Ask the Vet: I Have a New Puppy! What Vaccinations Does She Need?

Posted on April 11, 2013April 8, 2015 by GriffinNeighbors

I have a new puppy! What vaccinations does she need to keep her healthy?

Dr. Cindy Goldsmith, a veterinarian at the Steamboat Animal Hospital, answers:

Puppies and kittens need vaccinations to help prevent severe infections that may be life-threatening. They need a series of vaccines beginning at 6 – 8 weeks and ending at 16 – 18 weeks.

For dogs, vaccines are available for parvovirus, distemper, hepatitis, parainfluenza, leptospirosis, bordetella and rabies.

For cats we have vaccines for distemper, rhino tracheitis, calcivirus, feline leukemia and rabies.

It is important to complete a series of vaccines so your pet will be protected from these diseases. Your veterinarian can help determine which vaccines your pet needs to keep her healthy!

Dr. Cindy Goldsmith and her husband have lived in the Steamboat community for several years; their son goes to Griffin School. Dr. Cindy has special interests in medicine, surgery, oncology, and ultrasound. She provides an important perspective on animal health.

Text and photographs reprinted with permission from issue 8 of the Steamboat Island Register. For more information and to advertise in the Register, contact Amanda Waggoner at (360) 870-2126 or steamboatreg@gmail.com

The Red-Tailed Hawk

Posted on April 7, 2013May 4, 2015 by GriffinNeighbors

The red-tailed hawk is very good at adapting to different environments. They have no problem cohabitating with humans and have even made a home for themselves in New York City, where they feed on pigeons and rats.

The deforestation of the United States actually made more hunting grounds for the red-tailed hawk, who seems to find a utility pole the perfect lookout over a field or roadway.

The red-tailed hawk feeds primarily on rodents and can reach 120 miles per hour when diving from the sky to catch its doomed prey.

If you hear the screeching of a hawk look to the sky. If there is only a single hawk, the bird is probably hunting or guarding its territory, but if you see two hawks twirling around each other, be prepared to be impressed. This is a courtship flight, where the male may show off to the female for over ten minutes by swooping, diving and even grabbing her talons in midair. Hawks usually mate for life and perform this dance often, so keep your eyes on the sky this spring.

Click here for more articles about the nature around us.

The Great Blue Heron

Posted on March 18, 2013May 4, 2015 by GriffinNeighbors

While Blue Herons live throughout North America, they are iconic of the Pacific Northwest, because they only live around water, and we have a lot of water, and unlike the colder parts of the country where they migrate south, here they are year-round residents.

Blue Herons gather in colonies of 5 to 500 to breed. Both the female and male build a nest of sticks. The eggs are a light blue, and both parents will regurgitate food for the young once they hatch.

The firstborn chick gets larger than its siblings because it learns how to handle food and be aggressive towards its clutch mates.

While primarily consuming small fish, the Great Blue Heron will also eat small mammals, insects, amphibians and small birds. They swallow their prey whole and have been known to choke on prey that is too large.

The Natural World – The Crow

Posted on February 17, 2012May 4, 2015 by GriffinNeighbors

Believe is or not, crows are considered one of the world’s most intelligent animals. They have been seen using breadcrumbs as bait to catch fish or dropping hard-to-open nuts on busy roads and waiting for the nuts to be run over and cracked open. This use of tools has impressed scientists who study the crow, and have found them capable of solving complex puzzles. On the beaches of the Puget Sound it is very common to see a crow pick up a clam, take off, and then drop it on to a rocky area. Eventually the clam will crack open and the crow will have a nice snack.

A group of crows is called a murder, and a roost tree where the murder sleeps can hold as many as 50,000 birds.

While it is hard for humans to tell one crow from the other, crows have been known to identify specific humans, especially “bad” humans who have harmed a fellow crow. They will squawk at and even dive bomb the poor sap.

When you see crows crashing into each other in the air, they are playing a high-speed game of “chicken,” to figure out which crow is dominant.

Originally published in the Steamboat Island Register and used here with permission. For more information or to advertise in the Register, contact Amanda Waggoner at Steamboatreg@gmail.com. The Register is distributed locally. Pick up your copy at the Steamboat Island Coffee Shop.

Artist Profile – Leila Carras

Posted on February 14, 2012April 8, 2015 by GriffinNeighbors

If you have December 11th free from 1 to 3 pm, jet down to Childhood’s End Gallery at 222 4th Ave in Olympia to see Leila Carras’s lampwork demonstration.

Lampwork is what those in-the-know call the artistic manipulation of soft glass by torch and tools. It’s completely inspiring to see the glass rods go red hot and then watch as an amorphous blob of glass turns into a turtle, strawberry, or a singing snow man.

Leila has been working with glass for nine years and began this artistic journey when a customer left a box of handmade glass beads in the café where she worked.

“When I opened the box I was amazed. Where did these beads come from? I had always been into doing bead work, but the minute I talked to her, when she (the forgetful artist) came back for her beads, I was hooked.”

Not finding any classes in lampwork nearby, she bought a kit, read a book and started out on her own. Nine years later a dragon piece of hers has toured the country starting with the Corning Museum of Glass in New York. She is selling her work at trade shows, and a few of her pieces have been featured in trade magazines for glass work and bead work.

Steamboat Island Coffee Shop has displayed her smaller pieces, but to see her bigger pieces check out her website at Leilamae.com. She will do pieces to order, but if you have holiday presents in mind contact her soon.