World Spay Day. Run for the Wild. Abandoned Kittens. Omega-3 Fats Essential. Povidone Iodine. Ditched! Jade and Pistol Graduate. Bison Homecoming, Then Fire! Miami Drive-in.

 

For “Mammal Monday”:

World Spay Day

“World Spay Day is February 26, 2013. On that day, and throughout February, Spay/Neuter Awareness Month, organizations and individuals worldwide will promote spay/neuter as a way to save lives.

Join us! There are countless ways to get involved – from hosting a spay/neuter event, leafleting in your community, passing a resolution or having your own pet spayed or neutered.

Don’t wait - visit the “Participate” tab above to get started! And check out the photos below to view events from around the world.”  More at: https://spaydayportal.humanesociety.org/ 

“Why spaying and neutering your pets will reduce the number of strays, feral cats, and street dogs who face dying in shelters or on the street.”  More at: http://www.humanesociety.org/issues/spay_day/

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Registration is Open

“Now in its fifth year, our annual WCS Run for the Wild is set for Saturday, April 27. Sign up now to guarantee your place at the starting line and get a jump on raising funds for elephants. As always, your registration includes:
• Free all-day access to the Bronx Zoo for all participants
• Staggered starts for runners and walkers/ families
• Free t-shirt for participating children
• A host of great prizes for fundraisers of all levels, and more!”  Register Now

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Abandoned Kittens Rescued and Adopted by Once Homeless Dog

“A litter of kittens were rescued by a once homeless dog who found them inside a box atop a trash heap,  “He gently tore the box apart, and then carried the kittens—one by one—back to his human’s home,” reported Pawnation.

Little abandoned kittens rescued by a once homeless dog, Banzé.

The dog named Banzé (or “Scamp”) is also a rescue from the streets. “So when he heard the plaintive mews of an abandoned litter of kittens, he didn’t hesitate to save them, as he had once been saved.  He brought them home one by one from the trash heap and started caring for them.”  Pictures and more at: http://lovemeow.com/2012/11/abandoned-kittens-rescued-and-adopted-by-once-homeless-dog/

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Fail to Give this Fat to Your Pets and You are Asking for Trouble

“Contrary to popular belief, not all dietary fats cause obesity in your pet. Just as in humans, the “good” fats (omega-3 fats) enhance energy production in your dog or cat, so they actually create less fat.

Because most pets consume an abundance of high carbohydrate, empty calorie dry foods (kibble), the pet obesity issue is quickly rivaling the human obesity epidemic.

Your dog or cat has a fundamental dietary requirement for certain fatty acids that it cannot produce on its own. These fats can only come from the food you feed your pet, thus the term essential.  Omega-3 fats have tremendous potential to positively impact your pet’s health.

Omega-3’s encourage the production of prostaglandins and leukotrienes, compounds that help regulate inflammation, immune system response and blood clotting activity in your dog or cat.

They help to reduce the inflammation associated with arthritis (including rheumatoid arthritis) and conditions of the bowel such as ulcerative colitis and inflammatory bowel disease.

Research indicates omega-3 fats may also prevent pet heart problems like arrhythmia and high blood pressure, as well as decrease triglyceride and blood cholesterol levels.

Omega-3 fats are also being researched for their potential to slow the development and spread of certain cancers in pets, as well as for their ability to prevent or alleviate auto-immune disorders, allergies, and some skin conditions.”  More at: http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2009/06/13/the-frequently-missing-ingredient-in-your-pet-s-diet-that-could-devastate-their-health.aspx

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This Simple Home Remedy Cures Most Canine Skin Issues - No Drugs Needed...

“Your dog's skin abrasions, cuts, hot spots and minor infections can be safely and easily treated at home.   The two keys to treating skin infections: keep the area clean and disinfect twice a day with a diluted povidone iodine solution.

Keeping on top of your dog's skin infections will help them heal quickly and prevent the need for antibiotics.”  More at:  http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2011/10/04/treating-your-pets-skin-infection.aspx

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Ditched!

“The Shelter Pet Project is a public service ad campaign focused on spreading the word that pets in shelters are wonderful and lovable, and encouraging potential adopters to consider the shelter as the first place to find a new best friend. Visit http://theshelterpetproject.org  to search for available shelter pets in your area and learn more about shelter pet adoption.”

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Jade and Pistol Graduate.

“Jade’s former service dog Katie developed bone cancer and had to be put to sleep in November of 2011, right around the time Jade was due to graduate from college. Jade had hoped to walk across the graduation stage with Katie, without whom it would be nearly impossible to stand.

A week after putting Katie to sleep, Jade said that life without a Dane was not an option, and appeared at the Service Dog Project’s farm with her mother. They were both determined to find another match for Jade. SDP accepted the challenge - Jade had only a week before flying back to college for graduation, and she hoped to walk across the stage with her new dog in front of 3000 people.

The only dog that was anywhere near trained enough at SDP was a breeding female house dog named Pistol. SDP put Pistol through the ADI public access test immediately with no problem, and Jade and Pistol bonded right away. Here is Jade’s account of her college graduation with Pistol:

“Pistol could not have done better at graduation! We made it up and down the stage slowly but surely without any issue. There were over 3000 people there and everyone there cheered for us. The announcer even announced her name with mine as we walked across the stage. On the way out we went down a long hall lined with 100 faculty members cheering and ringing cowbells. She was again unfazed - that may have been the most impressive part.” From: http://dogblessyou.explore.org/post/32818225716/jades-former-service-dog-katie-developed-bone#notes

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Bison Homecoming

A long effort by American Indians and conservationists brings genetically pure bison to the Fort Peck Reservation in Montana

“THE BISON ARRIVED AFTER DARK on this blustery late-winter night at the Fort Peck Reservation in northeastern Montana, a road-weary herd of stubborn survivors and promising pioneers.

With the clang of a gate and the rumble of hooves on prairie grassland, 61 genetically pure Bison bison completed a long-awaited return to the Sioux and Assiniboine tribes. By the light of a semi-circle of motor-vehicle headlights, a welcoming committee of Fort Peck tribal officials and members watched with wonder as the massive bison thundered from cattle trailers towed by pickup trucks. Robert Magnan, Fish and Game Department director for the Fort Peck tribes, coaxed a few reluctant bulls into the large holding facility bordered by 8-foot-high, bison-proof fences. “Go on,” he told the bison wavering in the back of a trailer. “You’re home.””  More at: http://www.nwf.org/News-and-Magazines/National-Wildlife/Animals/Archives/2012/Bison-Homecoming.aspx

THEN….

Devastating Fire at Fort Peck Leaves 10 Bison Dead

“Nearly all of that rolling grassland burned in a tragic fire last week, leaving 10 dead bison in its wake.”

 

 

 

The new herd of Yellowstone bison at Fort Peck began with the arrival of 61 bison in March and the birth of 21 calves this spring. In July, all 82 bison were released from a temporary enclosure into a 2,100-acre pasture. Fort Peck has plans to open an additional 5,000 acres for the bison this fall where the herd could eventually grow into the hundreds. About half of the bison will be given to the Fort Belknap reservation once fencing is completed there.   More at: http://www.defendersblog.org/2012/09/devastating-fire-at-fort-peck-leaves-10-bison-dead/

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On This Day:

Miami drive-in debuts, Feb 25, 1938:

“American drive-in movie theaters experienced their golden era during the 1950s, but some Floridians were watching movies under the stars in their cars even before then: The city of Miami gets its first drive-in on this day in 1938. The Miami drive-in charged admission of 35 cents per person, which was more than the average ticket price at an indoor theater, and soon had to trim the price to 25 cents per person.

America's first-ever drive-in opened near Camden, New Jersey, on June 6, 1933, and was the brainchild of Richard Hollingshead, whose family owned an auto parts company. The inaugural feature was a 1932 film called "Wives Beware," and admission was 25 cents per car and an additional 25 cents per person. The sound for the movies was provided by three large RCA speakers next to the main screen. (The quality of the drive-in experience improved during the 1940s with the advent of the in-car speaker.)

Following World War II, the popularity of drive-in theaters increased as America's car culture grew. By the early 1950s, there were more than 800 drive-ins across the United States. Although they earned a reputation as "passion pits" for young couples seeking privacy, most drive-in customers were families (parents didn't have to hire babysitters or get dressed up and their children could wear pajamas and sleep in the car) and often featured playgrounds, concession stands and other attractions. Some drive-ins were super-sized, including Detroit's Bel Air Drive-In, built in 1950, which had room for more than 2,000 cars, and Baltimore's Bengies Drive-In, which opened in 1956, and claimed the biggest movie screen in the U.S.: 52 feet high by 100 feet wide. Over the years, attempts were made to develop a daytime screen that would enable drive-ins to show movies before it got dark, but nothing proved successful.

At their peak in the late 1950s and early 1960s, there were some 4,000 drive-ins across America. However, during the 1970s and 1980s the drive-in industry went into decline and theaters shut down, due to such factors as rising real-estate values (which made selling the land for redevelopment more profitable than continuing to operate it as a drive-in) and the rise of other entertainment options, including video recorders, multiplex theaters and cable television. By 1990, there were around 1,000 U.S. drive-ins. Today, they number less than 400 (states with the most remaining drive-ins include Pennsylvania, Ohio and New York).

New Jersey has the distinction of being the home of not just the first drive-in but also the first fly-in theater. In June 1948, Ed Brown's Drive-In and Fly-In opened in Wall Township and had space for 500 cars and 25 planes.”

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Yesterday:

Because I hadn’t prepared yesterday’s blog, I was behind all day, having to write it in the morning.  Then Jay called, he wanted me to take Misty for her walk down there, so we could talk.  So we went down there about 9.30 AM.  Jay and I sat on his mother’s porch for a long time, talking about his drinking.  He realizes that it is ruining his life, and needs to quit, but just doesn’t know how.   Mind you, he was drinking beer while he was talking!!  He wanted to come up here to work for a while, as he was out of beer.  It would be two hours before he could buy any more, as it was Sunday.  He said that working would keep his mind off it!  The only days that he doesn’t start drinking in the mornings are the days that he knows he will be working here. 

While Jay was working, I did some laundry in my washing machine which is agitating very slowly these days.  But it spins very well, so I am hoping it is just a worn belt, and not the transmission.  Jay finished vacuuming the Puddle Jumper, washed it, and then vacuumed the van before it was time to drive him home.  He knows that I won’t take him around the corner to the store to get beer, so he sneaks through the woods on his ATV.  I guess he hasn’t had enough yet, even though he is sick and tired of being sick and tired!

Later in the afternoon he came by with his boss who had just bought a travel trailer.  His boss bought one of the RV stoves that I have for sale.  So something was accomplished yesterday.