The mind wanders down some strange paths at times like this, and so for no reason other than random, sleepless 3AM curiosity I did an on-line search of checkout counter tabloids’ stories about animals. To my surprise, the Enquirer proved disappointing, focusing far...

Two weeks ago our topic was how animals show up in clichés. Here’s another: “They fight like cats and dogs,” meaning constant, loud and sometimes violent squabbling, like what I experienced growing up. (The baker laughed but said he couldn’t fit “celebrating 60 years...

A very dear friend died just a few days ago. His death was not a surprise, coming at the end of a long and sad illness. His death is, in some terrible way, a good thing considering what had happened to his body and spirit. His death came, thankfully, only after we had...

I’ve written before about animals’ languages (whales’ song, bees’ dance, that sort of thing) but let’s turn this time to how animals feature in our own language. The many animal-related sayings, clichés and expressions: where do they come from, and what do they say...

Amazing that, once again, I fell into the same trap! Two weeks ago this column suggested we all celebrate a number of pet-themed holidays, and while two of the four highlighted were all inclusive (National Love Your Pet Day and World Spay Day) the remaining two were...

The official start of Spring is less than a month away but signs are in the air. (Makes sense, of course, since the official start of anything in the natural world is a human construct and means nothing to Mother Nature who keeps a far more subtle calendar.) Peninsula...

Maybe because my last two columns were about Valentine’s Day I remain in a holiday mind-frame and, happily, February still has four special pet-themed holidays to celebrate. February 20 is National Love Your Pet Day. Don’t get too excited since, according to the...

Valentine’s Day is hands-down my favorite holiday. Yeah, yeah, I know all the negatives: rates of depression skyrocket mid-February along with chocolate sales figures; the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre is among the bloodiest dates in mob history; it’s really all a...

I love animals. That said, not every lovely-dovey thing we think about animals is necessarily all that lovely-dovey. Take, for example, the Kissing Gourami. As anyone who had an aquarium as a kid can tell you, these are relatively hardy, interesting and unfortunately...

Six months ago you would have found dozens of kittens during a tour of the Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA. Take that same walk today, however, and you’ll find many wonderful adult and senior cats but no purring fuzz balls. Why is that? You’ve probably heard the...

Break out the party hats, or at least the big bag of mixed nuts, because tomorrow, January 21, is World Squirrel Appreciation Day. (No, despite my job title, they don’t let me make these things up.) Squirrels are members of the pint-size rodent family Sciuridae which...

There’s little doubt the holiday season has left you in need of a vacation. I mean, all the shopping, the eating, the napping between shopping and eating. It’s been hell, and you deserve a rest! For many that means a call into work claiming you’re sick, and a drive up...

How the heck did it become 2020? This first column of the new decade, join me in Mr. Peabody’s Way-Back Machine (remember?) for a decade-by-decade peek at animal welfare over the past century. The year is 1920, the so-called War to End All Wars finally over, and the...

New Year’s Resolutions, typically unmet, are often repeated year after year. In 2018, 13% of us pledged “more time with friends and family,” making that the tenth most popular Resolution. #9 was drink less alcohol (15% of us made that promise last New Year’s Eve, and...

’Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house All the creatures were stirring, including the mouse And the dogs, the bunnies, the turtles and cats Awaiting the Big Guy (you know: white beard and a sack) They nibbled the cookies, set out with great care...