One need not be a partisan or a pundit to know that our political environment has become fully toxic, and while this one small issue might be a silly bone to pick in light of all we’re going through I just can’t let it go without comment. I am fed up hearing, from all...

I grew up in 1950s-60s Brooklyn, long before the place became trendy. I also grew up with a mother who felt cleanliness was two notches above godliness, which meant no pets (along with raking the shag rug, and clear plastic covers over the upholstered furniture)....

While absolutely a fan of his poetry, I don’t necessarily accept T.S. Eliot’s prediction, “This is the way the world ends, Not with a bang but a whimper.” If it is going to end, I suspect the globe is more likely to spin off its axis as an unfortunate side effect of...

From what I see, many of today’s Halloween costumes remain true to a theme familiar to those of us who haven’t gone trick-or-treating in half a century or more: the part human, part animal creature, whether monster or hero. For example, the half man, half wolf Wolfman...

I bet you’ve experienced this yourself. It’s been a long and especially hard day, you’re feeling all kinds of emotions, and that includes feeling all alone. You look over at your dog or cat, and things start to shift. Your cat does it with her eyes, the way she...

Having written weekly columns for decades, this is the first time I have chosen a dumb topic. (Readers, however, may think quite a few others also qualify.) With Halloween coming, I’m reminded how often I’ve talked about this holiday’s real risks to our pets (from...

Although we’re certainly not always kind to them, people’s feelings about dogs can be considered a long-time love affair. But when did that begin…? We now have evidence of a first date going back further than previously estimated for here in North America. Scientists...

Back a few weeks to my Labor Day column, I mentioned bees used to detect explosives. As promised to a doubting reader, this is my further explanation of what seemed to her a highly suspect reference. Quoting here from no less a source than the December 7, 2006 issue...

Lola, the world’s most perfect puppy (my column, my rules), is celebrating her first birthday. Well, we’re calling this her first birthday since, as with almost every shelter graduate, the day of her actual birth – along with other early details – is only a guess. But...

Here’s a question I often get asked: “What’s the relationship between Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA and American SPCA (ASPCA), Humane Society of U.S. (HSUS), and other national-sounding groups?” The question often comes as those organizations send mail asking...

There are several theories about the history of Labor Day but none I’ve found pay any attention to the other than human animals used in labor, and that seems an oversight. The history of animals used in labor is frankly neither humane nor pleasant (and although...

A century ago, Maria Dickin set the goal of helping London’s animals. While even today we remain dissatisfied with the quality of life offered most animals, we know that current conditions are far better than those of the early 1900s. Dickin described an epiphany...

At times it seems that we are a species possessed of apparently tiny memory as well as very little interest in the past. Here’s a case in point. Say the word “Tesla”, especially here in the Bay Area, and you’ll soon find yourself in a conversation about innovation and...

Following last week’s story of my first pet, Spot, did you know that fish are the most popular pets in America? 14.5 million households have tanks containing 160 million finny friends. The highly profitable aquarium industry ($300 million/year) creates much animal...

Outside of work, I’ve lived with literally hundreds of animals, but all of that since leaving home at age 16. I spent childhood begging, unsuccessfully, for a pet. Rather than a pet-less childhood, however, it’s more accurate to say there were no pet-able pets. There...