AN ASSORTMENT OF ANIMALS AND THOUGHTS ON THE EVE OF THE EVE, 2022

EDITION OF FRIDAY DECEMBER 23 [PetPowellPress] We’re going to start with an upbeat holiday report, then segue into a dog on “the list” in Dallas and some critters all ready for adoption or rescue in Mesquite.  Moving along, What is this world coming to? OK, not a question to which I expect an answer in this century. But here’s what inspired the question (this time): At mid-week, well-ahead of the holiday celebrations, I went into a major grocery store and it had no brown-and-serve rolls left on its shelves. None. Cheapest rolls in the history of America, but not one package. I wasn’t going to eat them (constant dieter, you know), but I WAS assigned to buy them for the pleasure of guests with cheap tastes (Our sons — I hope they laughed at that).
 Hard to blame the “supply chain” for the lack of brown-n-serve rolls, don’t you think? So, I’ll just say thank heavens there was a plentiful supply of paper products —that oughta keep everybody holly jolly.
Oh, and these are two “Cat’s ’n’ Christmas Trees” photos.
That opening photo is a fellow who looks as if he might have tried out a nicely buttered brown-and-serve roll or two. Nope, that’s our late cat, the Christmas cat known as Griffin Oliver Powell (2003-2015). Got him as a “feral kitten” early in 2003 and he loved to hang out in the tree at Christmas. Wasn’t a feral notion in his adorable soul.
As it turns out the field of Feline Tree Fascination and Adoration has more practitioners than Griffin. The young cat in that photo? That is our Eastern Seaboard Bureau Chief Andy Fisher’s feline companion, Chloe. She has a key human resource management position at the Eastern Seaboard Bureau on the shores of Indian Lake in Denville, N.J. Chloe’s direct responsibility is monitoring the leisure and business time of Bureau Chief Fisher. Chloe, a very responsible todally indoor cat now, was a young rescued kitten in that tree photo. Today (right) she’s a mature feline with an inspirational spirit. She also has monitoring responsibilities for the indoor tree set up by Andy’s wife, Annie, the pickleball star and the Bureau’s Chief Executive Officer, and mom of Ian, the constantly achieving university post-grad student. [LARRY ASIDE: If you have a cat on your executive staff, you get a substantial tax write-off. Wait. I may need to check the tax code on that. You’ll still benefit from having a cat hanging out with you. I swear on a stack of litter boxes!]
And that glowing tree? Also a Fisher tree. Andy explains, “Six or seven years ago, this tree planted itself along our front walk. That's right, planted itself. We called it Chloe's Tree. It's now more than eight feet tall, and worthy of a set of lights. My festive wife and her athletic son Ian put the lights on it this afternoon.” That was just before Thanksgiving. And Christmas endures at the Fisher Household under Chloe’s skilled management. Oh, and Chloe watches it from her window. She's a Yuletide Housecat -- not sure that's an official breed, but you never know these days. We'd be OK with that.
LARRY NOTE ABOUT
WHAT’S IN SHELTERS —
PARTICULARLY RIO
As we move into the Christmas weekend, I’ve been connected to a few animals in Dallas Animal Services & Adoption Center that are on the “EU list.” Any rescue or option may help save animals there.
I hate to even include this story because, well, I think the odds are lousy for this dog. But, maybe, he’ll inspire someone to take a look at the DAS inventory of dogs and cats and adopt or rescue or foster. Save ‘em all. Sure seems to be absolutely impossible in Dallas.
Of course, the main villain in these cases is the human who fails the animals when they’re OUTSIDE the shelter.
Rio, the dog with the incredibly sad face — oh, my. When I learned of him the note said he had about 3 hours left at DAS. I’m not the only person who’s seen his note and the deadline for 11 a.m. Friday. Yes. you’re probably reading this past the deadline. I’m gambling someone with a heart saved him.
Rio was fitted with a harness — I guess they didn’t want him to be uncomfortable in the time he had left. Read on and you'll see why he might have been in pain. He’s #A1164111 at DAS. You know where the shelter is — I-30 at Westmoreland. The email is [email protected]. Here is the link to the Dallas Urgent Shelter Dogs on Facebook.
Rio is (as we write this) a 43-pound, 2-year-old fellow who came into the shelter on December 9 as an “injured stray from the community….It was noted that he had a large open wound on his neck.” 
And why was that? The description read, “Very scared and timid. Lesion that encircles the neck that has hair loss ….” Yeah, some jerk put a “presumably nylon cord” around his neck, tightened it and left it there. Maybe Rio tried to escape the “choking” and made it even tighter.
Rio either “is” or “was” a dog who was going to need love and understanding.
[LARRY ASIDE: Yes, Rio will or would have needed love and understanding. To the person whose actions made it a certainty that this dog would be on death row in Dallas: I will work at loving you and it’ll be real damned tough because I’ve been around a while and I understand you — you have a “don’t care/so what/I can always get another one” attitude and that is bad for dogs and cats. You are among the people who overload shelters and force taxpayer-supported facilities to put animals on the euthanasia list. Am I judging? Nope, just observing. Judgement comes later.]
NOW, MOVING TO MESQUITE
WHERE SAVING ‘EM MATTERS
We’re featuring several of many animals currently in the Mesquite Animal Shelter as the year is drawing to a close — whoa! Can a year move this fast? OK, here we go with the reports courtesy of volunteers Judi Brown and Debra Chisholm.
How about Mr. Good Lookin’ Dog here! Yep, Judi writes, “This handsome boy is Monty. He’s a 2-year-old, 78-pound Lab Retriever/Laika/Anatolian Shepherd mix that came into the Mesquite Animal Shelter on 12/9 as a stray. He is not fixed.”

He wasn’t healthy when he came in either — but the shelter jumped right onto curing his URI and cured him. Judi writes that he’s now “ready to be adopted! He’s a big lovable teddy bear and wants to give bear hugs. However he doesn’t realize his size and weight so in the process could knock you over.” Yep, manners training needed.
Judi reports, “When he was in the yard he was whining. I’m not sure what was going on. He may have been looking for his owners. Initially he romped joyfully in the yard but soon came back to stretch out and rest near me. He looks at you with those captivating  eyes and melts your heart.”

Monty is #51679725 at the shelter. Use that ID when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
 Same system for all the animals in Mesquite’s shelter: Use the ID number and call 
972-216-6283 or email [email protected]. I repeat for emphasis of the sincerity of contacting and rescuing and adopting and fostering.

 Judi also did the evaluation of Archie. She met the 2-year-old, 50-pound Shepherd/Manchester Terrier mix who arrived on 12/14 as a an unfixed stray. She writes, “He’s a stocky, solid-built guy that appears to be very healthy. He spent a considerable time exploring the yard and looking out the gate. He’s alert and curious about his surroundings. I also got the feeling that he has not received a lot of socialization. He does not know the sit command but in an attempt to do what I was asking of him, he did a little dance.” [LARRY ASIDE: Honestly he passed the audition right there!!!]
Judi says he can play a little and he “chases balls and retrieves them if he wants to. Sometimes he’s too distracted by other smells. He wagged his tail when meeting other dogs that he walked by even if they were barking at him. … As the photo session drew to a close he spend more time close to me. He came to me when I called him. At the end I even got a few kisses! He’s receptive to loving, but probably hasn’t had a lot.” Archie is ID #51707718.
Judi also got to meet Pearl, a 3- or 4-year-old Great Pyrenees mix who came in as a stray on Dec. 15. Unfixed; weighs 70 pounds. 
Judi writes, “When she arrived she was put in ISO due to a skin condition. She has since had a skin scrape that came back negative. It is assumed any skin issues she has are related to allergies. She’s a real beauty and would look even better if she had a bath and was groomed.

“It was difficult to take pictures of her because she either had her nose to the ground or she was frolicking and scampering playfully in the yard. My camera does not do well with motion shots! She did spend a lot of time looking over the shelter wall. I didn’t get the impression she was trying to escape. However, her next owners need to have a tall, secure fence. She wagged her tail meeting the shelter staff. She had no problem letting me check out her teeth. She was not interested in playing with balls or toys. She also did not appear to know the sit command. And she really wasn’t that interested in treats. She walked very well on a leash especially considering her size. She appeared to be intimidated when we walked through the bay by the dogs barking at her. That may be why she was not pulling on her leash. … When I called her she came to me and put her head on my lap. There’s no doubt she would be a great cuddle bug especially in these cold winter nights.” Pearl is #51712680.”

Remember, you can see these dogs and many more dogs — and, of course, cats and kittens, by clicking on the MESQUITE SHELTER LINK HERE. 


 And as we enjoy — that the right word — this early grip of Winter, I’ll remind you that Mesquite still has this wonderful orange cat Autumn available for adoption. Autumn is #51124091 at the shelter. A grown-up cat (no age is listed; she’d probably lost her driver’s license somewhere along the way), Autumn is “large” and  orange and a Domestic Shorthair Mix. She came into the shelter on September 15. Time for her to go to a home where she can demonstrate how much love and affection a cat named Autumn has in her soul. She’s waiting in the shelter’s Conference Room.
CONTEMPLATIONS
PICKLES, A LIST AND A WISH
Hello. My name is Larry and I have a new habit because I am a new fan of Wickles Pickles. Don’t know anything about the company or even where it’s headquartered. Bought a jar by accident and now I’m a Wickles Pickles fan. That’s my Christmas confession. … I may work on other Christmas confessions — like the time I… WHOA! I can’t talk about that while Santa’s still organizing his naughty list …
Here’s a Christmas wish: May global politics and American politics all embrace the idea of Peace on Earth and good will toward everybody. War and aggression can get downright personal and unpleasant a lot quicker than a team project to protect us from global warming. You gotta have time-consuming studies about global warning, but apparently, the biggest dumbasses (pardon my entirely accurate French) on the planet can go straight to war without calling a time-out and appointing a “Blue Ribbon Panel on Global Peaceful Good Sense.”
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