Dogs and snow, they go together like marshmallows and hot chocolate. Whenever the fluffy white stuff hits our riverside yard, my border collie’s nose goes to ground and she merrily snuffles her way through the virgin frost. Twirley Jane is in her mid-teens and getting quite stiff. But whenever there is snow, she still tries to grab her tail and do the spinning dance [...]
When it comes to sad animal sagas, I am a wimp. I watch Animal Planet with my heart in my throat. I shriek with dismay when Discovery Channel nature films invariably depict images of some bloody end to a chase scene. I whimper when murder and mayhem occurs in a normally peaceful clan of critters just as I am lulled into an ”Aww… How sweet.” [...]
When it comes to reclaiming my pets, I’m a safety gal. Collars with woven information AND tags are great. Microchipping is even better for our four-legged friends. When these subcutaneous identifiers first came out, I admit I was a bit leery. It seemed good in theory. But what about infections, cancer or migration? And how many [...]
Here’s one for the bird nerds – which would include me. In fact, I am a certified member of a group of beloved bird nerds. We met 10 years ago – when I got my first parrot – at an online pets forum. Eager to learn everything I could, I discovered this worldwide band of true parrotheads. Several of us hit it off to the degree [...]
A faithful blog reader from Los Osos, Calif., sent me this happy ending story about a woman who had to leave her African Grey behind as floodwaters rose and began filling her house. Poor lady! Poor Mo Jo! This saga hit really close to home for me. In December 2005, the Rogue River rose from its banks and rising waters began flooding [...]
I don’t know about you, but I am definitely climate controlled. If it’s rainy, my hair goes curly. If it’s dry, it’s straight. And when the morning sun doesn’t light up my bedroom, my bod says it’s still snoozin’ time. My venerable pooch, Twirley Jane, doesn’t have the same hair issues. But she agrees with my “No shine? No [...]
How is everyone doing with this wacky weather? How are your critters? Staying safe and warm? No damage here from these freaky storms. But the wind gave us a good blow. And I was up for hours – in the wee hours – with hysterical parrots. My wind chimes, bird feeders and other assorted gewgaws weren’t just [...]
I confess to being rather dog-park ignorant. Living in the country with an aged border collie and loads of room to roam, I just haven’t felt the need to take her to a canine-only park for our fun. However, I know some folks are big fans of these doggie playgrounds. My niece swears the dog park is a lifesaver when it comes to exercising the year-old pup, MIss B, she adopted [...]
