Animal Services has a new web address

Manatee County Animal Services has a new web address:

www.mymanatee.org/pets



This new address makes it much easier to get to the site, so please bookmark it.


There was a time in Manatee County when Animal Services was known as Animal Control, or "the pound." Not anymore. Where its mission used to be removing unwanted animals, now its mission is helping lost pets get back home and helping abandoned pets get adopted into new homes.


Please support Animal Services in their effort to help Manatee County become a "no-kill community."

Calling Dr. Doolittle

My nephew thinks either some kind of Brady Bunch tiki doll thing is hidden in his house somewhere, or else the house itself is built over an Indian burial mound. Why?

His son stepped on not one, but two tacks. And his coffee maker is on the fritz. And two of his pets are ailing.

Seems the pug had to go to the ER last weekend with some kind of bladder ailment. X-rays, catheters, meds, the works. And then my nephew posted on Facebook:  I now have $640 reasons why I like cats better than dogs.

Well ... then the cat started puking Gatorade-colored stuff. Back to the ER. Seems he ate a Glo-Stick. He's still at the vet's.

So I asked my nephew: Do you still like cats better than dogs?

His answer: I'll let you know when I get the cat's vet bill.

Moral of the story: Either find that Brady Bunch tiki doll thing and get rid of it, or make sure the house is pet-proof. They will eat the darnedest things, and they end up paying for it with sickness and you end up paying for it with MasterCard.

The dog whisperer

A friend's post on Facebook brought to mind a cherished memory.

One day I came home for lunch, and Jethro the hound was sunning himself in the back yard. Reba was in the house begging for a cookie. It's her way of saying, "Welcome home! Now, gimme something."

I told Reba, "Go tell Jethro mom's home."

She ran through the house, out the doggie door and up to where Jethro was sunbathing. She looked like she was whispering something in his ear, and then there they came, trotting into the house.

And I thought, "Move over, Cesar. There's a new dog whisperer in town."

Roscoe's no Olivier, but you will love him anyway

I had a great time this week working on the story of Roscoe, the acting dog who is appearing in a production of Shakespeare's "Two Gentlemen of Verona" at the Asolo.

Roscoe's human, Jim Gillespie, was so easy to talk to, and he has a million (well, OK, maybe just a thousand) stories to tell about his star pooch. There was the time ... but wait ... I don't want to get ahead of the story.

A couple of things about Roscoe will surprise you. So be sure to get a copy of the Herald tomorrow and read all about Roscoe, the newest star of the local stage.

Candidate chooses her dog over the election

In all the post-election news this week, there was this:


Florida candidate skipped election to care for her dog

PENSACOLA, Fla. (AP) While many people anxiously waited for the results on Election Day, a city council candidate in the Florida Panhandle decided to spend some time with her ailing dog.
Sherri Myers didn't know she had narrowly defeated Courtney Peterson in Pensacola's District 2 race until Wednesday morning. She had turned off her cell phone and missed calls Tuesday from the Pensacola News Journal seeking comment about her victory.
Myers says she didn't think she had any chance of winning, so she took her dog to Alabama for a day trip. The dog has throat cancer and is not expected to live much longer.
Myers is a 68-year-old attorney.
Information from: Pensacola News Journal, http://www.pensacolanewsjournal.com.


I had only one comment after finding this on the wire: I would vote for this woman in a heartbeat.