ON PRESIDENTS DAY, A LIMPING CAT, DOGS IN SHELTERS, CONTEMPLATIONS & ETIQUETTE

EDITION OF MONDAY, Feb. 2, 2022 [PetPowellPress] Happy Presidents Day. 
As I am not president of anything, on Sunday (Presidents Day Eve -- oh, my the parties!) I was able to put down my reading, water my greenthumbspouse Martha’s emerging tulips, contemplate the future and read some emails and notes from the world of animals. 
There was no football game to watch. No spring training baseball game. The Olympics are beyond my brain this year. Now on to some animals and we’ll close with Contemplations, And, of course, you recognize my personal confidant The Senator -- this shot was taken a few years ago when he was portraying "Alexander's Cat" in the musical Hamilton. Perhaps you've seen his performance. Like a good Senator, he never missed a step.
A LIMPING CAT
WITH SOME NEEDS
This was one of those opportunities to help an animal that I encountered completely by accident Sunday while I was looking for something else.
Viviana Corzo had posted this on her Facebook page and it also was on the DFW Cat Rescue Network page.
That’s the cat. No name. But if you go to the DFW Cat Rescue Network site HERE or Viviana’s page HERE
 You’ll see the video of this clearly injured cat. As Vivana explained, “I’m looking to find a rescue or just help in general. I’ve seen him hanging around here for about a year now and I feed him as much as I can. He has a swollen face and I'm assuming a broken leg. He hangs around the Spanish Plaza Apartments in Garland N Jupiter Rd.” 
So, that’s all we’ve got regarding contact points. Many people have responded, but Sunday evening, there was no resolution posted on the two Facebook pages.
[LARRY ASIDE: Anybody knows about this cat, email us at [email protected]. We prefer to write happy endings.]
SO THE QUESTION WAS:
‘WHY IS HE NOT ADOPTED?”
Not kidding — that was the subject line in several emails that arrived on behalf of this guy Griffin.
He is in the care of Gail Whelan and the Companion Animal Network. But her goal is to get him into a home that’ll love him from now on! 
The story she sent read: “Meet Griffin.  He was picked up as a stray and was about 12 hours from his ’30 day deadline’ when we were able to pull him.  Griffin is about 3 years old and 90 pounds.  
“Absolutely the smartest, sweetest, most affectionate boy you'll meet.  He 'hugs' you with his paws and LOVES tummy rubs and will close his eyes in joy. 
"Griffin is a mix of two AMAZING breeds. 
"He is cautious around strangers but when he sees you are okay with the person, so is he.  Pyrenees are GREAT protectors and very low key.  Goldens are just plain old sweet and good natured.”
Gail also reports, “Griffin is fully vetted and microchipped.  On Bravecto and heartworm preventative.  He IS a low positive for heartworms but he will be treated at our expense.  YES he sheds a lot.  But he is more than worth extra vacuuming and with daily brushing it is minimized.”
To ask about Griffin, call 903-967-3225 or email [email protected]. CAN’s website is www.ca-n.petfinder.com.
GREAT NAMES FOR SOME DOGS
THAT ARE WAITING IN A SHELTER….
I’m probably not the only person who wonders how animals wind up in city shelters throughout the good ol’ USA. But we’re starting with a genuine big-hearted Valentine’s Day “dumping of a dog” by some human. 

This is Juniper — maybe the only dog I can recall seeing named Juniper. Our tipster, the volunteer dog biographer Debra Chisholm, writes, “This live-wire youngster is … a mixed breed girl (with Aussie Cattle Dog in the mix) who was abandoned in the Mesquite Shelter parking lot on 2/14.”

Juniper, at a year-and-half, weighs 43 pounds. Debra writes, “She is uneasy in the shelter environment and nervous of the dogs when walked through the bay and several were barking at her.  She does fine on a leash.  Juniper is a bit timid and shy but seems to want to warm up. She just needs to develop some trust and confidence in people after having been thoughtlessly and carelessly abandoned.  She is calm and gentle and alert and is quite curious.  She showed an interest in toys and balls.  Juniper warmed up to me and it was heartening to see her begin to blossom.  She just needs some patience and TLC and she will doubtless make a wonderful companion.” Juniper’s ID is #49595795. Use it when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email rescues @cityofmesquite.com.

And this is Winona, a “very attractive mixed-breed girl” who was picked up as a stray on Valentine’s Day. She’s about 5 and weighs 45 pounds. Debra writes, “Wow, there is so much to like about this girl.  She walks so nicely on a leash and when I took her through the bay she did not react to the barking dogs with any aggression. … Winona knows the sit command and will do so for treats, which she LOVES and takes gently.  She is friendly, has an amiable nature and enjoys attention.  She tried to climb into my lap a few times.  She is calm, gentle and well-mannered.  Winona is a tail-wagging playful girl with a mellow personality.” Her ID # is 49595462 and it should be used with you call the shelter (972-216-6283) or email [email protected].

Same contact points for Patsy (#49557143). Her bio says she's "a lovely mixed breed girl who arrived at the Mesquite Animal Shelter on 2/8 as a stray.  She weighs 68 pounds, is approx 4 years old and is not spayed.  The volunteer who is working with her reports that she is such a sweet girl but is quite nervous and uncomfortable in the noisy shelter environment.  She has been in the back since her arrival, but was moved up … to one of the general population bays where it will be easier to work with her, helping her to relax, learn to trust and build confidence.  Our volunteer states that Patsy has obviously been trained as she knows the sit and paw commands.  At this time she is not interested in treats.  She is nervous and scared of loud noises and new things.  She will walk on a leash.  Patsy will need a steady diet of patience and TLC but there is every reason to believe she will come around.”
And that brings us to #48025555 known as Zeta, a young girl who was “surrendered…on 2/17 along with another family dog named Smoke [#49616583] because the owners are moving and are not taking the dogs with them.  Zeta was adopted in September at 4 months of age and 5 months later is back at the shelter.  This adorable pup weighs 31 pounds, is 10 months old and is spayed.  Zeta is a mixed breed with Terrier and Plott Hound …  She walks quite nicely on a leash.  When I took her through the bay past other dogs she did not react in a negative way.  She does not seem to have been taught any commands.  During the photo shoot she ran and played in the shelter yard, thoroughly enjoying the opportunity to stretch her legs.  She is "all puppy" with her high energy level, exuberance and jumping on you.  She is an "on the go" kind of girl …” 
And Smoke is just over a year old, a Staffie mix and will stand on a bench for a photograph. 
You can read about these animals and many more — dogs and cats — by going to the Mesquite site HERE.
CONTEMPLATIONS
BUDS, TYPOS AND DINING OUT...
A lot of emails arrive at [email protected] each day. I read the subject lines quickly. For example on Sunday I read a subject line that promised “YOUR GUIDE TO A FLOWERFUL FUNERAL” And I thought, “What have they heard?” and reread it. Turns out it was a gardening email and the subject line actually read, “YOUR GUIDE TO A FLOWERING FUTURE!” Coincidentally on Sunday my job was to water Martha’s flowerbeds with the beginning-to-appear tulip plants! She’ll have a flowering future. …
Since we have no football scores to talk about this Monday morning, I’ll mention an old football story from my career as an editor at The Big Paper Downtown. At lot of people think a newspaper copy editor looks at punctuation and grammar and nothing else, but I once caught a pretty wonderful error in a column written by someone who paid no attention to football. She confidently wrote something about the Texas Tech Red Waiters. Didn’t make it into the paper. Coulda been worse: Texas Tech Wet Waiters or Texas Tech Red Waders.
Ever go to a business that has an “OPEN” sign on the door but doesn’t appear to be taking the sign seriously? Went through that Sunday afternoon and into the evening in a once-vibrant restaurant. Could be a management/ownership problem — the staffers seemed to be hustling. Maybe it’s a leftover (food term) from the pandemic. What is the etiquette? How long do you wait at a non-fastfood table before you politely surrender to the situation and roll on to the next stop? FYI: This place used to be hoppin’ —- it was beloved. And then came the restaurant-wrecking pandemic. Darn that virus. Feel free to complain about dining failures at [email protected]. We have taste and respect time, too.
—- Offer menu advice or pepper us with gripes by clicking on ‘comment’ below or by emailing [email protected] and put ‘CAN’T GET ENOUGH PARM’ ON THE PASTA” in the subject line.—-