Thursday, January 27, 2011
You've seen blond labs, black labs.... but now meet a red lab.
At the animal shelter , every dog and cat has a story to tell, perhaps the strays most of all. Sometimes it's an open book -- neglect, benign or otherwise. You meet many a diamond in the rough, or one who has had it rough. Big and little guys and girls who need a gentle but firm hand to guide them back or into civilization. But sometimes the only story is a mystery. Meet Big Red, or Gentle Ben, or Ferdinand the Bull. Of good size and proportions, you can wrap your arms around this fellow and feel the beat of a faithful heart. A lab mix with a noble head; polite, intelligent, true. He looks and acts like the canine hero in a children’s book. Someone loved this dog, probably loved him all his life. When offered a bone, Big Red will …
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Cats and poetry go together
When William Blake wrote: Tiger, tiger burning bright/In the forests of the night, ” and Andrew Lloyd Weber set TS Eliot to music (“Memory/all alone in the moonlight”), they had my family in mind. Carl Sandburg, who knew his way around a metaphor, crossed out “fog creeps in on huge dog paws, slobbering, ” the moment my great grandmother leapt on to his lap. If genius is 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration, well, we cats don't sweat; it's not in our physiology. We're on the sweet side of the equation. We're the meows. I mean mews. No, I mean muse. (Sorry, I had my tongue). Not to brag, but we’ve given rise to many a famous line in literature. We cats are "cool," "fat," and "fraidy." We drag things in. When we’re away, the mouse will…
Sunday, January 9, 2011
In the days before the Spanish, some of the town's best hiking spots were river-side villages and trading posts.
Who lived in Altadena before us? I don't mean who previously owned your house, or what past resident won the Nobel Prize or even who built the Cobb Estate. I mean who lived in Altadena before it was Altadena? Early humans arrived along the California coast around 10,000 years ago, which, not coincidentally, was the same time the previous locals (mastodons, giant jaguars and saber tooth tigers--think La Brea Tar Pits), went extinct. The first evidence of humans in the San Gabriel Mountains goes back 8,000 years. Those people had been replaced by new groups more than once by 1769 when the Spanish explorer Gaspar de Portolá met the Gabrielinos. Also known as the Tongva, Gabrielinos had migrated from the Oregon/Utah Great Basin and by 500 A.D…
34.19404
-118.16794
Ventura St & Windsor Ave, Altadena, CA
/articles/the-early-villages-of-altadena
/locations/2984752
Thursday, January 6, 2011
This Altadena dog races … all the way to the couch.
I have much in common with my neighbors Julius Hudson and Kay Smith. They like good music , I like good music. Smith's dogs, who Hudson walks and sometimes cares for, are rescues, and my dogs are rescues. Hudson has run in every LA marathon for the past 24 years, I've thought about running in every LA Marathon for the past 24 years. Uncanny, isn't it? Well, enough about the bi-peds. You may think pit bulls, in terms of unhealthy human obsessions and uncertain futures, have pulled the unluckiest card from the canine deck. Statistically, greyhounds can trump them. More greyhounds are "put down" (ah, such a euphemism) every year than any other breed. Although once considered the aristocrats of dogs -- companions of Pharohs and British …
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Residents and Sheriff's deputies are still on the lookout for illegal bow hunters, especially after an arrow was found near Rubio Canyon, a poker tournament to benefit public education is coming up, and more. Read on.
1) A week after a man and two boys were spotted just west of Chaney Trail with bow hunting gear and just a few days after Joe "Rambro" Clay was seen in the same area with bow hunting gear, local activist Lori Paul found an arrow on private land near the Altadena Crest Trail east of Rubio Canyon. The man and two boys, who said they did not know they were not supposed to be there with that equipment, were asked to leave the area by Altadena Sheriff's deputies and complied. Residents and deputies are still looking for Clay, who many believe illegally hunts wildlife out of season, including bears, too close to public recreational and residential areas. 2) The Pasadena Educational Network is hosting its first ever Texas Hold 'Em Poker …
Thursday, December 30, 2010
The LA County Assessor announced potential tax relief for property owners who suffered storm damage, the Coffee Gallery is holding its 3rd Annual New Year's Eve party, and more.
1) LA County Tax Assessor John R. Noguez announced yesterday that property owners who may have been affected by the recent storms should contact his office as soon as possible for information about potential tax relief if rain, mud or related damage amounts to $10,000 or more. Contact the Assessor's office at (213) 974-8658 for more information. 2) On Christmas morning Sheriff's deputies were dispatched to an area just west of Chaney Trail, where a male and two boys were spotted with bow hunting gear. According to the Altadena Sheriff's Department, the male told the deputies that he was unaware that he was not supposed to be in that area with hunting equipment. He and the boys complied with the deputies' request for them to leave the area…
There are plenty of options available at the Pasadena Humane Society and they like to cuddle.
It's your own fault, you know. Even with your immense charm (don't blush, we've all heard the stories), you simply can't wait until the day before New Year's Eve and expect to get a date. Yes, many drummed their fingers, expecting your call, but everyone has their limits. So I ventured out in the rain today, just for you; just to find someone warm and sweet for you to cuddle with on the couch and toast in 2011. Don't thank me; that's why I'm paid the big bucks. You like soft brown hair, big brown eyes? Check. And guess what? This boxer/bulldog cross is a football fanatic. Plus, she thinks you're cute. We went over her calendar, and she's free on the 30st. And the 31th and the first day of the new year. I wouldn't wait much longer …
Thursday, December 23, 2010
An influx of 250 cats from a Pasadena cat hoarder makes any cat at the shelter a good pet of the week to adopt.
When an individual is found to be hoarding pets on a massive scale, it makes for spectacular headlines. Last week, the Pasadena Humane Society rescued 250 cats from a 600- square foot facility on Altadena Drive near Colorado Boulevard. The story made national and international news for a day or two. But when the dust of sensationalism cleared, all that really remained was a story of sadness and misery. Though the cats are now in protective custody at the Pasadena Humane Society, this story might well continue for a year or more, through the court system, as PHS must battle the individual in question for custody. To understand the magnitude of what was found, consider the fact that the Raymond Street shelter already had 150 cats, which …
34.1461
-118.09864
S Altadena Dr & E Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA
/articles/dangerous-habits
/locations/2839559
Thursday, December 16, 2010
You can tell the pet for you just by meeting them face-to-face.
The gentlest dog I ever met was a pit bull named Buster. The most ornery dog I ever knew was a five-pound yorkie named Sweetie. Buster and Sweetie, I had their number and they had mine. Dogs wear their heart on their sleeve. Good heart, rogue heart, it doesn't take long to know what you've got. The former would rescue a litter of castaway kittens. The latter would steal a roast from the table and then, just when the wrath of the family was about to descend, collapse on floor and point a paw to his heart. Some of us happen to have a thing for rascals. This goes for cats, too. True character will come out, and you won't be blindsided. That's why it's easy to walk down the aisle at Pasadena Humane Society, or any pet rescue place, and …
Thursday, December 9, 2010
It's a sad thing to see, Christmas gift dogs returned after the holidays. Let's try to make it a Merry Christmas for the pets available at our local shelters!
When volunteering at a local shelter -- a shelter that specialized in one particular breed -- I discovered the holiday season wasn't always like a PetCo commercial. Not for all too many pets, anyway. This shelter dreaded January, because we could expect a whole lot of new clients – the Christmas Dogs. Dogs purchased in bad faith, to serve as nothing but super cute and seasonal window dressing, to be disposed of once the tree hit the curb and the lights came off the house. I was going to get all preachy, but this is certainly not the place. Anyone who reads a pet rescue column is already in the Amen corner, and feels at least as sad and disgusted as I that others can treat living, loving, sentient beings with such cruel and careless …
Susan Campisi
5:32 pm on Friday, February 11, 2011
I visited PHS today. Unfortunately Big Red is still there, looking forlorn in his cage, waiting for someone to take him home. He perked up when I pet him and when I started to walk away he placed his paw through the cage. He's such a sweetheart. I wish I knew someone who could take this guy in. Anybody? He would be such a mellow, loyal companion. more ›