March/April 2020

All Creatures

The Animals Who Share Our Lives

All Creatures2 min read
Editor’s Note
DO ANIMALS FALL IN LOVE the way people do? Is it with the same mad intensity that is part pleasure and part pain? I only know that Millie, our late golden retriever, appeared to feel that way toward Simon, the dog next door to our weekend place in th
All Creatures1 min read
I’ll Never Forget You
ON JANUARY 26, 2019, tragedy struck our family. My husband and I were out of town. A friend was taking care of our 15 rescued cats at our second home. Our friend wasn’t in the house when an electrical fire started. The place was destroyed, and 12 of
All Creatures2 min read
Should I Be Worried?
Q My four-month-old adopted kitten, Nemo, loves drains and moving water. Recently, after watching me use the toilet, he’s been peeing in the sink or bathtub. Why is he doing this? —Margot Allison, Seattle, Washington A Many cats, like Nemo, are ob
All Creatures5 min read
The Road Less Traveled
With his long shaggy hair, graying beard and muscle T-shirt, Mike Stura looks like a biker or a truck driver. Yes, he rides a motorcycle and drove trucks for years. But he’s also a vegan who runs an animal sanctuary and calls a cow, Jimmy, his best f
All Creatures6 min read
Care Companions
THE SOUND of whimpering woke me in the middle of the night. It was our 11-month-old bichon-poodle puppy, Beethoven. He sniffed at our closed bedroom door. He had never done that before. You already went outside, I thought. What could it be now—an ups
All Creatures2 min read
Unstuck
“MOM, CAN YOU HELP ME?” my 10-year-old son, Nathan, asked, shoving part of a Lego figurine in my face. “There’s a wasp stuck in my Spider-Man’s head.” Sure enough, a wasp’s hind end was sticking out of the Lego piece. “I don’t know how to get him out
All Creatures5 min read
Life Lessons From My Camels
It’s feeding time on the farm. Our two camels, Sybil and Nadia, trot over to their individual feed buckets when they see me coming. “Hello, pretty girls,” I say, reaching up to pet their necks. Sybil nuzzles me; she loves being close. “Steady,” I tel
All Creatures5 min read
Welcome To The Zoo
Allison Ilcken slides open the back door of her house in Tampa at 6:30 A.M., just after dawn. Her yard abuts a nature reserve, so lush tree branches drape over the fence. Bald cypress. Southern live oak. Pink milkweed blooms in the garden. A few butt
All Creatures3 min read
JERRY HARVEY Opie Acres, Tennessee
Jerry Harvey is the founder of Opie Acres, a nonprofit opossum rehabil itation center in southeast Tennessee. Not only is Jerry a permitted wildlife rehabilitator and educator, but he’s also an experienced veterinary assistant and a stand-up comic. Y
All Creatures3 min read
Last Moments
MY HORSE, REBEL, looked like a smaller version of the Belgian breed. He was handsome, sweet and coolheaded, and closing in on 35 years. He had just returned to the boarding facility from a two-week stay at a veterinary hospital after a severe case of
All Creatures3 min readNature
Want A Small Pet?
While dogs and cats are the most popular pets in America, there are many other animals that might be right for your family. Some people prefer a smaller “pocket pet.” Think about what kind of pet best fits your lifestyle. Will you have enough time to
All Creatures3 min read
Is This for Real?
The sight of a rat usually elicits screams or, at the very least, disgust. The long tail, twitching nose, scurrying gait and fondness for trash has given the rodent a bad rap. Abby Chesnut, 26, of Dallas, Georgia, has set out to change that perceptio

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