Man's best friend might be his dog but it might not bring domestic peace

Man’s best friend is his dog – but not necessarily. The average dog is now believed to cause nearly 2,000 domestic disputes and arguments in its lifetime.

A study by an insurance company in the United Kingdom maintains that the average pet dog, during a life expectancy of 12.8 years, can cause 1,997 domestic arguments – which equates to three arguments a week and 156 quarrels every year, reports the Sun-Herald.

Arguments range from disagreements over who should take the dog for a walk, feeding them too many treats, and what to do with them during holidays. The study revealed that 25% of dog owners regularly argue about where the dog is allowed to wander about the house – such as on beds and sofas. About 20% of dog owners argue whose turn it is to clean up the dog’s mess and 10% disagree over who should clean the stains on the carpet, caused by the dog.

Disciplining the dog also causes arguments – 18% of couples argue and separate because one is accused of being too harsh on the dog. About 15% of couples argue about who should train the dog, while 10% of people get annoyed if the dog is “humanized.” Other arguments include who should buy the dog in the first place, what type of dog they should have, and how much they should buy it for – as well as the amount spent on the dog during its lifetime. The damage caused by dogs (such as broken children’s toys and chewed footwear) also causes domestic arguments.

Due to the dog argument, about 17% of households say that the disputes were so bad that one member of the family slept in the spare room (and it wasn’t the dog!).

Comments

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...

Apes go to the movies - and remember the scenes

Apes remember major events in movies, even after a single viewing. That’s the findings of primate research in Japan (New Scientist, September 17, 2015). Researchers at the Kyoto University in Japan conducted experiments with two species of apes – chimpanzees and bonobo primates – to test their memory and recall. Instead of using food to test memory, they used films. The researchers made two short movies to show to the apes. Fumihiro Kano and his colleague, Satoshi Hirata, starred in the films with another person dressed as an ape. They wanted to have strong dramatic scenes to see if the apes remembered them. In the first 30-second movie the character ape bursts through a door on the right hand side (there is also a door on the left hand side) and attacks the two researchers (characters) 18 seconds after the start. After 24 seconds a human character choses one of two weapons next to each other and launched a revenge attack on the ape. In the second 30-second movie t...

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog