BULLSEYE, PENNY, AN OILY FABLE, POLITICS, RODENTUS SPARKUS AND BASEBALL

EDITION OF FRIDAY, MARCH 29, 2019 [PetPowellPress] OK. The Texas Rangers have opened their 2019 campaign to win the World Series. Clearly they’re a team of destiny. And clearly I have to check my lotto numbers and never bet on baseball. So, let’s move along with this edition’s report.
AN UPDATE ON BULLSEYE,
THE OKLAHOMA PUPPY
In our Thursday edition, the Oklahoma rescuer Terry Lynn Fisher told us the story of the rescue of 10 puppies on Tuesday, including a 5-pound, 3-ounce little guy who was bleeding from his nose and mouth.
“He is doing better each day,” Terry Lynn told us Thursday.
“We’ve named him Bullseye,” she said. And why was he bleeding? “We feel he was tossed out of the car and landed on his face.”
 That’s right, some Oklahoma knucklehead — a cousin of the Texas branch — tossed 10 puppies from the car just to get rid of them. 
So, Terry Lynn, her 8-year-old granddaughter Ellie Rose, and her son, Scott, (Jason was home cooking her birthday meal), got the puppies. Ask how you can help with the vets bills and finding homes for these dogs by emailing Terry Lynn at [email protected] or by calling her at 580-330-1459.
‘LET’S TALK OIL’ — SOMETHING
TEXANS HAVE LONG SAID
In this case, we’re not talking about drilling for oil or putting it in barrels.
We’re talking about an incredibly stupid mythical treatment for mange. Probably anybody reading this knows better than to slather a mangy dog with motor oil. We haven’t run into this idiocy in a while. Now, suddenly, I’m seeing more cases of this idiot treatment. Latest to catch my eyes was this girl, now known as Penny and in the care of Mazie’s Mission.
 Legendary foster mom Patty Sprong posted a note about the dog that had been rescued by Mazie’s Mission from Dallas Animal Services. 
And the story on the MM site  reads, “Freedom! We busted this sweet Shepherd pup out of the shelter today. She's on bath number three because someone poured motor oil on her to try and treat her mange. Friendly reminder: motor oil does NOT cure mange and is dangerous to dogs. She'll still be uncomfortable for the next few days while her medication for mange and secondary skin infection sets in, but she's well on her way to recovery. Please consider donating to her care!” 

[LARRY ASIDE: My theory — and it’s wrong to think like this — is I wished a “similar treatment on whatever the idiot has that might be itching in an unpleasant area.” And I wondered, “Surely this can be made illegal in Texas. … Maybe the ‘Bad Use of Petroleum Law.’”
  Patty suggested that violation could be “punishable by your Two-by-Four of Enlightenment method, and then some.” But, of course, we both know that employing the satisfactory readlarrypowell.com Two-by-Four of Enlightenment would feel good but be so wrong. It would feel better than a motor oil bath, but still be wrong. Now help me off this soapbox before a slat breaks and I need a transmission fluid poultice on my hip.]
What you can do that is right is foster animals. Here’s the Mazie’s Mission comment on that: “Fostering saves lives! If you’d like to be a part of the mission, it’s as easy as filling out our foster application #maziesmission #adoptdontshop #rescue #rescuedog #nonprofit #bethechange #foster #everydayhero."
 
POLITICAL ISSUES
AND TEXAS ANIMALS
— The Texas Coalition for Animal Protection has launched a campaign to block a proposal — Texas House Bill 3806 —that would affect the way the organization serves people who need to get their animals spayed or neutered. You can see the TCAP side of this on the organization’s Facebook page HERE.  You may get to know your State Rep better by making a call on behalf of TCAP. Frankly, nothing needs to be done that makes it tougher to get animals spayed and neutered.
— The Texas Humane Legislation Network has issued an appeal for Texans to contact their state senators and urge them to support Senate Bill 295 when it arrives on the floor “any day now.” The bill’s purpose is to get adequate shelter for dogs, “protect them from chains” and “allow mistreated suffering dogs to be saved immediately without a 24-hour waiting period.”
Additional info is on the THLN.org site HERE .
REMEMBER THIS: CATS
ARE ALWAYS WAITING…
That’s my theory, anyway — and try to look at this cat without seeing the set of cat eyes on her forehead!
 Back to cats waiting: They’re waiting to eat, waiting to nap, waiting to wake up, waiting to jump up, waiting to jump down, waiting to sit either on you or in your lap and check your vital signs. Our cats wait for conversation. This cat is not our cat though we have had a few Dallas Tabby Cats through the years. 
This is “Grey,” or A1062435, currently in the Dallas Animal Services Shelter. She’s about 8 months old and a resident of the shelter since Wednesday. (Call 2-14-670-6800 or stop by the shelter at I-30 and Westmoreland.)
Imagine John Lennon singing this: “All we are saying, is give cats a chance.”
CONTEMPLATIONS
LIGHTS, RATS & ETERNAL HOPE
My hometown has its moments. I was raised in Texarkana, Texas, before I-30 was built. So it’s still the “new highway” to me, though it opened in 1970 or ’71, maybe. And here’s the latest news, thanks to reporter Karl Richter’s front page story (and that illustration) published by The Texarkana Gazette, my former employer. The story read, “Rats are responsible for disabling street lights along Interstate 30 in Texarkana, Ark., and repairs are likely to take weeks.” The Texarkana, Ark., Public Works Director Tyler Richards was quoted as saying, “Sometimes there’s absolutely nothing you can do to keep them out, because those dadgum rats, they’ll chew through anything pretty much.” … Here’s a powerful theory: I think these electricity-eating rats, Rodentus Sparkus, escaped from the experimental power lab at Texarkana College. I’m kidding but I wanted to mention the college I attended 1966-68 without anyone having to pay a bribe. … Ah, baseball. The 2019 regular season is here for Major League Baseball and the Texas Rangers. This may help me adjust, finally, to the infernal time change. I don’t know how it will help me, but I’m willing to try by listening to West Coast baseball at 1 in the morning, Dallas time!
—- To offer advice, opinions or rat remedies, click on ‘comment’ below or email [email protected]. —-