bangordailynews.com/browse/special-sections/ | Saturday, May 4, 2013 | Perspective: Health
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Taking a bite out Maine air is cleaner! of dog bites Unhealthy levels still occur BY DEBRA BELL, BDN MAINE SPECIAL SECTIONS WRITER
BY JACKIE FARWELL, BDN MAINE STAFF
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hen man’s best friend bites, stop, evaluate the situation, and respond calmly. The Centers for Disease Control reports that each year in the United States, 4.7 million people will be bit by dogs. In 2011, the CDC reported that children between ages of 5 and 14 represented 78,000 reportable dog bites that end up at a doctor’s office or ER. And by the time they are 12, more than 50 percent of children will have been bitten by a dog.
And snapping or biting aren’t the first clues a dog gives that it’s feeling uncomfortable, intimidated, or unhappy. Even more, growling is not a punishable offense: It’s a warning. “There are four victims in a dog bite,” Hanson said. “The person who was bit, their family, their extended family, and the dog itself. Most dogs go out of their way not to bite, and they give lots of signals. However, it’s usually the dog that is singled out and pays serious consequences with its life.” If there is a dog bite, it’s important to debrief from the incident, Hanson said. “We have look at what else was going on when the bite happened,” he said. Green Acres Kennel Shop, 1653 Union St. in Bangor, will offer “Be a Tree” programs on Saturday, May 18 at 2 p.m. and again on Sunday, May 19 at 1 p.m. The seminars are aimed at children ages 5-9, their parents, and caregivers and will discuss when a dog is safe to approach and how to avoid dog bites.
aine's air is cleaner than in years past, but too many of the state's residents are breathing in pollution that contributes to a host of serious health problems, according to a new report. In the American Lung Association's 14th annual "State of the Air" report, released on April 24, none of Maine's counties received a failing grade for air pollution, but some areas recorded spikes in unhealthy air-quality days. The report, covering 2009-2011, examined the two most widespread types of air pollution: ozone, the main ingredient in smog, and air-particle pollution, based on readings from official monitoring sites across the country. Ozone, a gas that occurs naturally in the atmosphere in small amounts, is fueled by emissions from cars and trucks, smokestacks, coal-fired power plants and chemicals such as paint fumes. Particle pollution consists of tiny specks of pollutants, from a wide range of sources including power plants, tailpipes and
fumes that can trigger an asthma attack. "If I'm traveling on the highway, I absolutely have to close the car up completely, because of the big trucks and the fumes they put off," Colman said. Particle pollution, sometimes called soot, can lodge deep in lung tissue and even pass into the bloodstream, according to Jeff Seyler, president and CEO of the American Lung Association of the Northeast. Spikes in the pollution can contribute to heart attacks and stroke, while exposure over months and years contributes to cancer, he said. Particle pollution is especially dangerous to infants, children, seniors, people with lung or heart disease, and those who work or exercise regularly outdoors, Seyler said. While those groups are particularly vulnerable, air pollution does not necessarily cause such health conditions. Ozone is a powerful respiratory irritant, and new evidence warns that it can harm the cardiovascular, central nervous and
BE PART oF THE SoLUTIoN: KNoW HoW To PREvENT A BITE How do you stay safe around dogs? The roles of a responsible pet owner and dog-smart parents are to teach children some basic safety tips. • Do not approach unfamiliar dogs. Photo courtesy Debra Bell
Lizzie is clearly feeling uncomfortable, worried, and stiff. While she might not bite at this moment, she is asking the photographer to back off and give her some space.
• Do not surprise a dog by petting it. • Allow them to sniff you first. • If you’re approached by an unfamiliar dog, remain motionless like a tree.
And it’s not stranger-dog danger that people need to be aware of. Most dog bites are from a dog the person knows. It could be a family dog, a neighbor’s dog, or a friend’s dog. And the fact is that any dog from a chihuahua to a Great Dane can bite. But the best prevention is good preparation. According to Green Acres Kennel Shop owner Don Hanson, one reason that people are bit is due to not understanding dog body language.
• Do not look into the dog’s eyes. • Ask permission before petting a dog. • Do not run or scream away from the dog. • If the dog knocks you over, become a ball and stay still like a log. • Do not play with a dog unless it’s supervised by an adult. Report strays or an unusual acting dog immediately to an adult • Do not disturb a dog while they are sleeping, eating, or tending to puppies. • Immediately report a dog bite to an adult. • What can parents or guardians do to keep their children safe? • Children should never be left alone around dogs, Green
BDN File Photo by Kevin Bennett
Bryan Wentzell, conservation advocacy manager for the Appalachian Mountain Club, fills out a visibility data sheet while on the North Ridge trial on Cadillac Mountain in April 2004. Wentzell was checking ozone levels using a small card indicator and was among a small group hiking the trail to raise awareness of poor air quality in Acadia National Park and all of Maine.
Acres Kennel Shop owner Don Hanson said. Parents and guardians must maintain supervision at all times when a child and dog are interacting to keep both canine and child safe. The non-profit Doggone Safe, doggonesafe.com, offers these tips for parents and guardians. 1. Teach your child not to hug or kiss a dog on the face. A safer place is to scratch the dog on the chest or the side of the neck. 2. Be a tree if a strange dog approaches. The more boring Photo courtesy Don Hanson
Lizzie is having a great time playing the field. Her eyes are softer and almond shaped and she has a relaxed and open mouth that seems to be smiling.
you are, the faster the dog will lose interest. 3. Do not tease the dog or invade its space. 4. Actively supervise children while they’re around the dog. 5. Invest in growing a relationship with the dog through
“Kids don’t inherently know the signs for when a dog is feeling uncomfortable,” Hanson said. “Dogs communicate tons. It can be with their eyes, their ears, or there might be growling. If the dog is growling, most people recognize that this is something to pay attention to.” Dogs use their bodies, from eyes to tails, to communicate how they’re feeling. The way a dog’s mouth appears, how their eyes look, how their tail is being held, and their stance all give important clues.
training. Involve all family members in training classes. Choose positive-reinforcement obedience classes and do not pin, shake, choke, roll the dog, or hold the dog down. He may redirect any anxiety onto a weaker family member. 6. Make children a positive fact of life. Training can help in this. Condition your dog that good things come from children. 7. Spay or neuter your dog. An altered pet will be calmer, healthier, and also controls the pet population. 8. Take your dog into the world. Expose the dog to lots of new positive experiences.
Photo courtesy DoggoneSafe.com
The best thing to do if you think you might be bit by a dog is to “be a tree.” That means that you should stop. Pull in your limbs and look down. Dog experts all recommend not running or screaming from the dog that might bite.
burning wood, that are suspended in the air. Maine has made progress on ozone levels, with Androscoggin County, for example, improving its grade from a B in the last report to an A, said Ed Miller, an Augustabased spokesman for the American Lung Association of the Northeast. Four counties -- Androscoggin, Aroostook, Oxford and Sagadahoc -- made the list of cleanest counties for ozone pollution, receiving A grades and reporting no days with unhealthy levels, he noted. At the same time, York and Hancock counties earned D grades for ozone, Miller said. On particle pollution, Maine saw no grade changes from last year. Bangor was one of 16 cities nationally considered the cleanest for particle pollution, which was measured by both daily spikes and annual levels. Hancock County tied for 10th on the list of the top 25 cleanest counties in the country for annual particle pollution. But Aroostook and Oxford counties each reported a "red" day, which indicates that concentrations of particle pollutants over a 24-hour period exceeded national limits for healthy air. That's new for Maine -- last year no county in Maine recorded a red day, Miller said. "Why is this troubling? Because while an orange day means the air is unhealthy for sensitive groups, a red day means the air is unhealthy for all of us," he said. The "disturbing trend" of such short-term spikes in particle pollution also was seen nationally. "We want to see residents in every county in Maine breathing in healthy air so parents don't have to worry that poor air quality might cause their child to have an asthma attack, and people who suffer from lung diseases or are otherwise at heightened risk of being adversely affected by air pollution don't feel like they need to stay inside," Miller said. For Deborah Colman, 60, of Hermon, air pollution has triggered breathing problems and even hospital stays. Colman, a retired nurse who suffers from emphysema and bronchitis, said she avoids venturing outside on high ozone days and always makes sure to roll up her car windows to steer clear of diesel
reproductive systems, as well as increase the risk of lower birth weight in newborns, he said. "When ozone levels are unacceptably high, it harms human health and threatens lives," Seyler said. "Breathing in ozone pollution is often compared to a sunburn on the lungs or having sandpaper rubbed against your lungs, but it's far more harmful than that sounds." More broadly, the Clean Air Act and stronger pollution standards have put a major dent in air quality problems across the U.S., the report found. The country's air has gotten cleaner even as the population, the economy, energy use, and miles driven have increased greatly, the report said. The authors also credited reductions in emissions from coal-fired power plants and the transition to cleaner diesel fuels and engines. Still, nearly 132 million people in the U.S., or 42 percent of the population, live in counties with air that's unhealthy too often, the report found. The Lung Association urged the EPA to issue final regulations for cleaner gasoline and car emissions, defend the Clean Air Act against industry polluters and continue working to clean up coal-fired power plants, the source of much of the pollution drifting into Maine from the Midwest. The group also called for beefing up airquality monitoring programs. The report collected data from only about 900 counties, less than a third of all counties nationally. In Maine, four counties have no monitors for ozone or fine particles (Franklin, Lincoln, Somerset and Waldo), while five monitor for only one of the two pollutants, Miller said. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection places the monitoring devices, which can cost around $10,000 and up, in areas of high priority, based on "our best technical and scientific judgement," said Andrew Johnson, who oversees air monitoring data for the department. Given the cost and Maine's vast geography, DEP picks sites where pollution problems are anticipated to affect both people and the environment, based on historical data and activities such as traffic that contribute to pollution, he said. To view the State of the Air report, visit stateoftheair.org.