EDITION OF MONDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2017 (PetPowellPress) Before we get to an alarming problem (relax, it’s mechanical, not animal), we’ll discuss that 4-eared cat with the Goth lipstick and the annual SPCA of Texas reminder to people that they must protect their animals from 
the unusual sights and sounds of Halloween.
I figured I’d go to the SPCA website and look for an appropriate Halloween cat and sure enough, there was 158259, known shelter-wide as Bacon and, clearly, the only 4-eared cat who’ll be trick-or-treating on Tuesday. He’s 4 months old, and small and it occurs to me there may have been another SPCA adoptable cat sitting behind him -- those feline tricksters!
But you never can be sure in this era of genetic experimentation. I’m kidding. I hope.
To get the tips on protecting animals from the ghosts and goblins and chills of the season, click on the SPCA link HERE. That's the SPCA news release artwork -- it's animated on the SPCA site.
MEANWHILE, OUT AT THE LAKE...
Sydney Busch of the Friends of the Animals at Cedar Creek Lake forwarded this tip from Jan Wadsworth who is trying to find a home or homes for these two ultra-cute kittens. They’re attached to each other, Jan says.
Clearly, they just need a human who’ll be enchanted by both of them.
To offer to help the kittens, email [email protected].
WAITING IN MESQUITE
Two of many dogs -- these photos sent to us by Judi Brown, the volunteer who is working to raise the visibility of adoptables and rescueables (that a word?) in the Mesquite Animal Shelter.
The 50-pound dog with the tan highlights is a year old Shepherd mix, Baby (36893797), who, Judi wrote, “was surrendered due to the owner’s change in lifestyle. Her previous owners stated that Baby 
was an inside/ outside dog. They said she likes car rides and walks. They also said she knows sit, no, and go to bed commands. They said she likes to cuddle. However, Baby is overwhelmed by her change in lifestyle and all the shelter noises. She kept her tail between her legs and would only approach tentatively for a treat. Sudden movements caused her to retreat.” [LARRY ASIDE: Well, goodness. All of that is curable with the love of a good human. Lifestyle change. Geez. Hope it was not harsh for the humans, too. These days, you never know.]
The other dog is 14-pound Louie (36906783)i, a young terrier mix who arrived as a stray on the 
24th. Like Baby, he also has trouble with the shelter environment. Judi says, “He is a work in progress as he needs a special person to spend time with him so he can relax and trust again. He let me hold him, but he wasn’t real sure how we felt about that. He responds to treats. He’s not used to a leash. He shares his kennel with another dog, and they seem to comfort one another.”
To ask about adopting or “tagging” either or both or any animal in the Mesquite shelter, get the number of the animal you want (it’s probably on the website) and included it when you contact the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
ALARMING REPORT:
SECURITY ISN'T ALWAYS A QUIET EXPERIENCE
For a good while now we’ve endured a malfunctioning security alarm screaming through the neighborhood at all hours. It comes from an office park across a busy street from our otherwise quiet neighborhood. For two nights last week, it began 
sounding around sunset and stopped about 8 a.m. when people arrive at work. No phone calls were answered; no emails were answered. If there were burglars, they sure had time to make an escape. It’s an unpleasant, disturbing situation. Try writing The Lesser American Novel with a burglar alarm going off hour after hour in a town where the police force is so busy and understaffed that they almost have to investigate property crimes by appointment.
So, last Wednesday night, about 1 a.m., well past my usual bedtime, I went to the couch and tried to drown out the screaming alarm by watching cable TV on my Kindle -- used earplugs, you know. (That’s Porche, who joined me on the couch -- she looks as if she might have been irritated.)
So, to keep from getting involved in an intellectual plot, rather than a mystery, I chose to watch Family Feud. As I watched, the question was “Name someone your sleeping dog might dream about biting.” The players got all but one of the answers and, inexplicably I moved and disengaged my ear plugs. When the show flipped over the remaining answer, I couldn’t hear the great Steve Harvey announce the 
answer and I did not have my glasses on and could not read the tiny type on the Kindle screen.
Then, with the alarm sounding through our otherwise quiet home, I spent 20 or 30 minutes Googling for the Family Feud answer. No dice. And the alarm didn’t stop sounding until around 8 a.m. -- by then I’d moved to the couch and pulled a pillow over my head. My literary cat, The Senator, crawled up on top of the pillow to help drown out the alarm.
So, I’ve been left with these questions: (1) Anybody know the answers to that Family Feud dog question and (2) anybody know how to gently, politely persuade a private company to fix its security alarm.
Before you answer #2, I’ve read The Godfather several times. Quoting from Mario Puzo’s great book, “Never get angry. Never make a threat. Reason with people.” He also wrote, “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse.” Who could turn down a visit to Two Guys From Italy, the great Italian restaurant in far north Dallas? (I had the Pesto Ala Genevese on Saturday afternoon -- so wonderful.)
I’ve gotta get more sleep -- but there is no snooze button on a malfunctioning security alarm.
On Sunday night, I watched It’s The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. First time I saw it was, I think, October 27, 1966, a 
Thursday, which meant I had the night off from my night reporter job at The Texarkana Gazette and I watched it at home on my parents’ black and white TV set (Emerson? Zenith?) in the living room. It would be years before I realized Charles Schulz’s masterpiece was in color.
Nothing alarming about that. So, in order to emphasize how unsettling that malfunctioning alarm can be, I recorded this on my front porch at 5:07 a.m. on May 8, 2016. Here’s the LINK. Turn your speakers up to "normal" -- still won’t be as annoying as the live performance. The bird is about 10 feet from the microphone; the alarm is about two blocks, maybe. It’s the same alarm. The bird may have changed since last year.
Morning Song contract may have expired. Birds have a strong union.
--- To comment, grip your QuietMouse and click silently below. ---
