Unconditional Love

       By BILL JUNEAU 

                                                               Let's be honest; there is something about dogs which is very special, and that awesome quality strikes a chord deep within certain humans, who become known as "dog people." This is pretty much a lifelong affliction for those who succumb to it. 
                                      And inside this phenomenal canine kingdom is the incredible Cairn terrier, the little guy with the huge personality whose ancestors hailed from the Isle of Skye in Scotland. Characteristics that apply to the average canine seem to apply to the Cairn terrier tenfold.
                                           He is a hunter extraordinaire; a "ratter" with a nose ten thousand times more sensitive than his human friends and mentors.  He is very smart yet at times he "comes" at his own pace depending on what's in it for him.  Some say the Cairn, while affectionate, marches to the beat of his own drum, although a treat will usually raise the volume. As they always say at Westminster, the big dog show: "It's a terriers' world; they just let us live in it." This is especially true of our Cairn friends.
                                           Some dog owners think, "If only dogs could talk." Well, they do.  Think of that loquacious relative who downs a few too many sherries at Thanksgiving and chews your ear off between courses: now look at your cairn standing by the window barking at falling leaves. Some similarities, you think?
                                           Yet we probably don't even realize the extent of the average dog's vocabulary. (Cairns in particular are considered very "vocal.") There is no doubt that certain words, like walk, treat and suppertime, are in their dictionary.  The word "no" is perhaps more debatable. 
                                           Delivering their message is accomplished  through their ears, tail and body language. Yes, the "bark"-- now there is communication worthy of a good translator.  Noisy--yes, at times it can make you think about the dreaded shake-can or squirt gun as a remedy. 
                                            Canine psychologists have studied "dog talk" for a good while and have determined that they communicate about three main topics:  emotional states, social relations and the expression of wants and desires.  Barking is in different pitches and tones, so listen carefully, quips Dr. Stanley Coren, a professor of psychology---a man who  knows "dog talk." 

                                             The  professor, who is the author of the book, "The Intelligence of Dogs,"  has done a good deal of research in carving out the interpretations of man's best friends. For example, the continuous rapid barking at mid range pitch translates into specific canine rhetoric:  "Call the pack.  There is a potential problem.  Someone is coming into our territory." Our cairns, in particular, are especially good at alerting us to the arrival of the pool service...the handyman, the dry cleaner, the lawn guy. 
                                             But then, one or two sharp, short barks, at mid range pitch, is more welcoming, the doggie version of "Hello there."  But change the pitch slightly upward, says Dr. Coren, and you have. "What's this?"  In other words, "Is there a slight movement at the back of the yard?" 
                                              There are all sorts of growls. Some graduate into a bark, and some say, "Beware--back off."  With a lower pitch, the growl/bark sends the warning, "I'm upset and ready to fight."  Dr. Coren also identifies the "undulating growl with high pitch, as "if you come at me, I may fight or I may run." This latter translation probably does not apply to the average terrier, which has no idea how small it is and rarely backs down.
                                               Understanding the language of your dog, and getting your dog to understand you, is a big part of canine ownership.  
                                              Of course there is unspoken communication too. There's that look of pure contentment as your cairn settles in next to you on the couch at night, sprawled out like a contortionist sometimes, which says "I am at peace, all is well."
                                            Many dog owners become especially loyal to a particular  breed. This is usually most common with dogs with a lot of moxie, or, let's admit it, "attitude," like our beloved Cairns.
                                             Perhaps that is part of the magic of the Cairn, be it he or she, black, brindle or wheaten. Ah, just to see him zipping about in his back yard or on the beach; or looking over the trees and bushes, or sniffing (or digging energetically) at the ground.  Is there a busier breed?  How about that moment when your Cairn attacks his squeak toy, resolved to rid that beast of all noise-making ability.  Yes, that is a Cairn being a Cairn.
                                             Do you ever wonder about the memory of a dog?  Does he store something in that busy head and then recall it in subsequent days.  Absolutely, observes Dr. Coren.  And he has some first hand experience from his days with his Cairn, Feldspar, whom he praises for his vocabulary and ability to recall.  Feldspar would always cower and hide upon hearing the word "Bath.  "  Conversely, said Coren, another of his dogs actually raced to the shower room upon hearing that word.  Can your Cairn count?  Try putting three dog cookies in your pocket and then give him only two.                                             .  
                                             In Florida, where we used to live before moving to Sun City the grass and bushes are the home for those little lizards we call gekkos. There are trillions of them.  The search for them is never ending for our Cairns. They will sniff and hunt relentlessly or until something else become more important, like maybe suppertime or a little ball chasing.  
                                             Put it all together and remember how he joins you when you are taking a nap, or accompanies you on that walk.  He is, one writer has said, "the only thing on earth that loves you more than he loves himself." A dog doesn't love us just because we do something for him like feed him food and water; let him sleep with us in bed; comb his fur and take him for a car ride.  He just loves us anyway, and that's "unconditional." 

                                                -30-

                 

A Cairn and her nose

   By Florida Bill 

                                  That Cairn terrier nose is something to really admire.  Some experts say it is about 100,000 times as sensitive as that belonging to its two-footed friends.  
                                   Wendy, a black Cairn whose ancestors first appeared centuries ago on the Isle of Skye in Scotland, tells us exactly what sniffing out an intruder is all about.
                                 


                                   A few days, we opened the back door of our Florida home and whistled and shouted an "out" to notify our Cairns, Sammi, 10, and Wendy,8,  that they could visit the rear yard for a look around and do whatever Cairns like to do in a grassy yard.  Sammi appeared immediately and exited the door, but Wendy never showed.  After repeated whistles and calls, we started looking for her.  Had she somehow gotten out and was roaming free about the neighborhood? Hopefully not that. 
                                  We began searching the house, and in a rear office of our ranch style home, we found her alongside a desk, motionless, but staring intently.  Her focus on someone or something behind the furniture was obvious.  There are a good many wires for TVs,  stereos, lamps and a fax machines jumbled together behind the desk and partially concealed by a "Dolphins" trash can.  Access is difficult as space between the wall and the desk is about eight inches. 
                                 Wendy would not take no for an answer and so we removed the basket and she roared into the small space, rooted about the wires, and emerged with a black bug the size of a quarter in her mouth---which she promptly dropped at our feet, and accepted our praise.  It was of course dead and we grabbed it with a napkin, but did not recognize it as a bug which we had seen before.                                    But I must congratulate our Wendy who must have smelled or heard something from that tiny interloper and she was not going to rest until she had removed it from territory on which she resides and protects. Wendy, you are magnificent and for that, a piece of your very favorite Pupperoni.

President Adams' and his pet Gator

     By Florida Bill                                     

                                    One thing about living in Florida, you can never predict when an alligator might turn up as an uninvited guest on your property.  A few days ago, a Boca Raton Florida home owner stepped from his door into the sunshine of his backyard and prepared for a swim.  

                                          As he looked at the swirling, inviting blue water, he was taken aback to see an eight-foot long gator cruising about the bottom of the pool.  Gathering his aplomb, homeowner and father, Matt Fino, notified his family of the unwelcome fellow, and his wife, kids and a small dog all came to take a look.  Police and wildlife trappers were called and hustled to the home, where they removed the interloper and sent him (or her) to a place where gators can live and  not cause problems. 
                                         Gators have actually been around Florida and the southern states for a very long time--and they don't seem to have evolved much. They have a decidedly prehistoric look about them. Some 1.8 million of them are said to be residing in the magnificent Everglades which covers one and one-half millions acres in the central portion of the state.  They wander off from time to time, moving about via the canals which weave in and out of many communities. 

                                          And believe it or not, some persons might even look upon a big toothy gator as a pet---just keep him well fed and away from some one's foot or the family dog and he can be part of the family.  And his digs could be anything from a fenced in muddy pen behind a barn, a tub, or even special quarters provided by the rich and famous.  

                                           Way back in 1826, America's sixth president, John Quincy Adams, received an alligator as a gift from the Marquis de Lafayette, a general in the American Revolutionary war and a leader of the Garde Nationale during the French Revolution.  Apparently he was both a friend of Adams and an admirer of dangerous reptiles.  He presented the big-toothed fellow to President Adams who resided in the White House on Pennsylvania avenue. 

                                           Historians tell us that Adams developed affection and a healthy respect for the critter which he then kept in a bathtub in the East Room.  The President enjoyed introducing guests and dignitaries to his pet and was tickled when they first came upon it and reacted  nervously, unaccustomed to seeing such a critter sitting in a bathtub in the nation's most famous house. 
                                            That was President Quincy Adams, son of John Adams, America's second President and the successor to George Washington. 
                                             About 100 years later, in 1931, President Herbert Hoover had the company of two alligators in the White House.  It wasn't  exactly Hoover who gave them a home there--it was his son Allan Henry Hoover who enjoyed and promoted his pets.  Allan had charge of two gators, which he kept in a bathtub.  From time to time, so the story goes, the gators would find their way onto the White House grounds where they would slither about sunning themselves.  Occasionally, when surprised White House visitors stumbled upon the alligators, they would stare a bit and then report their presence to the Secret Service.  Allan would be notified and his wards would be returned to their tub. 
                                            Actually,  it isn't too unusual for alligators to show up in a pool in sunny Florida, like the recent incident in Boca Raton, as these intimidating animals do get around. Florida with its everglades is a maze of intersecting canals and waterways and stories abound of their turning up in unusual places.  It is the rare Florida golfer who has not bumped into one on the links, sometimes even on the greens. 
                                            Just a few days ago, a four foot  alligator crawled under a car in a Sarasota shopping center while the patron was in the mall. A couple of sheriff's deputies corralled him and had him moved to an "appropriate wetlands."   
                                       Last July, a ten-foot alligator made its way to the dugout of a baseball field in Port Charlotte.  It unnerved players as they arrived for a game, but after the animal was rousted, the game was played. In 2016 there was a report of a Florida congressman who attended a funeral on Merritt Island and when he prepared to leave found a big guy under his automobile. An animal squad relocated the gator, and the congressman left safely with just a story to tell.  
                                       In April of 2016, in Sherlington, Louisiana, a homeowner was greeted by a sizable intruder behind an easy chair in his living room.  As you might guess, he was a bit unnerved, and called police. A wandering gator from the bayous, or maybe a neighbor's pet who wanted out? 
                                        Spring--mating season-- is undoubtedly the most likely time to see male alligators on the move, looking for females to make baby gators with. They are often seen stopping traffic, cutting across backyards to get from pond to pond, and just generally making themselves obnoxious in residential neighborhoods.
                                       At one time alligators were approaching extinction and were an endangered species. As a result, hunting was prohibited and their habitats protected.  No more. The alligator has made a dramatic recovery and the "endangered" designation was removed in 1987.  About the only predator an adult gator has is an especially large python, and there has been evidence of a few epic battles between the two  in the Everglades. Usually there is no winner.
                                       So of course, the presence of gators today is  way up and licensed hunting is now a sport and the sale of alligator meat and skin has become a respectable industry in the South. 
                                       
                                               xxx