The good:

Found out that one of my favorite cats, Blossom, was adopted by a very nice family over the weekend. I was getting worried because she'd been at the shelter so long that her number was going to come up. Unfortunately they can't keep them forever and Blossom had been there almost as long as me (mid-April).

The bad (and here's where I rant a bit):

Found out that one of my favorite dogs, Bruno, was adopted by a nice family middle of the week. Well he was returned after two days, on Saturday, because he got out of their yard. Yep, they took home a brand new dog and put him outside and just left him outside 'cause that's what people do with dogs around here. Even after they were told that he probably wouldn't do well as an outside dog because he's just too smart, and they swore up and down he was going to be an indoor dog.

See the thing is, it's usually one of two ways an animal ends up at the shelter. Either the owner surrenders it for whatever reason (don't get me started), or it gets out of the house or yard and the owner doesn't redeem it within its stray period. So, when adopting from a shelter, one should assume that the dog might be something of an escape artist - particularly if you're told that by one or more of the shelter attendants and not just leave your brand new pet alone in the yard for eight hours while you go to work or whatever.

Of course, the fact that he was returned puts his name a little higher up on the list of "dogs going to the big farm in the sky" the next time we run short of space, since it counts as a failed adoption.

My other favorite moron was the one who adopted a puppy, and then returned him two days later for not being housebroken. Um, nobody told you the puppy was housebroken, in fact I'm pretty sure we told you it probably wasn't. Even if the dog is absolutely perfect about not going in its run or cage, I won't tell someone the dog is housebroken, simply because being put into a new situation may make them forgetful. And a puppy no less. Get real.

Reviewed for Front Street



Pardonable Lies by Jacqueline Winspear

The third in the Maisie Dobbs series, Pardonable Lies, maintains the high quality of writing evident in her first two mysteries. Author Jacqueline Winspear transports us back to the 1930’s, when the Great War (WW1) was still fresh in the mind. Maisie Dobbs served as a nurse in France during that engagement and, after the war, with help from mentor Maurice Blance, she attended college and became a psychologist and detective.

In this book, Maisie is asked to lend her expert assistance on three cases. The first, to prove an impoverished young girl innocent of a crime that might send her to the gallows. The second, to discover the fate of the brother of her closest friend and confidante, Priscilla, reported dead by the military. Her third case is to discover whether a young aviator shot down over France is dead or alive. His father, Sir Cecil Lawton, doesn’t really care one way or the other but feels he must fulfill the deathbed promise made to his wife.

As she investigates, she learns that there are a few intertwining threads among these three seemingly unrelated stories. Probing deeper, she discovers shadowy figures following her and an attempt is made on her life. But which case is the one that inspires such passion?

In order to get to the heart of the matter, Maisie forces herself to return to France where she is still haunted by her memories of nursing wounded soldiers. She must confront her demons and put her past behind her - or suffer the consequences.

Jacqueline Winspear has written a highly complex and masterful story. Readers will gain a real feel for the time between the two World Wars from all the exquisite detail Winspear has painstakingly included. Maisie herself is an appealing, imperfect heroine, who is more than ready to admit her faults, showing a character that is all that much more authentic.

The shelter not only takes in all the needy animals from the three cities, but we also provide low cost euthanasia for residents. It's not as pretty as the vet's office, we can't allow the owners to stay with their pets because we don't have a place for that. Two of the three cities do provide pick-up and drop-off services via animal control, and when you have a 100 pound Great Dane who can't walk anymore, that's a big help.

Anyway, today a guy came in with his 15 year old Lhasa mix to be euthanized. He'd spent around $600 at the vet diagnosing an inoperable lung tumor. So he and his wife made her comfortable and said they'd know when the time was right. Today was the day. The poor thing was all swelled up with fluid, and was having some difficulty breathing. Not that he waited too long or anything, just that it was obvious that the dog was losing the fight. He also brought in all her stuff, because he said if they got another dog, they would get all new stuff. It was just too painful to have the reminders. I really hope he got home ok, because he was crying when he left.

I was doing ok carrying in the toys and blankets and assorted stuff, until I got to the half-full can of dog food that was obviously the remains of her morning meal, then I lost it and started crying myself. For some reason, I was struck by how sad and painful it must have been feeding the dog and knowing it was her last meal, but not wanting her to go hungry and die with an empty stomach.

In case anyone is wondering or worried about the Pekingese. We were just about to put him up for adoption, when his dumbass owner finally called today to ask if we had his dog. Then he was shocked when we said we did, and it would be $95 to spring him. Why so much?, he asked. I dunno, maybe 'cause he was here for a week? We don't do this for free, and a weeks boarding at a kennel would have been way, way, more than $95.

I asked my vet, and he said about $140 for basic boarding for that sized dog for a week, more if they wanted any special services.

In other news:

Because Clifford the Big Red Dog is a crack dealer? Or is it that the Disney characters are doing something dark and unsavory in their Christmas Storybook?

http://www.dailynews.com/antelopevalley/ci_4011813

My favorite part is where it says:

"In selected instances, an occasional inappropriate word may be deleted with white-out rather than rejecting the entire book," the policy said.

That right there will send the kids racing to be the first to chip off the white-out. What a bunch of maroons!

I went into work yesterday after having the weekend off to discover that we have three beautiful red Dobermans out in the kennels. So I pick up their cage cards, and discover that the owner turned them in because they were, and I quote "downsizing". Nice.

So they're outside on the patio for a potty break, and I realize there's something wrong, but I just can't put my finger on it. Wait. Now I know. Their ears are cropped, but yet, they flop over like natural Dobie ears. Yes, on all three dogs.

I think ear cropping is a useless, barbaric, unnecessary, cosmetic surgery that is solely for owner aesthetics, and I don't really understand why it makes people think that it somehow improves the appearance of the dog. If you want a dog with prick ears, there are plenty that come that way without expensive surgery.

So now I'm wondering what idiot pays the money to get their dog's ears cropped, puts them through all that pain and torment and then doesn't bother to follow through on making the ears stand up?

I guess it's the same kind of idiot who suddenly decides after five years of ownership that they just don't want their dogs anymore.

I also wanted to drive over to the house of the asshat who has just left their Pekingese in the shelter even though we've called and called the number on the tags to tell them it's here and give them a swift kick in the behind. So sorry it's too inconvenient to pick up your dog, that you didn't secure properly. I can bet the next thing that happens is that we find it a new home when its stray time is up, and then we get sued by the original owner for getting rid of their dog.