Puppy invades Promet Office

Can dogs in the office decrease on increase productivity? The argument for productivity decrease is that one can spend a lot of time playing with the dog instead of working. On the other hand, playing with the dog for a second can be relaxing and just the stress relieve you may need to get back to work and be more productive. The jury is still out...

Meanwhile here is Julia Knippen with the Promet mascot.

Ciência

Estudo mostra que peixes primitivos possuíam aparato genético responsável por desenvolver os membros nos vertebrados terrestres.

Das barbatanas às mãos...

O Peixe-espátula, espécie do Mississippi considerada um fóssil vivo, já tinha os genes que controlam formação dos membros nos vertebrados terrestres.
Os membros dos vertebrados terrestres podem não ser uma novidade evolutiva como se costuma pensar. Pesquisadores da Universidade de Chicago (EUA) descobriram que o aparato genético responsável pelo desenvolvimento das barbatanas numa espécie primitiva de peixe, o Polyodon spathula, típica do rio Mississipi, é praticamente o mesmo que controla a formação, por exemplo, das mãos e dos pés do homem. Os biólogos Marcus Davis, Randall Dahn e Neil Shubin chegaram a essa conclusão depois de terem estudado a expressão dos chamados genes Hox, responsáveis pela organização e pela “arquitetura” do corpo e dos membros dos animais, no peixe-espátula, como é popularmente conhecida a espécie encontrada no rio dos Estados Unidos. De acordo com o artigo, a impressão predominante de que os membros dos vertebrados terrestres são únicos pode ter sido causada pela tendência de comparar esses animais com peixes mais modernos, como o paulistinha (Danio rerio), muito usado como modelo em estudos embriológicos. Por ter uma origem mais recente, a linhagem do paulistinha provavelmente perdeu o “kit genético” que controla as formação dos membros. Considerado um fóssil vivo, o Polyodon spathula é um dos poucos remanescentes de um grupo de peixes que habitavam os oceanos há mais de 250 milhões de anos.

© Revista Pesquisa Fapesp On line

© Publicação - Revista Nature de 24/05/2007 (Vol. 447, N°. 7143)

Puppy in the Office

I'm still not very convinced that the office is a good place for a dog. Well, from a dogs point of view, its probably a GREAT place; lots of people, good space, there is someone always around to play with. From a professional point of view I think the jury is still out.

A puppy in the office can be a total disaster. Take a look at this one trying to chew through our network cables!

And then trying to look totally innocent, what a scam!

Commuting with a Puppy - Dogs on Bikes, Motorcycles and Human Carirers

I commute every day about 3 miles to and from the office. Working in a dog friendly office allows me to take the puppy to work. I either drive to work, bicycle or take my motorcycle. My preferred way of commuting is using my bicycle. Outside of putting the puppy in my front seat when I take the car, commuting with a dog on two wheels isn't exactly easy.

Which got me thinking about 'Puppy safety' yesterday as I was rolling along as the puppy in my backpack tried to jump climb out and carelessly jump into the street. I doubt there are any laws which dictate safety measures for transporting animals.

It would seem that taking the car is the safest option. However when transporting a dog in the car, what is the proper etiquette? When driving with a puppy is it better to put them in a cage, in your lap or on the passenger seat? I don't think it really matters. Although the Canine Care Safety page recommends a cage, I think a dog being a canon ball when you hit a stop at 30mph inside or outside a cage wont matter for the dog.

If you make a sudden emergency stop, or are involved in a crash at just 30mph, a dog who is not restrained in the back seat can turn into a potentially lethal missile, warns the AA...

I think either way, the dog is more endangered than the driver.

Motorcycle and Bicycle with a puppy

I think for the dog these must be the safest options. Here is my rationale. If involved in a car accident, the dog will most likely be injured because it will become a projectile and will hit a hard stop breaking bones. In case of a bicycle or motorcycle accident, the puppy will fly as well, but will have a much easier landing. I think the biggest danger in that case is for the dog to be run over by traffic.

Which brings me to my current problem. Transporting the dog on a bicycle right now is problamatic for me as I don't yet have a bicycle dog basket. I tried putting the dog in my backpack but he has figured out how to unzip and try to jump out. My wife provided me with a dog carrier which I use right now, clipping the dog in to his dog collar. I guess for ultimate puppy safety I need to get a vest harness for the puppy, a human front carrier, and clip the dog to the human front carrier.

So far, the dog seems to enjoy the motorcycle rides.

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More Puppy Pictures

Yesterday we learned that this breed is also known as Teddy Bear dog breed. Judge yourself, here is Monkey on playing on the grass.

Here is a picture of the Shichon puppy dog