Author, speaker, humorist, essayist. Founder of FlockCall.com. I write about the human dynamic as it pertains to the companion pet lifestyle and the natural world around us.
Kittens are built to dominate a human. Their eyes, walk, purr, and meow are concentrated efforts by evolution for a universal private joke. Put an eight-week-old kitten on the floor with a feather, a jingle ball, and a ball of yarn. Do this anywhere. You will catch a human. Science has proven cats possess the soundwaves and molecular consoles in their breath and blood to mesmerize a human into servitude and judgement. Kittens doubly so because they are so excruciatingly cute.
What does a new kitten want for entertainment and happiness?
Cute eyes, adorable walks, mesmerizing purrs, and meows, kittens have the power to improve your life in the best possible way. We may never know the true extent of their powers; we can enjoy the love and companionship they offer free of charge.
Author, speaker, humorist, essayist. Founder of FlockCall.com. I write about the human dynamic as it pertains to the companion pet lifestyle and the natural world around us.
Parrots are loud. Parrots need to communicate. Their prime directive is flocking, which is loud. A parrot lifestyle includes sounds. All kinds of sounds made in voluminous ways for all kinds of reasons. Humans are not good at communication. Parrots are professionals.
Healthy eating is the first defense of a healthy life. For man, or beast. Freeze-dried and dehydrated pet food are two newly popular choices for companion pet lovers who are looking for shelf life, nutrition, and a wide variety of options. Freeze-dried and dehydrated pet food and treats are making deep inroads into the pet food industry for several reasons. Shelf life and food variety being the top two. Food preservation is nothing new as dehydrating foods by sun, wind, and salt has been an option for a millennium. Freeze drying pet foods as a product line is a new idea. Dehydrating has been part of companion animal food production longer, as well as an in-home option for personal food storage.
Gulls are a migratory species travelling to Florida during winter months to escape colder climates. Our local urban gulls stay year-round because of a warm gull friendly climate. And the warm, friendly population creating welcoming foods to scavenge. Like urban raccoon and coyote, gulls have evolved into a successful urban dweller. Gulls meander in parks, on beaches, along with mangrove edged Tampa Bay waters and all public areas where people, food, and food debris collect. Gulls in downtown St. Petersburg have mastered the art of foraging and flourishing while trying to steal your French fries at Fresco’s on the waterfront. I bring this up because they stole mine. Outside dining opportunities are their opportunity, too. If urban nature isn’t your passion, but waterfront action dining is, try lunch at The Hangar, just south but still on the waterfront. At Albert Whitted Airport. You’ll enjoy delicious Burg typical foods indoors, or out. But with the sights and sounds of local air traffic around, the gull will not be a challenger to your meal.
St Joseph's Sound is bordered on the west by Honeymoon Island and Caladesi island, barrier islands that are part of our state park system. It's a vortex of gorgeous perfection for a day trip. Florida is, in itself, a vortex of gorgeous vacation spots and day tripping fun. If you are looking for quiet calm, with access to chaos and fun within 15 miles in any other direction mixed with views that only the Gulf of Mexico can offer, do not come here. I'm only writing about this to brag about my birthday spent with my sister and nephew. We live in Pinellas County. She's on the north end. I'm on the south end. We meet in the middle to share sister time. Kayaking the causeway is just about the best meet we can create. Outside of eating at Three Birds in St Petersburg.
Make the most of your downtown St. Petersburg dog bar and dog-friendly restaurant visits with a few good-to-know tips. There are a variety of dog-friendly bars and restaurants in St. Petersburg that offers outdoor seating, allowing dogs to join their owners in a sumptuous meal or tasty snack. Some have designated off-leash areas for dogs to play and socialize with other pups while owners watch, sip and snack, and brag about their dogs. There are three established dog catering cocktail slinging beer brewing establishments that put the word dog in their name while defining what’s best about dogs. We raise a glass and a paw to these venerable canine loving locations.
A companion parrot’s cage is their home. And like humans and our homes, parrots have their opinion on layout and usage. They find comfort, safety, rest, snacking, and entertainment in their space. To learn what your bird prefers, you’ll need to start with a first version setup. Version 1.0 of a cage setup is your ideas put to their testing. Parrots will adapt, change, and reject your ideas based on their opinion. There are no books or bird forums that can tell you how your parrot will use and interpret their space. Each parrot is different as each human is different. Our macaw, Butters, prefers everything the cockatiels have over her own.
There is no species of parrot that is a good pet. Pet being defined as a tamed or domesticated animal kept as a companion or treated with fondness. A parrot does not see itself as kept. Those in a companion parrot relationship can attest. Parrots are not domesticated and won’t be in the future. A flighted Being acquiescing to a non-flighted Being hasn’t happened in the evolutionary history of humans. What do they get out of the deal? Nothing that’s better than flying. Parrots are not good pets because they fly. Because they are smarter than humans. And they know it. Those in a companion parrot relationship have testified as much. But exceptions being a rule, there are countless companion parrot relationships around the world that prove a flying being will wait for a human to give up their human ego to enter a lifestyle that has nothing to do with conditional fondness, taming, or domestication. And everything to do with sincerity and empathy.
“You didn’t tell me Jonesy was a giant fish in a giant aquarium.”. Four college students in a dorm. Three of which knew about Jonesy. I did not. Jonesy was an Oscar fish. Big. How Paul got that tank in his dorm and filled it successfully with no authority knowing is your guess as good as mine. But there’s Jonesy. Waiting for his meal at six. Here’s me, freshman, just, and wondering what the hell is going on.
The confessions of an enthusiastic animal lover. Cornelia introduced herself out of the blue in 2017. Never having met a friend-seeking Muscovy duck, I was eager to comply with her every whim. Google told me grapes were a good choice for ducks. I cut them in half for her enjoyment and sat on the edge of our deck to hand-feed this magic apparition with webbed feet. I am an artist of paint and words by trade and passion. I feel too much, think too much, and fight depression because of it. I also take all ideas that inspire to 11 on a dial of 10.
You're choosing a companion lifestyle, not a pet. My first pet was a goldfish I won at our town’s Sweet Corn Festival. Easy for me. Complicated for my parents. Their fault for letting me toss the ping-pong ball. I’d already eaten sweet corn, taffy, and those paper plate sized globs of deep-fried dough with drifts of powdered sugar. I’m a nine-year-old surfing a massive sugar wave. Mom and dad felt confident I wouldn’t succeed based on my sugar jitters. They were wrong. Splash down into half-filled carnival wine glass. My prize swam round and round inside, bored with the commotion.
I'm a mealworm farmer. Let me introduce you to my bugs. Mealworms are a large yield food. Mealworms produce more food per unit of feed than traditional livestock. They don’t need much water, either. Raising mealworms is a straightforward process that requires a small investment, a small area to operate, and four months wait to harvest. They’ve got four stages in life from egg to larva to pupa to adult. They shed exoskeletons as they grow larger.
Hair is a protein outgrowth found on mammals. Polymers of amino acids chain to create a hair follicle that extends out past the skin. Fur is hair. Words are where things get hairy. Growth patterns on animals create the density we know as fur. Lengths, color, and texture vary. Animal hair has a structural difference, so the follicle core provides thermal regulation and moisture resistance. Theirs grows in different textures for different purposes depending on the mammal. Human hair grows as independent strands with cores that don't do much at all. Mine never kept me warm during all my Illinois winters. It's not kept me cool in my Florida weather. Nor has it once given me moisture resistance. Human hair is unemployable.
Heavy doors slam open and closed from far away. Heavier voices travel just behind the slamming sounds mixing into a slurry of dread. Halls echo other voices, shallow and unfathomable. Pleading.
And don't forget the dog park. I am not a psychologist. I am a mom, wife, daughter, sister, cousin, niece, friend, and best friend. I’m a professional Floridian. Since 1999. There’s been nine major hurricanes, and another 69 storms without names since 2000. No names are wicked nasty. I’m also a professional Illinoisan from 1963 to 1999. Which puts the tornado experience in my pocket. I’m a rape survivor. I’m also a survivor of an abusive first marriage. Trauma and breaking through to fresh air. I’ve done it a few thousand times. Feeling uprooted after a storm is normal. Knowing a reaction is normal helps. The aftermath of emotions is justified. A truth is yours, and nobody else’s. Take ownership of all the emotions. Why? First Aid only works if you apply it to the wound. You need to inspect the wound to apply first aid properly.
Let’s get one thing straight. That you are keeping them is an insult to the decision they made about you regarding their lifestyle. A cat is 95% tiger DNA. Please review this list of cat facts you need to understand to understand anything and everything cat.
There are two kinds of DE on the market. Filtered Pool Grade. Filtered Pool Grade should ONLY be used for pool filtrations as the heat processing creates a high level of crystalline silica, which is extremely dangerous and can seriously or fatally injure people and animals. Pool grade DE should never be used for anything except pool filtration. Duly note my abundant use of BOLD type in this paragraph.
Creative ways to inventory, save, and feed your pets. Things are expensive and getting more expensive and harder to find. If you have a family, you are feeling it. If you have companion animals, you are feeling it. If you got up this morning, you felt it.
Because parrots aren’t looking to be domesticated. There is no species of parrot that is a good pet. Pet being defined as a tamed or domesticated animal kept as a companion or treated with fondness. A parrot does not see itself as kept. Those in a companion parrot relationship can attest. Parrots are not good pets because they fly. Because their wildness is based on flight. Because they are smarter than humans. And they know it. Those in a companion parrot relationship will confirm. Exceptions being a rule, there are countless companion parrot relationships around the world that prove a flying Being will wait for a human to give up their human ego to enter a lifestyle that has nothing to do with conditional fondness, taming, or domestication. But everything to do with sincerity and empathy. And a dump truck load of humor.
Consider more than the size of your dog. Consider the size of their personality, too. Live in a house long enough and you’ll know every detail you want to change. Over the past twelve years we've added two dogs, eight parrots, a rabbit, and a guinea pig. The dogs are not small.