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Chasing House Flies

On the surface I had a lovely afternoon yesterday. I returned from a good time volunteering with friends at a local museum and spent a productive afternoon finishing a lot of work. That’s just the surface story. In reality as the hours of the afternoon waned I was driven crazier and crazier, as a headache crept further and further into my skull. And it’s all my pets’ fault. Well, just Chihiro and Cole. What did they do that made me insane? They chased house flies. I don’t know how so many flies got into my house, but there must have … Continue reading →

Attracting Butterflies to Your Yard

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Butterflies can be a beautiful, fascinating, colorful addition to your backyard habitat! Sadly, many butterflies have lost their favorite feeding spots and breeding grounds to human development. Areas that have not been built up may instead be poisoned with deadly pesticides. By inviting butterflies into your yard, you can help them feed, breed, and flourish. It can be very easy to attract butterflies to your yard. Here’s what you’ll need: Food for caterpillars — after all, that’s where butterflies come from! Caterpillars have chewing mouths and like to eat leaves and stems. Food for butterflies. Butterflies have sucking mouths and … Continue reading →

Jealousy Between Pets

We can coexist, until you’re involved My pets get jealous of one another. Chihiro and Cole, for all that they tolerate and even sometimes enjoy one another’s company, compete for attention. Chihiro is really only competitive for attention when a) there’s food involved, or b) someone new has come over to the house. If someone’s visiting they’re not likely to get much time with the cats, because Chihiro is a bully. Even if she is ignoring the new person, she’ll suddenly come out and muscle the cats away if they try to come out and greet the visitor. She has … Continue reading →

Pets Leaving Food: Should You Worry?

My cats have caused so many food-related problems this year. I went from giving my cats food once a day to twice a day, then three times, having to split up normal portions into weird smaller amounts. My cat’s gluttony, food thievery, mischievous behavior, and sudden desire to eat people food all prompted my decision. As spring progressed and melted into summer, I thought I’d finally sorted things out. No, now my cats have changed their eating habits again. It all started when Jon and I left for a weekend. I put out two days’ worth of food; we weren’t … Continue reading →

Cat People vs. Dog People

I’ve already debunked the whole cats and dogs can never get along theory. What about whether you’re a cat person or a dog person, and what that says about your personality? I recently caught part of a NOVA documentary exploring that very thing, and I wish I’d seen more of it. The opening was full of cat people and dog people talking about the respective attributes of their favorite mammals, before examining what life is like at home for each of them. Although the concept was fascinating, I felt a little put out. What about me? I love dogs and … Continue reading →

Taking Your Pets to Work

Last week saw a new sort-of holiday, Take Your Dog to Work Day, which indicated a growing trend: pets in the workplace. The North County Times looks at the trend. Just about the only cases you’ll see of animals actually living at the office are for cats, like library cats or the one that lives in my sister-in-law’s office. However, more and more employers are starting to allow the dogs to come in to work with their owners. Some very dog-friendly businesses allow this every day, others just haves special times sent aside, like Take Your Dog to Work Day. … Continue reading →

Insect Inspector: Murphy’s “Bumble” Rumble

Ever since he was a pup, Murph’s loved chasing things. When we lived in Florida, he loved nothing better than being let loose through the sliding glass doors to chase the squirrels in the backyard. On walks, he took joy in leaping through the bushes after lizards. When we moved to Nashville we chose a house without either a fenced-in backyard or any trees for squirrels to call home. (After our experiences with the hurricanes in 2004, we’ve been leery of big trees living within striking range of our dwelling. As for the fenced yard, we walk Murph anyway –even … Continue reading →

Great Books for Ten-Year-Old Girls

My co-author for this blog is my ten-year-old daughter, Caryn. She’s been reading a lot this year and we’d like to share with you some of the books that she has enjoyed the most. 1. “The Pixie Tricks” series by Tracey West. Violet Briggs is given the job of tricking pixies who have escaped from the Otherworld and come into ours. Her helper in this quest is Sprite, a green pixie who has been given the title of Royal Pixie Tricker by Queen Mab. (Click here for a complete review) Caryn says: “Pixie Tricks are very fun books. It’s well … Continue reading →