Jul 31
2011

Many individuals are lounging by the pools or having barbeques with family and friends. But, as you enjoy your summer activities, have you thought about how your animals are surviving what are often termed the dog days of summer?

Summertime can be very miserable for animals, said Dr. McCoy, DVM, of the Walden Pond Animal Hospital, especially if your pet is an outside pet. Just take a moment to realize, if you have a long-haired animal and they are constantly outside, just how miserable you would be. Long-haired animals should receive a proper cutting during the summer months, especially if they are outside pets. This just helps keep the animal more comfortable. But short-haired animals that will be in the sun also need sunscreen. An animal that has a very thin coat of fur will tend to burn, if they do not have sunscreen on.

Keeping an animal cool and keeping an animal from suffering from sunburn is very important, but McCoy strongly reminds all animal owners of the importance of never leaving an animal in a vehicle.

Never leave an animal in an automobile, McCoy said. Even if the day seems a little cooler to you, the sun can raise the temperatures inside your car to 120 degrees Fahrenheit in a matter of minutes. This is a disaster waiting to happen.

Although keeping an animal trimmed during the summer months helps keep the animal comfortable, always remember to give them fresh, cool water as often as possible. An animal can never have too much water during the hot summer months.

Actually, whether you have a pet indoors or out, both you and your pet need access to a lot of water, McCoy said. Check your animals water bowl several times a day. Remember, if you both decide to venture outdoors during the heat of the day, take plenty of water for the both of you.

Pet owners should also be very cautious of humid days. Humidity interferes with animals ability to rid themselves of excess body heat.

When we overheat, we sweat, and, when the sweat dries, it takes excess heat with it, McCoy said. Our animals only perspire around their paws, which is not enough to cool the body. To rid themselves of excess heat, animals pant. Although it is a very efficient way to control their body heat, it is limited in areas of high humidity or when the animal is in close corners. That is why it is very important, if you can to bring your pet inside to cool off throughout the day if possible. If not, always have a shaded area for your outside pets to get a little relief from the scorching temperatures.

Every animal loves to jump around and just have fun, which is a great form of exercise, but during the summertime, this can be a dangerous activity for some animals.

Make sure your pet does not overexert themselves, McCoy said. Yes, exercise is very important to animals in helping them maintain their appropriate weight. But overdoing it can cause your pet to overheat. Keep an eye out for your pet suffering from a heat stroke. A heatstroke is a medical emergency. If you suspect your pet has had a heatstroke, you must act quickly and calmly. Call your veterinarian immediately.

Staying on top of making sure your pet comfortable during the summer months is very important and is the proper thing to do as a responsible pet owner. But, one more factor should be mentioned and obeyed – having your pet vaccinated for rabies.

Having your pet vaccinated for rabies is a must, McCoy said. There are two forms of rabies – one form being known as the dumb form of rabies and the other the furious rabies. The dumb rabies mainly affects the spinal cord, causing the animal to be weak-limbed, lethargic, and unable to raise its head or make sounds, because neck and throat muscles are paralyzed. In the beginning phase of paralytic rabies, an animal may also appear to be choking. The furious rabies largely affects the brain and causes an infected animal to be aggressive or excitable (the very picture of the foaming-at-the-mouth, lsquo;mad dog image people have of rabies). All mammals can get rabies. I encourage every pet owner to get their animal vaccinated. It is an annual vaccination, but a new vaccination has been released which is good for three years. However, you must ask for that particular vaccination.

Every pet owner should do everything possible to making sure your pets life is a healthy life. Take your pet for regular visits to your veterinarian. This allows pet owners and veterinarians to stay on top of their pets health. A happy pet is a healthy pet.

For more information on services available at the Walden Pond Animal Hospital, call 693-5545.

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Your Animals  


Jul 31
2011

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – HBO executives said on Thursday they were delighted and surprised at the success of new fantasy show Game of Thrones but they gave no guarantees that the TV series would cover all the books in the series.

I dont know where the show will end, as opposed to the books, HBO programing chief Michael Lombardo told TV reporters.

It would be fantastic to be able to say this show will go on for 10 years, and do every aspect of the books. I dont know that will be the case, he added. Well see, but we are doing this without any predetermined idea of the number of seasons.

Game of Thrones is currently reaching about 13.5 million viewers, including repeat episodes, HBO said. The series is derived from the five best-selling novels by George RR Martin published so far and production on season two is already underway.

I think the show was a great surprise to a lot of people. The numbers bear that out. We couldnt be more delighted about the new season, said HBO co-president Richard Plepler.

But the two executives said decisions on the number of seasons would also depend partly on how long the writers and producers of the TV version want to remain involved.

Lombardo said however that the premium cable channel takes very seriously the passions of fans for the book series.

That is a relationship that we are very aware and respectful of, he added.

Game of Thrones earned 13 nominations for the 2011 Emmy Awards, including best drama.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant, editing by Christine Kearney)

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Game  


Jul 30
2011

WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)–The value of the U.S. dollar could decline as markets lose confidence in the ability of the government to pay its bills if lawmakers fail to reach a deal to raise the debt ceiling, the head of the International Monetary Fund warned Thursday.

If no deal is reached before the Aug. 2 deadline set by the U.S. Treasury, “It would probably entail a decline of the dollar relative to other currencies,” IMF Managing …

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Monetary  


Jul 30
2011

SIGNIFICANT injection of N1.3 trillion by the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) and the estimated N1.6 trillion intervention of AMCON in rescued banks have forced the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to, once again, tighten the monetary policy, to curtail the inflationary pressure arising from such huge injections.

Governor of the CBN, Mallam Lamido Sanusi, while addressing the media in Abuja, on Tuesday, shortly after the 77th meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) held at the apex bank corporate headquarters, said the committee welcomed the favourable growth projections, but cautioned that the security challenges, infrastructural bottlenecks and the uncertainty in the international economy and the fiscal developments could undermine investors’ confidence and output growth in the near term.

In view of the need to proactively address the impact of the huge liquidity injection and correct the negative real interest rate situation in the market and attract foreign capital inflows to build up reserves to protect the economy against external shocks, Mallam Sanusi said the MPC decided to tighten monetary policy by a majority decision of 10 to two and raise the Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) from 8 per cent to 8.75 per cent by a majority vote of eight members in its favour.

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Monetary  


Jul 30
2011

1 day ago 

WASHINGTON — The International Monetary Fund on Thursday announced its top spokesperson, Caroline Atkinson, is leaving the Fund to become a special assistant to US President Barack Obama.

Atkinson, the director of external relations at the Washington-based global lender, will join the White House in August as “special assistant to the president for international economic affairs,” the IMF said in a statement.

After a career spanning the IMF, the US Treasury and the Bank of England, the British-US national, an Oxford graduate and former journalist, returned to the IMF in November 2008 as head of external relations amid the financial crisis that triggered the global recession.

The White House tried to recruit her, a few months after Obama took office in January 2009, as a deputy to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner. But she decided to remain at the Fund.

Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved.
More »

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Monetary  


Jul 30
2011

NEW YORK — With the dust slowly settling on last nights 4-0 All-Star Game thrashing of the MLS at the hands of Manchester United, the league wakes up this morning to the realization that things arent as bad as they looked in the dusky haze of last night, and that it doesnt even have a hangover.

With the perspective of hindsight comes the realization that the MLS All-Stars, or all of Major League Soccer for that matter, neednt tread the walk of shame today.

First things first: This was an exhibition game. This was not a referendum on the league. Although many billed it as such, that was never a fair characterization. The All-Stars had just two days together, and only about two hours of serious training at that, to somehow glue-stick together a team with enough structural integrity to face a painstakingly assembled and precisely calibrated behemoth.

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Game  


Jul 29
2011

The nation was balanced precariously between the darkness of the Great Depression on one side and the storms of war in Europe and the Pacific on the other. It was a critical time in the shaping of this nation and the world, equal to the revolution of 1776 and the perils of the Civil War. Once again the American people understood the magnitude of the challenge, the importance of an unparalleled national commitment, and, most of all, the certainty that only one resolution was acceptable. The nation turned to its young to carry the heaviest burden, to fight in enemy territory and to keep the home front secure and productive. These young men and women were eager for the assignment. They understood what was required of them, and they willingly volunteered for their duty.
–Tom Brokaw

Warren Buffet said in an interview on September 24, 2008 that we were experiencing an economic Pearl Harbor. He implored Congress to pass the TARP bill. Five days later they vetoed the bill and the Dow Jones declined 780 points or 7.8% that afternoon. The bill was passed shortly thereafter. Our financial markets were invaded and Washington responded by waging a war of rhetoric and reform on Wall Street. The issue I take with this statement is that Washington gave Wall Street the ammunition to wager the war. The stock market also possesses a different mentality from that period in time; its not the market it once was. Its Las Vegas on steroids and the house has the odds inits favor. The Dodd Frank Act has the making of a reform our financial system requires and a resemblance of a new deal.

Ask any physician and they will testify that at some point you have got to remove the life support and determine if the patient can survive on its own breath. America has been on monetary life support since the Fall of 2008; the car wreck was of a severe nature and it required medical attention at the time.

While hiding behind the beard of hawkish vernacular, the FOMC has printed and pumped massive amounts of money into the financial system. That liquidity, while providing a rising tide for virtually every asset class, came at a cost. The worldwide response, verbally and structurally, was to shock the patient back to life.
–Todd Harrison

The problem is we have not implemented a cure, andsadly this is seen as austerity. Its of the communitys belief that the government sees the procedure as too painful. Maybe if we hold out for hope we can will our way through the pain and avoid outright sacrifice. That is precisely what the greatest generation did not do. They took the procedure and added personal will to get them through the darkness of debt defeat, but our morale and motivation has lost its momentum.

This months widely watched Michigan consumer confidence came in at 63.8, the lowest level since March 2009 on increasing pessimism over falling income, as goes the consumer so goes GDP, and rising unemployment. An April 21, 2011 CBS News/New York Times poll found that 27 percent of Americans support raising the debt limit, while 63 percent oppose. The underlying message tells me they are more fed up with the Fed and our Government leaders. In fact it was also demonstrated in the lack of voter interest in the 2008 Presidential election when only 42% of eligible Americans voted. Not passing this legislation is not an option for the short-term.

Interest rates are at record lows and have been for 32 months. Not since World War IIhave interest rates been this accommodative for such an extended period. At $14.46 trillion the US debt stands at approximately 100% of the previous 12 month GDP; the US hit 120% of GDP shortly after WW2. The betterment of such accommodation never materialized. Monetary policy procedures (QE1 and QE2) have done little to revive job growth and expand GDP –currently at 9.2% unemployment and 1.9% GDP growth. The government has thrown trillions of tax payer dollars at the problem and we have little to show for it, meanwhile manipulating equity prices through the issuance of caustic debt. Nobody is bigger than the market and we are marching towards a debt infused date with destiny. The risk to counterparty purchasers of US Treasury debt is a stealth default through devaluation of the US dollar (down 13% since June 2010).

It is my belief that we are in the midst of a stock market rally in the context of a bear market. It is a stock market that is climbing a wall of worry and has higher prices on the horizon. The bullish audience will argue corporate fundamentals are strong, and they are. The Samp;P is expected to grow its profits by 19% in 2011. My view is a bit conservative and calls for $96 on Samp;P earnings with a 14.7x multiple –providing a target of 1411 by year end. But the crowds risk aversion has left them on the sidelines. The issue I take is that at some point, when the crowd has bought back in, it will mark an end to the markets climb and I expect it to be a vicious fall. We are in the late innings of opportunity to chart a new course and allow the free market to reign.

What are the measures needed to resuscitate our global posture?

Trackback  •  Posted in Monetary  


Jul 29
2011

This summer ArtsBeat is inviting members of the theater world to contribute to the weekly Theater Talkback column, alternating with the critics Ben Brantley and Charles Isherwood. Recent posts have examined the challenges of casting the role of Fanny Brice in “Funny Girl” and unusual settings for Shakespeare stagings. This week, Laura Motta, a New York-based writer, editor and blogger (her blog signature is Lucky) writes about the value of letting shows speak for themselves.

There are the usual pre-theater announcements: Turn off your cellphones. No photos allowed. Unwrap candy now, not later. But lately I’ve heard a couple that left me unsettled, and at two very different kinds of performances.

The first preceded an early-January preview of the embattled “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark.” Before the show, a producer came onstage and warned the audience not about noisy candy wrappers or distracting camera flashes, but about the negative press the show had been getting. We were reminded that this was a preview performance and, as such, it wasn’t fair to view it as a finished work. We were also asked to ignore the “unfair coverage” the show had received in the press.

The second happened before a workshop performance of the new Duncan Sheik/Steven Sater musical “The Nightingale,” part of the Powerhouse Theater’s summer series at Vassar College. In that case, the audience was reminded that we were seeing an unfinished work, but with the added caveat that we were not to blog, tweet, or otherwise converse online about it.

Talk about a buzz kill in more ways than one.

I understand the value of the preview process, and it’s our blog’s policy to play by the rules: We generally don’t post reviews until previews have ended. But besides just being a total drag, the announcements, I couldn’t help but feel, infringed on something really basic: They wrecked the magic.

Musicals, like opera, require the suspension of disbelief in ways that almost no other kind of entertainment does. Preshow lectures don’t do much to preserve that. They took me out of the moment and distracted me from the work. And there was a more sinister implication, too: That the audience is not capable of fairly judging a show on its own.

It’s worth mentioning that in both cases I paid for my ticket. “The Nightingale” was even part of Vassar’s subscription series. But theater creators don’t see how that entitles me to my own thoughts and opinions. Check out Julie Taymor’s recent interviews and her implication that negative buzz during “Spider-Man” previews — and not the quality of the show itself — contributed to her eventual departure from the show. I’m happy to play sounding board to new work and I understand that my reactions, like those of others, are useful to creators. But a paying audience is not a focus group. Nothing prevents me from sharing my feelings about the work on Twitter or over coffee.

And who trusts a show that needs a disclaimer? To me, that kind of announcement just made it sound like the producers were hedging their bets in case the shows were bad. In the case of “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark,” in particular, the producer’s apprehension was pretty understandable. But will we eventually have to sit through this kind of announcement before every preview and workshop? Will theatergoers of the future turn up 10 minutes late, like movie patrons who prefer to skip the pre-show ads?

These kinds of warnings are not about the medium. Theater producers don’t hate Twitter or blogging. Every show on Broadway uses the Internet to share positive comments and reviews. But producers are desperate to control the frequency and tone of negative discourse, and they can’t have it both ways. Younger theater fans, like the ones who read our site, blog and re-blog production photos and reviews at lightning speed. For a show in its earliest stages, that exposure could be vital in building a future audience.

For example, if I were free to share my honest opinions about “The Nightingale” on our blog, I might have said that, for a new work performed without staging or costumes, it showed great promise. That the retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale included a number of beautiful songs and seemed surprisingly well formed for a piece in development. Our readers, many of whom adore Mr. Sheik and Mr. Sater’s first musical, “Spring Awakening,” would find much to enjoy in it, and would probably be among those lining the sidewalk for tickets — if the show ever makes it beyond its development stages, that is.

I hope it does. I also hope that the people in charge at the Powerhouse Theater — and across the industry — recognize that letting the work speak for itself can have real value. It builds credibility for a show. Plus, it spares me something I never expect at the theater — a pre-curtain lecture.

How do you feel about pre-show announcements at the theater? If you’re asked not to tweet or blog about a show you’ve just seen, do you listen?

This article was adapted from a post entitled “Stop Telling Me What to Think About Your Show: A Manifesto of Love and Annoyance.”

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Announcements  


Jul 28
2011

Ongoing concerns about a solution to the euro-zones debt crisis are likely to affect Hungarian central bank policy, the Monetary Policy Council said Tuesday.

The most important risk factor affecting Hungary in the short run is a possible prolonged euro-zone debt crisis, National Bank of Hungary Governor Andras Simor said at a press conference following the banks rate-setting meeting.

Future rate decisions, besides inflation, will from now on also be influenced by the ability of European Union decision makers to find a solution to the euro-area crisis, a release published by the MPC showed. Such a solution would decrease overall risk aversion and would thus improve the external risk assessment of Hungary, also a factor in monetary policy.

The comments led economists adjust their rate forecasts, with some now saying that Budapest’s rate setters could loosen policy earlier than expected.

Nomura economist Peter Attard Montalto said the MPC comments show the sensitive balance between factors for and against rate movements “could well be tipped in favour of rate cuts in the near future.”

Mr. Attard Montalto now sees room for rate cuts toward the end of the second half of the year “given a … lower risk post the euro [zone] summit, and inflation and growth both a surprise to the downside.”

Others, such as Erste Bank economist Zoltan Arokszallasi, still expect the central bank to wait until next year with cutting interest rates, saying this would also decrease interest rate differentials favoring the forint. This in turn have a negative effect on consumption because monthly mortgage instalments would become more expensive if the forint weakened further against the Swiss franc. This, naturally, would go against the original intention of boosting growth through lower rates.

The euro zone debt crisis, which drove the haven Swiss franc to new highs against most emerging European currencies, also hit Hungary hard, especially in relation to a high number of household mortgage holders indebted in francs.

In an attempt to allay fears that extreme franc strength may even affect the Hungarian banking system as a whole, Mr. Simor said the banking system would remain resilient to an even stronger franc.

Simor noted however, that prolonged franc strength could indeed be a drag on household consumptiondue to increased monthly instalmentshitting hard an area thats already in the doldrums.

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Monetary  


Jul 28
2011

Recent world events suggest we should raise our awareness for threats to our food system. For livestock producers, this means looking at biosecurity practices and activity for all foreign animal diseases (FAD). One FAD that is of particular concern is Foot-and-Mouth Disease (FMD). FMDis a highly contagious viral disease of cloven-hoofed animals. It affects cattle, swine, sheep, goats, deer and other ruminants. Livestock owners fear FMD beshy;cause it spreads rapidly and causes severe economic and consumer confidence losses, as well as internashy;tional trade embargoes. A quick response is vitally important to the livestock industries in containing an FMD outbreak and preserving markets.

Five things you can do:
Because FADs can have far reaching impacts, it is important for the livestock industries to develop an understanding of these diseases and plans to address them. Things you can do include: developing or enhancing your visitors policy, setting up farm gate biosecurity protocols, knowing the signs of FMD and other FADs, increasing surveillance and reviewing information about FMD and what may happen if an outbreak occurred. Such steps would reduce the risk of an FAD occurring and increase the success of a response to an outbreak.

1. Develop or enhance your visitors policy.Visitors can be a route of disease transmission onto your farm. Establishing a visitors policy for routine and non-routine visitors can reduce your risk from this route of disease transmission. A visitors policy states what is expected from each visitor while on the premises. A typical visitors policy might look something like the following;

The health and welfare of our cattle and the safety of the product they produce is of highest priority to us. To help protect our cattle and you, we have developed a visitor policy

  • Do not proceed onto facilities if you have been in another country in the past 7 days
  • If you are coming from another farm, we ask that you do not come in contact of our animals if your clothes are soiled
  • Sign our visitors log
  • Wear plastic boots or clean and sanitize personal boots
  • Please stay out of areas marked employees only or Disease Prevention Area (such as our calf housing)
  • Wash hands prior to departure
  • Enjoy your visit

It is important to communicate expectations and at the same time make visitors feel they are welcome, particularly if you provide tours for the public. There is a need to balance the openness of livestock facilities with appropriate, responsible biosecurity measures to reduce risks, knowing we cannot eliminate all risk.

2. Set up farm gate biosecurity protocols.Farm gate biosecurity is exactly what it implies. Biosecurity and traffic control at the farm gate. These practices will reduce the risk of many diseases, including FMD, from entering the farm. Some of these steps also enhance physical farm security. Consider implementing the following farm gate biosecurity plan.

  • A single driveway as entry point to the farm.
  • A single designated visitor parking area.
  • STOP signage at driveway entry, indicating that all visitors must check with management before entering premises andanimal facilities.
  • Signs and a guest book to screen visitors for recent visits to other farms and countries.
  • Boot disinfecting station(s), with instructions, plastic boots and a waste disposal container.
  • A foreign animal disease outbreak traffic control plan

See website at http://www.cvm.msu.edu/biosecurity for more info on setting up farm gate biosecurity protocols.

3. Know the signs of FMD and other FADs in your animals.Because Foot-and-Mouth Disease is such a dangerous and easily transported disease, it becomes important for those in Michigan agriculture to understand the signs in livestock. Should you see any unusual signs in your animals, including the following, contact your veterinarian.

Early signs of FMD include:

  • Drop in feed consumption and milk production of infected animals.
  • Elevated temperatures, especially in young animals.

Followed by:

  • Blisters (vesicles) and erosions/ulcers in the mouth, on the tongue, muzzle and lips, on the teats and around feet.
  • Excessive salivation and saliva that is sticky, foamy and stringy.
  • Lameness with reluctance to move
  • Abortions

4. Increase yoursurveillance(Be Aware).Surveillance for FADs is essential. Observe your animals daily for early signs of disease, including FMD. Train individuals and employees who work with animals to be observant of signs of illness. If someone notices signs that resemble those of FMD, call your veterinarian immediately OR the MDARD hotline at 517-373-1077 from 8 am to 5 pm or 517-373-0440 after hours OR USDA APHIS at 517-324-5290.

Thereare four aspects of an FAD outbreak everyone in the dairy and livestock industries should be aware of:
1. What to expect if a FAD outbreak is suspected in a herd.
2. What to expect once a FAD is confirmed in the first herd.
3. What to do and your role if an FAD outbreak occurs anywhere in North America.
4. Traffic control on your farm during an FAD outbreak.

Then: Self-quarantine the farm and immediately implement strict biosecurity practices to prevent any further spread. Quick action will reduce the impact of any FAD such as FMD on the livestock industry. Train your family, neighbors and employees to watch for individuals who look out of place or are doing something suspicious. Having individuals sign in, wear boots and/or nametags will deter many unwanted individuals from entering or walking around your premises.

5. Review information about FMD and other FADs and what would happen if an outbreak occurred. (Be Prepared).Even with this information many farms will need to begin a planning process which leads to a more structured way to view animal disease prevention and risk management. Further resources about a variety of Foreign Animal Diseases are available online from the Center for Food Security and Public Health at Iowa State University and the OIE (The international animal health organization which monitors and coordinates animal health issues worldwide), including a list of countries free of FMD. If your farm is interested in setting up farm gate biosecurity protocols, information can be found at the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine Website, where a wide variety of biosecurity documents can be downloaded, including an FMD wall chart titled Foot and Mouth Disease – Prevention and Preparedness. This chart can be used as a training tool for farm employees and visitors.

Source: Dean Ross, Michigan State University Extension

Tags:



Trackback  •  Posted in Your Animals  


« Older Entries