It seemed like a good idea at the time: Buy a house with a two-acre property, let our energetic herding dog have the run of the place and spend blissful summer days digging side by side in the dirt with her. And it was blissful, watching Mattie carve out her napping spots behind the ferns and tall...
The Humane Society of the United States has released its annual Horrible Hundred report, which exposes violations or concerns at 100 puppy mills to educate the public about conditions prevalent in breeding operations throughout the country. Researchers combed through inspection records from state...
Sixty-two dogs were living on the Las Vegas, New Mexico, property when our Animal Rescue Team arrived in March to assist in rescuing them. They were found outdoors on frozen ground littered with broken glass, wires and other debris. Kirsten Peek, HSUS media relations manager, was present that day...
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek signed bills to stop the sale of puppy mill puppies and kittens in pet stores (HB 2915) and to end the sale of animal-tested cosmetics (HB 3213). Kotek also recently signed a package of housing bills that included funding for domestic violence and homeless shelters to better...
Many Marches ago, as I mindlessly contorted myself to pull a deep-rooted weed from the garden patch, my thoughts turned longingly to the smell of fresh basil that would eventually grace what I saw as a still-barren vegetable graveyard. This spot was not so lifeless as it appeared, I would soon learn...
The suspect creeping up near my front fence was a tough character—broad-leafed and thick-stemmed and threatening to invade my property and swallow it whole if I didn’t act fast. There was no hesitation that summer morning as I headed to work: Off with his head! It was a decision made all too easy by...
To experience the natural world, we often navigate congested highways to swim in the sea, fly over patchworked terrain to hike through preserved forests and climb distant mountaintops to catch rare views. Largely because of our ever-increasing mobility, the areas nearest to us are rarely the dearest...
They were like moths to a flame or, more accurately, butterflies to a native plant. No sooner had I unloaded two joe-pye weed perennials from my car last August than three tiger swallowtails dive-bombed the pots, as if to validate my purchase. If only my fellow shoppers knew what they were missing...