Rained buckets here last night, the first real respite from dry weather since the night the puppies were born almost six months ago. The noise was so loud it woke us all up, and I went out with the dogs on the back patio to enjoy the storm’s passing, sometime in the wee hours of the night. After the deluge slowed to sprinkles, we went back to bed.

My writing partner, our Dr. Marty Becker, called a little after 6 a.m. I’m usually up an hour or more by then, so he was surprised and apologetic to find he’d caught me sleeping. He was on fire, though, jazzed to the gills and stepping on to a plane in Spokane , heading east. These days he’s in NYC so often I tease him he ought to find an apartment, but I think the very idea offends his country boy soul. I know he thinks NYC is a great place to visit, but Idaho is home.

I dragged myself out of bed after the call, fed all the assorted critters and then headed back out with four fresh ears of corn for the chickens. They get cracked corn every day as a treat, but the dried stuff doesn’t compare with sweet summer corn, and they’re going to miss it when it’s gone. I put one ear in with the new hens (that’s one of them, above), and left them to figure out what a treat they had in front of them.

Heather picked at her breakfast, but otherwise seems to be feeling pretty perky for the second day in a row (that picture is her, taken yesterday).

Now I’m going to look though my notes for things I’ve seen over the last few days that are worth sharing, so keep hitting refresh as I keep adding — and please, if you have something good, toss it in the comments.

***

“The Dr. Oz Show” debuts today, and I know they’re worked up and excited: I had three e-mails from Dr. Becker’s producer by 8 a.m. ET (I’m helping with the next segment). The show sent out a media release about Dr. Becker, and it’s here. … Watch Wednesday for Dr. B’s debut, check here for local time and channel. This should be fun!

Pet Connection BFF Dr. Patty Khuly is too busy to return my phone call,  but there’s a good reason why. The Bloggingest Vet on Teh Internets is now writing a second blog, the Daily Vet for PetMD. She’s also the new pet-care columnist for USA Today. And pulling ER shifts, too.  Yo, PK, when do you sleep, girl?

Someday, maybe, I will have discretionary income again. When I do, I’m going here to spend it.  …  September is National Pet Health Insurance Month.  I’m a believer.  “Economic Euthanasia” is not something I want to be dealing with. …

I really hate Women’s Health magazine, which I don’t think I subscribed to but it keeps showing up anyway. Why do I hate it? It’s just a new take on the same old crap of women’s magazines forever, dished out to make women feel bad about themselves (you’re too fat! you’re too ugly! You aren’t appealing enough to get and keep a man!) –  enough so to buy more stuff to fix everything as if by magic  (yesterday’s quest for thin thighs is today’s obsession with a flat belly). That said, here’s a great tidbit from the current issue: If you’re going to cry, clear your throat. It temporarily flips off the sob switch. Good to know, especially if you have a sick older pet.  …

The guvmint has a new food-safety site: foodsafety.gov.  Dr. Marion Nestle on what is it and what it means.  Oh, and if it’ll help at all. … Nathan Winograd writes on how to change the thinking in shelters that they must kill because the public can’t be trusted with animals. I see that allll the time, and it’s what’s behind mandatory spay-neuter. We must punish! … The incredibly talented equine photographer Sarah Andrew writes about the one-year anniversary of the death of her lifelong friend, Alibar. His fly bonnet is retired, but his memory lives on. Get out the tissues. And clear your throat.

Update — a good-news one! — on the English shepherds of Montana over on Raised by Wolves.

That’s it for now …

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