Do animals flag me down on the street? Are they just waiting everywhere to ambush me and have a conversation? I get asked a LOT if I walk around hearing voices or what animals are thinking all the time? The answer is a simple NO. […]

It has been soooo long since I’ve raised a puppy. Not just a few have passed through my life, but it has been many years since the last young one. Most of my animals are rescues, but Frida was a different kind of choice: one […]

The conversation went very fast: “Who do you think you’re like, Charlie?” “Genghis Khan” (Charlie replied without missing a beat). I was totally bowled over by this response, as Charlie is the most loving dog you ever met. “Why, Charlie?!” “Because he was a great […]

Mr. Pants became so adept and cavalier about his outings through the fence that he taught four other chicks his trick. But, not being Zen Buddhists like he is, they were not quite as quick on the draw about how to get back into safety. […]

This is a tough one. Especially when you are, ahem, “serving” in a professional capacity. Here are a few suggestions for when to keep your mouth shut: *  When you don’t know what to say. *  When it is none of your business. *  When […]

One of Bessie’s chicks has notably long legs and is bigger than all the rest. A friend and I immediately pegged this baby as, horror of horrors, a rooster! I only say “horrors” because all ten chicks I bought were supposed to be hens, which […]

Once upon a time, in the middle of the 20th century, a beautiful nature spirit was born, in the form of a human woman. This woman was named Susan Hertel and she spoke to all of nature and painted it as well, and became quite […]

I think we all know what a horse trader is. That’s the person who buys horses like this poor fellow here, cheap, usually because they’re in a bad way. They then pump them up cosmetically, often masking weaknesses with drugs, and resell them for a […]

Bessie’s chicks are two weeks old today. And they’re totally bionic! They’re not only huge for their age, they are breaking all the rules. For one thing, to my understanding, chicks are supposed to be kept above 90 degrees farenheit until they have lost all […]

My mantra for the last few years has been simple: To live life well. I am not “religious” in the way our culture views that term, and I don’t know the Bible well, but I do know that one of Christ’s urgings to his followers […]