An Emasculating Rooster
Brian McGrory, Buddy

Brian McGrory, a bachelor who lived in the city, once had a great Golden Retriever named Harry who unfortunately passed away too young at 10 years of age. But when Harry was alive, he introduced Brian to his lifelong veterinarian, Pam Bendock.

Brian ultimately fell in love and gave up his city life to move to the suburbs with Pam and her two daughters. No doubt this meant an adjustment, but the biggest adjustment was not only getting along with all of her pets, but a particular rooster named Buddy.

Buddy was the result of an elementary school science fair project, where they incubated eggs and watched them hatch. Buddy was an adorable little yellow fuzzy chick that was constantly handled and loved on by Pam and her daughters. However, the chick soon grew up and turned out to be a rooster instead of a hen.

Buddy loved Pam and her two daughters, but hated Brian's guts! In Buddy's defense, Brian doesn't feel he ever understood the point of him being there. Buddy was already ruling his roost, so he didn't need some pathetic little man there, trying to do the same thing. This put Brian as the second most popular guy in the household.

Brian said you draw lessons from funny places and as he was adjusting to life in suburbia, dealing with all of the drama from a house of all women, Buddy taught him commitment. Buddy was so darn committed to everything he had in the house and his yard, but wasn't concerned with anything going on outside of his fence line; he was just completely satisfied with his world.

While Brian felt that there wouldn't be any more roosters in his life, at some point there might be some hens in his future, which was okay with him!

Brian felt he would be better off if he were just a little more like Buddy and documented their time together in his book, Buddy.

Who Doesn't Like Dogs? - Dr. Debbie

I love dogs, and always have. But what happens when you discover a close friend doesn't merely not like dogs, but actually hates them?

I've been operating under the assumption that those who don't like dogs must have some evil lurking in their spirit and were destined to a life of incarceration. Just look at the statistics of criminals that abuse animals early on and who later progress to physical abuse of people, murder, or other sociopathic behaviors.

I'll admit not liking dogs is a far cry from turning one's hand to injure an animal or person, but some uncomfortable association is still there. As a full-fledged dog lover, or enthusiast of any animal for that matter, I cannot understand the psyche of an individual that is satisfied going about their life without animal companionship.

Any pet lover can spout off a list of benefits their furry one brings to their life…the steady comfort of companionship, a non-judging ear to hear out the day's tribulations, a workout or hiking buddy and a source of unconditional love at the end of a long day.

So, imagine my shock when I realized that a couple I know doesn't like dogs. Not just that they don't have dogs or misunderstand them - they actually dislike dogs.

Hint of this fact should have been apparent long ago when they were over for dinner and they politely stood stiff as a Calvary front line, when greeted by my yapping terrier mix. Or that they failed to stroke my Labrador's chin after receiving the gentle nudge of the typical canine greeting upon entering the home. The polite perfunctory smiles went un-noticed by me. "Sure, they don't have dogs," I reasoned as to why they weren't charmed by my little dog's amusing tail wagging display or by the steadfast devotion of my Labrador's greeting.

All of these sign posts I missed. I clearly misjudged all along. The couple, who I just assumed were just not yet fortunate to understand the benefits of pet companionship, were actually formidable dog dislikers.

Realization struck me during a recent conversation with this couple. I was laughingly describing the vast differences in dog breed behavior comparing my former Labradors, to that of my current Bouvier. My comments must have been mistaken as some underhanded means to convince them the right breed was out there for them. At that moment, my guest raised hands and said, "I know what I like and don't like, and I don't want dogs." Clearly they didn't like dogs - and they misunderstood my comment as some means to turn them over to the canine side against their will. Astounded, I marveled how this response was not unlike a person who is recommended a mushroom containing side dish or gourmet meal from a fine restaurant, and who declares "I can't stand mushrooms and don't want anything to do with mushrooms!"

Spidery Surprise Of Black Widows
Dockworkers in England got a spidery surprise when they opened up a shipping container infested with hundreds of deadly black widow spiders. The insects are believed to have hatched inside a crate shipping tires from Arizona to England. The stowaway spiders then used the 5,000-mile trip to overtake the container. Workers were searching the container for wildlife when they spotted the arachnids. They quickly sealed the container and called pest control services to eliminate them. While Black widows have a bad reputation, their bite is rarely deadly.

Does Your Dog Know You? I Mean Really Know You?
A certain bark, a certain posture, a certain look. But did you know your dog can tell a lot about you as well? Veterinarian Dr. Stu Robson said there are things your dog might know about you. They know when you're being unfair, to some extent. Researchers found that when dogs saw other dogs getting treats for a trick they'd been performing unrewarded, the uncompensated dogs became visibly distressed. They can tell when your priorities shift. When you bring a baby home from the hospital, your pet probably won't be the focus of your undivided attention anymore. And guess what? He'll pick up on that pretty quickly. It can even lead to depression. They understand when you're mad. You know that "puppy dog" look you get after giving him some discipline? He definitely senses you're annoyed and then crouches down, whines, and/or whimpers. But don't mistake this behavior as showing remorse. The "guilty look" doesn't necessarily correspond to dogs who had actually been naughty. They sense your fear. Dogs read the world by reading us. If you act cautiously and back away, they probably will too. They can tell if you're generous. Believe it or not, dogs are watching and listening to your social interactions with other humans and taking notes. So beware, your dog may judge your personality while you yell at your spouse or kids. They sniff out sickness. A slew of fascinating research shows that many diseases, like lung cancer and prostate cancer, cause the body to give off odors that dogs are able to detect. A dog's nose is between 1,000 and 10,000 times better than a human being's

Listen to the entire Podcast of this show (#1346)