The unusual suspects — and you thought the penguins were in trouble
January 27th, 2008 Posted in Pets Guide It may not be the penguins that are in gravest danger of
extinction after all. While global warming melts the habitats of
our coolest creatures, forecasts of more oppressive heatwaves for
Victoria have worked dog owners into a fretful sweat.
Bulldogs, boxers, Pekingese, pugs and even French mastiffs are
among the breeds that may not see many more Australian summers,
experts say. Rising temperatures could also see Persian cats go the
way of the dodo.
Citing Darwin’s theory of evolution, the RSPCA’s chief
veterinarian, Dr Chris Thurgood, said forecasts of more frequent 40
degree-plus days in Melbourne could prove dire for local stocks of
short-nosed dogs and cats, which are susceptible to respiratory
problems and heat stress in summer.
“Darwin’s theory will take care of them,” he said. “They won’t
be around in the future, they won’t last.”
Mark Davis, director of Melbourne University’s veterinary
teaching hospital, said people should act responsibly by choosing
long-nosed or long-tongued dog breeds such as greyhounds or golden
retrievers.
Dogs cool themselves primarily by panting, and high temperatures
can lead to heat-stress symptoms such as whining or excessive
drooling in breeds such as bulldogs or pugs, which have squashed
faces and narrower airways.
“It will be more sensible to not have those breeds as a pet
because as it gets hotter they are going to struggle more,” he
said. “If you choose one of those breeds you will have to see the
vet more often.”
However, such pleas received short shrift from the Boxer
Association of Victoria president Lionel Bleakley %26#151; proud
owner of 14 boxers and three French mastiffs, on his 28-acre
property in Melbourne’s outer west. “My dogs have been lying quite
comfortably on the cool concrete,” he said.
“The problem is people who take their dog for a run in the
middle of a hot day when you wouldn’t do it with a two-year-old
kid.”
Victorian Canine Association chief Elizabeth White said there
was no evidence to suggest rising temperatures would make life in
Australia unbearable for particular breeds. She said many people
mistakenly believed dogs with heavy coats such as English sheepdogs
or Alaskan malamutes suffered more in summer, when such coats might
actually help to insulate them against the heat.
She said boxers lived in extreme conditions in India and South
America.
Pug Club of Victoria secretary Sandra Chivell %26#151; the owner
of 10-year-old pug “Peter Perfect”, or “Brocky” as she calls him
%26#151; said dogs would learn to adapt to increased temperatures in
the same manner as their masters. “Most pugs will be where the
people are, and that is inside in front of an air conditioner,” she
said.
Adaptation, to paraphrase Charles Darwin, is the key to
survival. Australian dog breeders have already developed a local
version of the British bulldog, which boasts a longer nose and more
athletic frame than its stunted forefather to cope better with our
harsh climate.
But the thick heat that has already hit 41.2 degrees twice this
month in Melbourne has also placed other beasts at risk of burning
out. Neville Nicholls, professorial fellow at Monash University’s
school of geography and environmental science, said extreme highs
along with oppressive overnight temperatures increased heat-related
deaths in people aged over 65 by about 20%. “A 30-degree night in
Melbourne would be a disaster and we could have widespread
mortality as a result,” he said.
To avert such calamity, the Bureau of Meteorology is seeking
funding for a national heatwave early warning system, which would
officially alert residents in capital cities such as Melbourne when
conditions reached a dangerous point. The system would operate
similarly to UV alerts or cyclone warnings. On days of forecast
extreme humidity or heat, such as on 40-degree-plus days, warnings
might be placed in newspapers and on radio advising aged care
centres to keep residents cool, while urging people to regularly
check elderly neighbours.
As in other cities with heatwave warning systems, such as San
Jose in the US, state emergency services might also help by opening
designated “cool rooms” in public buildings to offer respite to
people wilting in the heat.
Earlier this month the Victorian Department of Human Services
issued a similar alert for people to stay indoors, wear
lightweight, loose-fitting clothing and to not leave a child or
animal in a parked car.
Chris Mitchell, director of the Centre for Australian Weather
and Climate Research, said Melburnians needed to adapt to more
frequent heatwaves.
Many organisations are already changing the way they operate.
The Australian Open tennis tournament, which has an official Bureau
of Meteorology weatherman on-site for the first time this year, has
relaxed its heat policy to offer players a greater reprieve when
conditions on court become extreme.
The Country Fire Authority is preparing for Victoria’s bushfire
season to extend to as late as May, and food prices are expected to
rise as the drought continues to bite.
Such dire forecasts might sound too tough to bear. But as Darwin
might have said, it is better to adapt than to be passed over.
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Tags: ash, bet, cats, creatures, dog owners, dogs, dogs and cats, extinction, holls, hot day, lear, loc, malamute, Pet, rspca, spca, vet, veterinarian
