Deaf puppy learns sign language

Being a border collie, Pixie is blessed with natural smarts - all the better to help the eight-week-old pup learn sign language.
Adorable as she is, Pixie is also deaf, which is why a Coffs Harbour specialist is teaching her to recognize hand commands.
So far, Liz Grewal has taught Pixie to sit, drop and come forth.
An owner of deaf dogs for six years, she's now instructing Pixie in the all-important art of doing her doggy business outdoors.
"Dogs understand your body language, your hand gestures, they read all of that. They know,'' Mrs. Grewal said.
"Consistency is the key to training any dog but you have to emphasize it more with a deaf dog. You've to train them in a different way, they train quicker than a hearing dog as there are no noise distractions.''
Mrs. Grewal gets the attention of her four deaf dogs by squirting them with a little water bottle.
She said deafness is common among canines: ``I want these dogs to have a fantastic life, and I know they can do it.''
While Pixie's breeding gives her a distinct learning advantage, new Canadian research suggests some dogs are as smart as a two-year-old human.
Professor Stanley Coren from the University of British Columbia found the average dog can understand about 165 words, signs and signals, while the cleverest dogs could grasp as many as 250 words and signals.
The research also revealed smart canines are capable of basic maths, counting up to four or five and noticing errors in simple arithmetic, Professor Coren said dogs can tell that one plus one should equal two and not one or three.
Border collies are the smartest, while the thickest breeds include basset-hounds and the bulldog.
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The Rabbi's Shofar and the Dog Side Kick

As the Jewish High Holidays approach (Rosh Hashana begins the evening of Sept. 18), here's a short YouTube clip of Rabbi Benny Zippel of Salt Lake City. He's demonstrating the shofar, a ram's horn used during services to sound a call to worship.
All goes well with the demonstration for about 25 seconds. Then the rabbi gets some unexpected accompaniment.
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Happy dog

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Man Inflates Balloons from his Ears

Moradabad resident Khem Karan Koli doesn't blow up balloons the traditional way.
[Khem Karan Koli, Children’s Entertainer]:
"Once I was sitting with small children and blowing balloons for them with my mouth and nose. My wife asked me if I could blow balloons from my ears. I thought of giving it a shot. Since then I have been blowing balloons with my ears."

He normally uses a small sketch pen with no refill and opened at both ends.

Koli ties a balloon on one end of the sketch pen tube and inflates it from the other end.

He blocks his nose and mouth and pumps up the balloon through his ears with the support of the empty sketch pen.

"Normally, I blow balloons with my ears only. The kids like it very much. They clap and cheer me on when I perform this feat. This encourages me to blow more balloons. It's my wife who first inspired me to do this."

Small children are intrigued by Koli’s unusually feat and they encourage him to blow up more balloons for them.
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Electronic Noise Makers

Raindrops
Click on the raindrops in any sequence to establish a tune.

There's a metronome button (green button) to help.

The tune you create will play on a loop.

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ToneMatrix
Click on the squares in any order, it will repeat it over and over until you click off a square.

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Left - Right

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Goat Tower

Click to Enlarge

The Goat Tower

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Drinking and Showering

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Patient Cat

Woman’s new kitten Norman tries his best to annoy her cat Thirteen.

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Rescuing baby ducks from a pool

On a rainy day, a mama duck and her ducklings took refuge in the heated baby pool in our neighborhood. Trouble is, they got stuck and needed to be rescued.

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