Wink is at the farthest end of the outside field. Keep your eye on the top middle of the video to find him.

Click here to view the embedded video.

In the Northeast, we use Mother’s Day as the official opening for our gardening season. For those of us who want to get a jump on growing, starting seedlings a month or two in advance is a way of life.

Before I can plant these outdoors, I’ll start hardening them off by putting them outside in a sheltered sunny spot for a few hours a day. That will help lessen the transplant shock.

Then I’ll direct seed the rest of my garden, so that I’ll have a good rotation of vegetables in varying stages of production throughout the growing season.

Only another gardener would understand how exciting it is to see how beautiful and healthy my seedlings are. And only another gardener would understand how it’s taking every ounce of self-restraint I have not to plant these right now! : )

Have you ever seen such a forlorn face? Wink wants to go run in the fenced field but he has lost privileges.

You see, he’s recently gone deaf. No, not completely. Only upon hearing the word “Come.” Then he’s stone deaf!

That’s because he’s found something he considers way more interesting than me. Namely, a place where the wild ducks are able to squeeze under the fence.

As soon as that gate is opened, he flies to that spot and furiously digs, trying to get to them. Thankfully, he doesn’t have the ability to compress himself to fit under such a small opening and I’ve place a stone there so he can’t dig out. But when it’s time for him to come inside, he completely doesn’t hear me. Truly. That’s because when a dog is so intensely focused on a high adrenaline activity (in this case, hunting ducks — spaniels are bird dogs don’t forget) he literally stops hearing.

So I realize it’s fruitless to try to call him under these circumstances. In the off chance one or two of my calls do reach his ears, he’d still ignore them. And I sure don’t want to teach him that the word “Come” means “Fuggedaboutit!” Hence, the leash I now keep on the fence post for easy access.

Now when I want him to come, I go to him, put the leash on, wait a few moments to allow him to go back to digging. And then I call him while gently pulling on the leash so that he HAS NO CHOICE but to come to me.Then he gets a big reward of Finn’s smelly (but high quality) cat kibble. I swear he’d leap tall buildings for Finn’s kibble, that’s how much he loves it.

Then we rinse and repeat several times, ending on a happy kibble party all the way back to the house.

It’ll be another week or so before I have him completely back on track, but eventually he’ll remember that I’m way more cool than any silly ducks, and he’ll resume breaking the land speed record to get back to me.

The key to keeping your dog well-trained is to stay on of top of any digressions and deal with them immediately, before they have a chance to set it.  And when you do, it’s as easy as pie to keep that positive relationship with your dog. All it takes is a few simple tweaks every now and again.

I’m especially not fond of the onslaught of forwarded blast emails by concerned citizens (usually originating from political shills) sharing “vital” information that those of us with lesser brains need to be made aware.

To help you sift and sort through the miasma, here is a listing of some of my favorite legitimate fact-checking sites. I’ve excerpted descriptions of each site from the article, Internet research for the careful citizen by Kathleen Atkins. This way, when you are the recipient of well-meaning friends forwarding those lovely blast emails without first checking the veracity of the content, now you can get to the bottom of it for yourself! Happy Truth Hunting! And don’t forget to vote at every opportunity– read Seth Godin’s interesting take on why it matters now more than ever.

Respected fact-checking Sites and sources:

If the topic giving you a headache or heartburn is a public-affairs controversy, three of the most respected fact-checking resources are FactCheck.org, The Fact Checker (Washington Post), and PolitiFact.com. All three use a similar format: they present the original text and then compare what was said to the known facts.

FactCheck.org is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. It’s billed as a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that verifies or debunks statements by and about politicians in speeches, ads, press releases, debates, interviews, and mass e-mailings. The organization publishes its findings on its website and also distributes material via podcast. FactCheck.org discloses its own funding sources on its site. Its archives go back to 2003.

The Fact Checker is a widely read column and blog by respected Washington Post reporter Glenn Kessler. He rates the veracity of political statements in a five-level range. (Kessler assigns four Pinocchios for whoppers and a Gepetto to those rare statements that are completely true.) Although his assessments have been criticized by partisans from both left and right, he’s generally considered an evenhanded evaluator. The Fact Checker website archives go back to September 2007.

The PolitiFact website is owned and operated by the Tampa Bay Times. It publishes the Truth-O-Meter rating system, in which a true statement is identified as True and a bold, complete lie is rated Pants on Fire (from the taunt “Liar, liar, pants on fire”). The system allows for degrees of truth in between. Political commentators across the entire ideological spectrum have disputed PolitiFact’s evaluations, but the website’s judgments are widely quoted.

Snopes: Against the whole wide world of untruths

Snopes, with its official title, “Urban Legends Reference Pages,” speaks to the range of its interest. The Snopes researchers don’t hesitate to take on politics, but they also identify urban legends, folklore, myths, rumors, frauds, and scams in subject categories ranging from autos to weddings. The site gets about 300,000 daily visits, and evidence compiled by Snopes researchers is widely cited in broadcast and print news.

The site evaluates videos, photographs, and other artifacts in addition to stories of questionable veracity; it invites posts to its message board and rumor submissions to its comments section. Snopes is such a widely respected debunker of falsehood that some scam artists attempt to deflect investigation by falsely asserting their claims have passed a Snopes truth test.

Encyclopedic knowledge: Free on the Web

For more home-grown research, a good starting point is Wikipedia, which is subject to constant scrutiny by other organizations across the enormous breadth of its subject areas. These days, the consensus is that Wikipedia is a generally reliable first stop when you’re beginning research on a new topic.

On Duty

Given his breed and his native sensitivity–he’s more highly tuned than the most finely calibrated motion detector–he’s constantly on Red Alert! Nothing escapes his vigilant gaze. And I do mean NOTHING.

Whether it’s a vole half an acre away or a bird flying half a mile up in the sky or a person walking half a mile down the road, this dog feels compelled to announce his findings. Persistently. Until someone notices. Preferably Kiera. And then he’ll bark in her face until he forces her to join in. (Actually, she barks at him to tell him he can stand down, she’s got it covered. As the Alpha dog, she’s the commander-in-chief.)

Wha.. What was that?! Did you hear that?! I heard that. Over there!

And that makes for a very barky dog. At all hours of the day and night. God bless my neighbors–they don’t complain. So when I’m home, I spend a lot of my time redirecting his alerting behavior and giving him better options. It’s a full time job, often including through the wee hours of the morning–he’s a very light sleeper. Good thing I love him. : )

But when he started rolling back his waking time from 5:30 am to 5:00 am to 4:30 am to… It was time to take stronger measures.

You see, Graidy is a Sentry dog. And if you’re familiar with pack behavior, you know that this is a very important role in the pack. The Sentry dog’s job is to sound the alarm. To alert the pack to any changes in the surrounding environment. And he takes his job very seriously, performing it with slavish dedication.

One of the interesting physiological characteristics of Sentry dogs is that they do actually spend less time in the deeper phases of sleep. And when they are in that deeper sleep, they go through that cycle hard and fast.

Knowing that part of Graidy’s problem with night-time waking is that he’s hard-wired to be super-easily aroused, I decided to try giving him a 25 mg Benedryl (which acts as a mild sedative) at bedtime in the hope that would help him sleep more soundly.

And, Hallelujah! He’s sleeping through until 6:30 am!

As for the barking? That’ll be a life-long project. :)

I have three dogs and one cat. Luckily, for their health, they all poop at least once a day. That’s a LOT of poop over the course of a year. Multiply that times all the other pets in the country and that’s REALLY A LOT of pet poop (typically tied in non-biodegradable bags) going into landfills!

In my ongoing efforts to work the 3 R’s (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle), I’ve been looking for a way to safely recycle my pets’ waste. No, neither dog nor cat waste is suitable for garden compost (and you need to be careful where and how you compost it), but that doesn’t mean it can’t be turned into general compost.

It just takes a little elbow grease, a couple of tools, a garbage can, some rocks–and about an hour of your time.

*Instructions for building an environmentally safe dog/cat poo composter:

1. Because pet waste is a bacterial concoction that can include E. coli, salmonella, and giardia, you want to select an area with porous soil away from water sources (including areas with a high water table) and vegetable gardens so as to avoid contamination issues.
2. Cut out the bottom of a plastic garbage can and drill a dozen or so drainage holes in the sides.
3. Dig a hole deep enough to sink the can so that the top is a couple of inches above ground-level. (You want enough clearance to be able to securely fasten the lid.)
4. Before placing the garbage can in the hole, add rocks or gravel to the bottom for drainage.
5. After you toss in the day’s doodoo, just sprinkle on a little septic starter found in hardware stores. (I use  Ecological Laboratories 10q Microbe-Lift Septic and Cesspool Treatment with great success.)   Then add a little water and plop the top back on.

In short order, you’ll have rich soil to spread on anything non-edible. And if you don’t want to make use of the soil, just lift out the garbage can, dig another hole and rinse and repeat.

If you don’t have a place to safely compost, or you’d just rather not, then check out these 100 percent biodegradable BioBags for picking up your pet poo. At least these will break down in landfills and that’s a really good start!

* Thanks to Marion Owen for the idea!

    
Peonies breaking dormancy                                                        Crabapple tree budding
     

All my trees are starting to bud too early                                   Grass greening up and growing

But we northern gardeners have to learn early on to accept the vagaries of unpredictable weather. So I’ve been taking full advantage of the unseasonable warmth and have gotten started laying down a new garden bed.

Roto-tilling and working in compost happens later today. Then by the time my seedlings are ready to plant, the soil will have had a chance to settle back down and worms will have replenished. Then I’ll leave the soil alone and manage weed control with mulching.

As always happens when I think about growing food, I also think about cooking food. If you’re anything like me, by this time of year, you’re running out of steam for tried and true recipes and are looking for something to shake up the dinner rotation. Here’s my new favorite cookbook:  Essential Pepin: More Than 700 All-Time Favorites.

Every recipe I’ve tested has been fantastically delicious and surprisingly simple to prepare. Pepin offers a variety of innovative ways to prepare seasonally fresh ingredients–perfect for a gardener’s bounty. He’s inspired me to actually enjoy cooking again! And that’s saying something!

Guidelines for Responsible Pet Ownership

1. Owning a pet is a privilege and should result in a mutually beneficial relationship. However, the benefits of pet ownership come with obligations.
2. Responsible pet ownership includes:
3. Committing to the relationship for the life of the pet(s).
4. Avoiding impulsive decisions about obtaining pet(s), and carefully selecting pet(s) suited to your home and lifestyle.
5. Recognizing that ownership of pet(s) requires an investment of time and money.
6. Keeping only the type and number of pets for which an appropriate and safe environment can be provided, including adequate and appropriate food, water, shelter, health care and companionship.
7. Ensuring pets are properly identified (i.e., tags, microchips, or tattoos) and that registration information in associated databases is kept up-to-date.
8. Adherence to local ordinances, including licensing and leash requirements.
9. Controlling pet(s) reproduction through managed breeding, containment, or spay/neuter, thereby helping to address animal control and overpopulation problems.
10. Establishing and maintaining a veterinarian-client-patient relationship.
11. Providing preventive (e.g., vaccinations, parasite control) and therapeutic health care for the life of the pet(s) in consultation with, and as recommended by, its veterinarian.
12. Socialization and appropriate training for pet(s), which facilitates their well-being and the well-being of other animals and people.
13. Preventing pet(s) from negatively impacting other people, animals and the environment, including proper waste disposal, noise control, and not allowing pet(s) to stray or become feral.
14. Providing exercise and mental stimulation appropriate to the pet(s)’ age, breed, and health status.
15. Advance preparation to ensure the pet(s)’ well-being in the case of an emergency or disaster, including assembling an evacuation kit.
16. Making alternative arrangements if caring for the pet is no longer possible.
17. Recognizing declines in the pet(s) quality of life and making decisions in consultation with a veterinarian regarding appropriate end-of-life care (e.g., palliative care, hospice, euthanasia).

YES! is all I have to say. Please consider doing your part to spread these guidelines. Educated dog owners make for happy dog owners and happy, healthy dogs!

Those of us who work in Rescue would like to add one more item to their guidelines in the ongoing effort to eradicate puppy mills: Never purchase a puppy from a pet store or online site.

What would you add to this list?

So I was not surprised when she told me that she wanted to share her new favorite poem (as she is also an avid reader). But that she wanted to read “this great poem my teacher read in class” out loud so that I would hear it with the proper inflection peaked my curiosity. After she finished, I understood why. I wouldn’t have known to read each line as a question, with the voice going up. We had a good laugh because we both couldn’t agree more.

Taylor Mali, the poet, makes for quite an unusual teacher. Wish he taught at Cait’s school. He has a great website; take a look.

Totally like whatever, you know?
by Taylor Mali

In case you hadn’t noticed,
it has somehow become uncool
to sound like you know what you’re talking about?
Or believe strongly in what you’re saying?
Invisible question marks and parenthetical (you know?)’s
have been attaching themselves to the ends of our sentences?
Even when those sentences aren’t, like, questions? You know?

Declarative sentences—so-­‐called
because they used to, like, DECLARE things to be true, okay,
as opposed to other things are, like, totally, you know, not—
have been infected by a totally hip
and tragically cool interrogative tone? You know?
Like, don’t think I’m uncool just because I’ve noticed this;
this is just like the word on the street, you know?
It’s like what I’ve heard?
I have nothing personally invested in my own opinions, okay?
I’m just inviting you to join me in my uncertainty?

What has happened to our conviction?
Where are the limbs out on which we once walked?
Have they been, like, chopped down
with the rest of the rain forest?
Or do we have, like, nothing to say?
Has society become so, like, totally . . .
I mean absolutely . . . You know?
That we’ve just gotten to the point where it’s just, like . . .
whatever!

And so actually our disarticulation . . . ness
is just a clever sort of . . . thing
to disguise the fact that we’ve become
the most aggressively inarticulate generation
to come along since . . .
you know, a long, long time ago!

I entreat you, I implore you, I exhort you,
I challenge you: To speak with conviction.

To say what you believe in a manner that bespeaks
the determination with which you believe it.
Because contrary to the wisdom of the bumper sticker,
it is not enough these days to simply QUESTION AUTHORITY.
You have to speak with it, too.

Mali. Taylor. “Totally like whatever, you know?.” What Learning Leaves. Newtown, CT: Hanover Press, 2002. Print. (ISBN: 1-­‐887012-­‐17-­‐6)