at 2.4 seconds.

Surprisingly, chimpanzees had short memories — only 20 seconds. “It suggests human capacity for memory evolved after we branched from the most recent shared ancestor with chimps, over 6 million years ago,” according to National Geographic.

The results of studies like this will help scientists determine the memory abilities humans share with animals.

“The study of episodic memory is crucial, since it is still under debate whether other animals can retrieve memories of personal past events in the same way humans do,” Gema Martin-Ordas, of Newcastle University’s Institute of Neuroscience, told National Geographic.

Photo credit: kennejima

Devoted Dog Dad Who Cradled Schoep in Lake Gets a New Pup

You probably remember this photo if you were one of the millions who saw it when it went viral three years ago. Snapped by photographer Hannah Stone Hudson, it poignantly captured John Unger of Bayfield, Wisc., cradling his dog Schoep in Lake Superior.

Schoep, 18, had arthritis, and the lake’s warm water was soothing. Sometimes Unger would sit there for hours, holding him.

Unger found Schoep, who’d been abused, in a shelter back in 1995. Unger was suffering from depression at the time.

“He was my life,” Unger told KARE. “He saved me that night and I could only do my very best for him after that.”

Thanks to the photograph, donations for Schoep’s veterinary care poured in, allowing him to live a remarkable 20 years. He died in July 2013, cradled in Unger’s arms.

“It was really tough after Schoep left and I didn’t know what to do with my time,” Unger told KARE. “It was re-learning how to live, and once I learned that and once I got through the toughness of his love, that’s when I started searching [for a dog] again.”

He said Schoep remains in his thoughts. “I talk to him still. Thank him for everything,” he told KARE.

On Monday, Unger became “whole again,” he wrote on the Schoep and John Facebook page.

He adopted Bear, a year-old Akita/Shepherd/Lab mix who’d been surrendered to the Northwoods Humane Society.

“Ladies and Gentlemen – This Is BEAR!” Unger wrote. “The journey continues with the addition of Bear into my home, heart, soul and OUR lives!”

Bear is one very lucky dog. Here’s wishing the two many happy years together.

You can send a welcome note to John and Bear at P.O. Box 434, Bayfield, WI 54814.

The photo of Unger cradling Schoep can be purchased from Stonehouse Photo.

Photos via Facebook

Hundreds Want 35 Beagles Rescued from Southern California Hoarder

For every Beagle rescued this week from a suspected hoarder in Encinitas, Calif., there are about eight people eager to give the pooch a forever home.

“For these Beagles, the timing couldn’t be better. Beagles are in the spotlight,” Jim Silveira, president of the Rancho Coastal Humane Society (RCHS), said in a press release. He was referring to this year’s Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show Best in Show winner, a Beagle named Miss P.

A total of 35 Beagles and six Pugs were brought to RCHS Monday by Four Paws Rescue after the dogs’ elderly owner told the organization she could no longer care for them. They range in age from puppies to adults.

And there may soon be 35 more Beagles available for adoption: a few of the rescued dogs are pregnant. Their puppies will be ready for forever homes in early June.

The Pugs have been taken in by Pug Rescue.

Silveira said the Beagles would be released by the shelter’s medical director “as soon as they’re examined, vaccinated, altered and pronounced to be in good health.”

Although they spent their lives locked up in kennels with little human interaction, the dogs seemed to be happy and healthy. Some had inner ear infections and others needed dental care.

Rebecca Stevens of Four Paws Rescue told CBS 8 that despite what it sounds like, the dogs had not been in a puppy-mill situation.

“These dogs lived in a clean environment. She just needed some help,” Stevens said. “It was a woman who loved dogs, and it just got away from her.”

According to the RCHS Facebook page, the approved applications have been entered into a lottery system, and the winners will be contacted by the end of the day today.

If you’re thinking about adopting a Beagle, the Beagle Dog Rescue Shelter Directory lists rescues across the country.

Photos via Facebook

Puppy-Kicking Former Centerplate CEO Pleads Guilty to Cruelty Charge

Des Hague, who resigned as the CEO of Centerplate in September after being caught on camera kicking a Doberman puppy in an elevator, pleaded guilty today to one animal cruelty charge of causing an animal to be in distress, Global News reports.

Hague was initially charged with two animal cruelty counts under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, according to a CTV Vancouver story Jan. 23.

If convicted, Hague faces a fine of up to $75,000, a maximum of two years in jail and a lifetime ban on having pets, CTV Vancouver reported. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 15.

After the video went viral in August, Centerplate’s board of directors put Hague on probation, but didn’t fire him — despite growing outrage and boycotts of Centerplate food, which is sold in many major sports venues.

Per the board of directors’ request, Hague agreed to donate $100,000 to establish a “Sade Foundation,” named after the puppy he kicked, to protect animals in Vancouver, where the kicking took place. Nearly six months later, there has been no news about the foundation.

Hague was also asked to complete 1,000 hours of community service for an animal-welfare organization and to attend anger-management sessions.

In the video, taken inside an elevator July 27 at the upscale Private Residences at Hotel Georgia, Hague can be seen repeatedly kicking the puppy’s stomach, and then choking her by yanking up her leash and suspending her in the air.

When BC SPCA investigators tracked down Hague in one of the condos, they found the puppy, named Sade, in a urine-soaked crate, with food and water bowls beyond her reach. When Sade was removed from the crate, she was skittish and appeared to have been physically abused.

Hague released a contrite statement in late August through his attorney, claiming the incident was “completely and utterly out of character. I am ashamed and deeply embarrassed … a minor frustration with a friend’s pet caused me to lose control of my emotional response.”

Here’s the surveillance video showing Hague as he lost control of his emotional response.

Class Action Lawsuit Says Beneful Sickened or Killed Thousands of Dogs

MARCH 13, 2015 UPDATE: Two U.S. senators have asked the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to investigate the lawsuit’s claims and provide updates about measures being taken to prevent the contamination of pet food.

Thousands of dogs have been sickened or died after eating Beneful dry kibble, according to a class-action lawsuit filed Feb. 5 against the Nestlé Purina Petcare Company.

The suit says the food’s main ingredient — propylene glycol, which is also a component of automotive antifreeze (!) — is toxic to dogs. This ingredient apparently helps keep the kibble moist, but it has lead to problems including internal bleeding, liver malfunction or failure, vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, weight loss, seizures, bloat or kidney failure in at least 3,000 dogs who digested it, according to the lawsuit.

On its website, Nestlé Purina says propylene glycol is safe: It’s “an FDA-approved food additive that’s also in human foods like salad dressing and cake mix.” Well, that’s good to know.

The lawsuit says Beneful may also contain mycotoxins, which are toxic byproducts of mold.

Frank Lucido, who filed the suit in a California federal court, said he began feeding his three dogs Beneful dry dog food in December. Within a month, all three began suffering stomach and liver problems. His English Bulldog died on Jan. 23 due to internal bleeding and lesions on his liver. His other two dogs, a German Shepherd and Labrador, are showing similar symptoms.

These were far from being isolated cases. According to the lawsuit, there are thousands of complaints on the internet (including several hundred on ConsumerAffairs.com) “about dogs becoming ill, in many cases very seriously ill, and/or dying after eating Beneful.”

All of these dogs had the same symptoms — mainly vomiting and liver problems.

“If it’s a hundred or so, it’s like, ‘Okay, a lot of dogs eat Beneful; things happen,’” Jeff Cereghino, one of Lucido’s attorneys, told The Daily Beast today. “But when I look at 4,000? Holy hell, there’s a lot of people out here.”

Cereghino said he plans to send the Beneful food he and others in the class action suit have saved to a lab to be tested for mycotoxins. The lawsuit will enable pet parents to know if there’s a “connecting piece in the storage or the grain, the sourcing of it all, that sort of make sense,” he told The Daily Beast.

The lawsuit charges Nestlé Purina with breach of implied warranty; breach of express warranty; negligence; negligent misrepresentation; strict products liability; violating California’s consumer legal remedies act; violating California’s Unfair Competition Law; and violating California’s False Advertising Law.

Lucido wants the lawsuit to represent two classes, according to Top Class Actions: a nationwide class and a California subclass for pet parents “who purchased Beneful dog food in the past four years and who incurred any out of pocket costs due to illness, injury or death of their dog resulting from the ingestion of Beneful.”

The lawsuit asks that Nestlé Purina Petcare Company pay actual, statutory and punitive damages to all those filed under it, and forfeit profits earned from the sale of Beneful dry kibble.

Not too surprisingly, Nestlé Purina Petcare Company does not think the lawsuit has any merit.

“We intend to vigorously defend ourselves,” Keith Schopp, vice president of corporate public relations, said in a statement to The Daily Beast.

“Beneful is a high-quality nutritious food enjoyed by millions of dogs each year and there are no product quality issues with Beneful.”

FEB. 26 UPDATE: Nestlé Purina Officially Responds to Lawsuit

In a statement on its Beneful FAQs website Feb. 26, Nestlé Purina repeated what Schopp had told The Daily Beast about Beneful being “high-quality, nutritious food.” It calls the lawsuit “baseless” and blames social media for spreading “false information”:

“As pet owners ourselves, our priority is the health and well-being of the millions of dogs who enjoy Beneful. We take these allegations very seriously and stand by our product, which is backed by Purina’s strict quality controls and comprehensive food safety program.

Unfortunately, class action suits are common these days. They are not indicative of a product issue. In fact, we’ve faced two such suits in the past with similar allegations. Both were found to be baseless and were subsequently dismissed by the courts.

Adding to the confusion, social media outlets can be a source of false or incomplete information, as many other pet food brands have experienced themselves.

We at Beneful want you, our valued customers, to know that this lawsuit is baseless; you can continue to feel confident feeding your dogs our food. We stand committed to our Brand, our products and your pets.”

The company stated that anyone with questions should call 800-877-7551 or go to its website for “a behind-the-scenes look into how the Purina Nutrition Research team evaluates the safety and ingredients of Beneful dog food.”

Photo credit: Jason Meredith