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 |   A Journal to impart knowledge and facts |
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July 22, 2015 I'm going to start today to record on a daily basis whatever happens to strike my fancy. So, it is a very cool breezy day. I just posted 5 short book reviews to The Monthly Reading Challenge. I'm suppose to put away some winter wood today from the woodpile outside but I'm playing hookey from work to write so starting this blog will get done. I'm having a daily fight with a flock of English Sparrows that are trying to take over my barn. They are making a terrible mess so they have to go. I have destroyed several nests so far they don't leave but they get out of the barn when I am around. I'm just starting the fight so I guess I don't know how far I have to go to discourage them. I'm trying not to spread myself to thin on WDC because I find so many things that are interesting here and I am trying to work on a new story. I really enjoy sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and reading blogs on WDC. |
If animals could talk, which animal would you want to have a conversation with? What would you ask?  Animals communicate. Some even say words in the spoken language with which they are familiar. I think African grey parrots are the most famous for learning and expressing in English. Alex knew somewhere in the amount of 100 words. There is a famous horse that was exhibited for his knowledgeable abilities to count and reply to math questions and other nonsensical questions. I've owned more than one cat that can say Out. It is an easy word for them to learn, because their vocal abilities are shaped for it. And, prowling outside, sleeping on a sunny porch is something they really enjoy. The bible says animals communicate in a way of silence and speech sets humans apart from animals. Spoken languages are one of the ways humans are set apart from other species. I lived with a lilac crowned parrot who was about 52 before she died. She was always able to talk a bit. One day as I was going out the door to school she asked clearly, "Where are you going." I used to get a picture in my mind sometimes of a coastal forest near an ocean. An extremely wild looking area of land. While in college I decided to research a paper about parrots. I found a coastal area in Mexico known as the habitat for Lilac crowned parrots. It was the picture I had been seeing in my mind on an off for years.(This started before computers, the information age, and WIFI.) At one time these parrots were captured as young birds and transported in crates to ports to be sold as pets. This is illegal today. Lilac crowned parrots, and the coastal area, where they breed, are protected in Mexico. All the animals I keep have had other owners before me. I have a female cat that screams, whenever most other cats come near her or whenever any one picks her up. I have discovered over the years she is quite harmless. I would like to ask her why she does this. I would like to ask my new dog about his life before he came to me. Many rescue dogs do not have any training, when they come to you. You are training and also educating a nearly full grown dog to use words in language and be a companionable friend. He becomes frightened of some things and shakes and shivers when upset. I am in touch with someone who also has a new rescue dog. Their dog and mine exhibit some of the same fright impulses. There are You Tubes about how to work with a new shelter rescue animal. Many of these dogs who end up in a shelter exhibit the same problems. Leash pulling, jumping up, and extreme hyper energy are three of the commonest problems. Dogs who end up in shelters often come from extremely harsh experiences before the shelters get them. A part golden retriever I owned for 16 years came to us with exceptional understanding of English words. Dogs catch on fast. He was so well trained. I always wondered why he was abandoned on a back road near us. He was a very good friend to me but, he always watched for his first owner. Puppies bond to the first owner. After a few years I began to believe his first owner was a capable dog trainer and kind owner and deliberately abandoned the dog when they were finished with it. To me this idea of taking a puppy, raising it to about 1-2 years, and then abandoning it is one of the cruelest types of dog ownership. Hope I stayed on track here. Have a good day. Stay safe.  |
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And yes, we do get to have different teachers for different things in life. 