West Seattle, Washington
02 Wednesday
Peg Prideaux of West Seattle lost her dog Luis (above) this month to what she describes as a rat-borne disease – and says a neighbor’s dog died of the same thing just weeks earlier, so, she says, “I’m on a mission to warn others.”
She says the dogs had never had contact with each other, but both died of what was believed to be leptospirosis. Peg explained in a note to WSB, “Dogs usually contract the disease by coming in contact with rat urine, which can be found in still water such as a backyard rain puddle. In both cases the dogs threw up; then appeared to recover; then later became ill a second time. One of the dogs had killed a rat; the other dog is believed to have come in contact with rat urine in the yard. This disease can fool you. It first appears as a simple, 24-hour ‘doggie flu,’ after which the dog appears to be normal and well while the disease works in the background. Then the dog becomes ill a second time — in my dog’s case, about a week later. At that point he went from seemingly healthy to irrecoverable in just over a day.”
Her dog was euthanized ten days ago. “I’m on a mission to warn others, because when two healthy dogs die within 10 weeks of each other from the same rat-borne illness, it’s a cause for concern in the neighborhood. Also, leptospirosis is said to increase in spring, which is right around the corner.” Just this morning, she says, a dead rat turned up in the same area, near 38th and Graham [map], found by neighbors out walking their dogs.
She suggests pet owners “within a several-block radius of 37th and Juneau [map] to see a
veterinarian immediately if their dogs vomit a meal,” and make sure you point out that two nearby dogs have died of leptospirosis. “Earliest possible detection is essential to saving your pet. Please don’t hesitate about taking your dog in.”
She says leptospirosis can also affect humans and adds that there’s a vaccine against some strains – ask your vet about it. There’s more information about leptospirosis on the Centers for Disease Control website; here’s the page about pets, and here’s the page about humans. There’s even more information on the King County Public Health website, which notes
Weary of wandering in the sunshine? Duck into the Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) and put in a bid on rock ‘n’ roll memorabilia – as the live “Vinyl Countdown 3” auction continues till 5 pm. It’s a benefit for the Animal Aid and Rescue Foundation, and The Feedback’s website promises “a plethora of vintage vinyl, rock memorabilia, posters, shirts, 45s, and more!” 6451 California SW, in Morgan Junction. (P.S. If you didn’t, or can’t, make it to the auction, there’s another way to help – here’s the latest list of critters that AARF is trying to find “forever homes” for.)
When we first reported on Tuesday that the Junction liquor store was moving to Capco Plaza at 41st/42nd/Alaska, we were also trying to confirm that another Junction business planned to move into that building too. This afternoon, that confirmation has just come through: Petco will leave its California SW storefront (photo) later this year and move into Capco Plaza.
We originally had checked a few days ago with Petco and with Capco’s owner/developer Leon Capelouto, after a WSB’er pointed us to this real-estate listing for Petco’s current California SW spot. The listing page says “tenant relocating” – something many had expected was inevitable, based on the fact it’s been known for more than three years that Petco wanted a new West Seattle location. (You may recall the proposal that fell through three years ago at the site of the Charlestown Café.)
We subsequently found Petco mentioned on this city webpage for the Capco Plaza space. Though no one was ready to confirm it a few days ago, the lease has since been signed, according to Petco, whose media-relations department just called WSB to say it’s official: They expect to open their new West Seattle store in Capco Plaza this fall (the space once was planned as an Office Depot, but that fell through). No date set yet for when the current Junction store will close.
Mary McNeight recently opened a storefront for Service Dog Academy in West Seattle – and she’s about to try for a little regional fame, by organizing a “flash mob” this Sunday to showcase “positive dog training.” After laying the groundwork under the radar, she’s just gone public with the news, including instructions for how you and your dog can participate – there’s info and a video on this page of her company’s website. It’s not in West Seattle, but Westlake Park‘s not that far away; 3 pm Sunday is the actual “flash mob” time, but they’re also having a practice event Saturday in Bothell (detailed on the same page).
Everybody was a little camera-shy but rest assured, the cats that Friends of the Animals Foundation has brought to VCA West Seattle for an adoption event today – their first one there, VCA says – are just waiting for you, or anyone else who can give them a forever home. This event goes on till 2 pm. Seen at left is Frank, who’s 12 years old and needs someplace new because his people just couldn’t keep him any more. Below, Marianne and Barb with a few more candidates:
VCA West Seattle is at 5261 California SW. (P.S. Even if you can’t give someone a new home this Christmas, there are several other ways to help local pets in need, including pet-food donation drives – listed in the “Holiday Giving” section toward the end of the WSB West Seattle Holidays page.)
The photos are from Ruth Oldham of West Seattle See Dogs, who was in Tacoma for a special regional delivery in the middle of the Sunday rainstorm. Her group is hoping for new members to help them turn puppies like these into guide dogs – “a gift that keeps giving,” as she explains:
Bundles of yellow, black, and golden fur, sweet puppy breath, and wiggly joy were delivered into the arms of twelve puppy raisers from across Washington State in the midst of (Sunday) morning’s deluge.
The puppies, bred at our San Rafael, California campus were between the ages of 8 and 10 weeks old and traveled on the puppy truck which was converted to a special sleigh for Santa Paws and his helper’s deliveries!
The puppies will stay with their families for about a year and then return to be off to puppy college to become guide dogs and future “soulmates” with a visually impaired partner. This is a story about a gift that keeps giving long after the season is over!
Do you have love and time to share with a puppy? Call Ruth Oldham with the West Seattle See Dogs at 206-953-0268 or 1-800-295-4050 for information on how you can raise a Guide Dog Puppy in your area. More info at www.guidedogs.com; become a friend of the West Seattle See Dogs on Facebook to learn about events and meetings. Our next meeting is Monday, December 20th, 6:30 pm, at
Merrill Gardens-Admiral Heights.
Merrill Gardens-AH (WSB sponsor) is at 2326 California SW.
At right, that’s just one of the kittens awaiting new homes at West Seattle’s nonprofit cat-only shelter Kitty Harbor – and any Kitty Harbor kitties who don’t get those new homes this weekend will be going into foster care until June. That’s according to Kitty Harbor volunteer Anna, who says the shelter is open 1 pm-6 pm this Saturday and Sunday, and those will be its last days till next summer. Kitty Harbor is at 3422 Harbor Avenue SW, just north of the West Seattle Bridge. You’ll find tons more photos and info on the Kitty Harbor website.
WSB lost/found pet reports are usually handled via the Pets page – but we’re showing this photo, shared by Susan via Facebook, here on the main page because we received so many calls/notes about these two yesterday, it seemed half of West Seattle had spotted them. They were reported to be wandering Admiral/Alki, and many were worried; we even heard police-scanner reports about them again this morning. Finally, Susan caught them a little while ago, and took them to the VCA Animal Hospital at 5261 California SW – where, she says, they couldn’t find chips, so their ownership remains a mystery. They’ll likely be headed to the Seattle Animal Shelter next, so if you have any idea whose they are, now that you’ve seen a photo (our listing from yesterday didn’t include one), now’s the time to come forward.
Local animal advocates, pet lovers, and other friends and relatives are grieving the sudden loss of a friend, and wanted to share word of her memorial service this Saturday:
We are saddened by the loss of Darlene Morrison, who passed away unexpectedly on November 2nd, 2010. A memorial will be held from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. this Saturday, November 13th to remember our dear friend and fellow dog lover. Please join us in celebrating Darlene’s life.
Saturday, November 13th, 3 pm to 6 pm
Life Church
3420 SW Cloverdale St. (Corner of 35th and Cloverdale)In lieu of flowers, donations in Darlene’s memory can be made to R.E.D. Rescue Every Dog and at the church.
(P.S. If you want to share word of someone’s passing/memorial service, WSB does *not* charge for those announcements – you’re welcome to send the info/photo to us, or to post in the WSB Forums.)
That’s Liame, who Service Dog Academy proprietor Mary McNeight says has been trained in a unique area of service-dog work: Diabetic alerts. Mary says a trained diabetic-alert dog might cost up to $25,000; a dog with this training can tell its owner they are going low “20 minutes before a meter can even register it – dogs’ noses are amazing feats of nature that can be easily harnessed to help their human companions take control of their diabetes.” She’s offering a 16-week, $650 class for regular dogs and their owners that “will teach the dogs to alert when blood sugar levels drop below 80, go retrieve sugary drinks to quickly raise blood sugar levels, go get a meter and if the need arises go get the help of a human companion or call 911.” According to Mary, this is the only training of its kind available in the Northwest right now. She trains not only service dogs but regular dogs/puppies at her recently opened training studio north of Morgan Junction; there’s more info on her website about the upcoming diabetic-alert training and who’s eligible.
Thanks to our friends at KING 5 for sharing their tale of Cosmo, the West Seattle dog who dined on donations … $300 cash, three times as much in checks. Read about it here, and/or view the video above.
(In the car, Cindy Koch and Toby; behind the car, Susan Bates and Toby’s brother Baxter)
You might recall the saga of Toby the dog, a rescued yellow lab who had just been adopted into a new home in West Seattle when he bolted – leading to posters everywhere, sightings, and an ongoing thread in the WSB Forums. He was finally found safely, and now, 5 weeks later, Will Nothdurft sent the above photo and this story to say thanks and share more of how the story came to a happy ending:
Thank you, West Seattle!
Readers of the West Seattle Blog were instrumental in helping a very special lost dog to be found. The small yellow lab, “Toby,” had been rescued from an abusive life in Eastern Washington and cared for by the Vashon Island Pet Protectors organization, until he found a West Seattle family to adopt him.
But he wasn’t ready. Traumatized as a pup and terrified of strangers, he escaped immediately and was lost in northern West Seattle for more than a week. His Vashon caretakers posted fliers on utility poles all over West Seattle and soon caring residents began phoning in “sightings.”
Two months after CityDog Magazine‘s latest “cover dog search” photo session in West Seattle (here’s our August report), CityDog has announced all five finalists from this year’s five search sessions around the city – and the voting has begun. This year’s West Seattle winner is Spencer, and you can cast your vote (for any of the five) by clicking on your favorite finalist’s photo on this CityDog webpage – that’ll open an e-mail window; just type the name of your fave into the subject line, and send your vote. The West Seattle finalists won the last two years – you have till October 31st to vote and see if it’ll be three in a row. (Thanks to Amanda for the tip. We’re contacting CityDog to see if we can get permission to use Spencer’s photo here.) MONDAY MORNING UPDATE: Thanks to Spencer’s person Bob for sharing the photo at left this morning. He explains that Spencer is a 3-year-old Italian Spinone and “would be honored to represent West Seattle in this fiercely competitive contest as the New Cover Dog of CityDog Mag.” (He promises a few more biographical details later.)
Two cat-adoption notes tonight. First, an update on the five kittens that Wendy and Stephen Hughes-Jelen have been fostering in their High Point home, chronicled on Facebook via Kitty Cornered: Two weeks after our first story, your editor here and WSB’s in-house Young Photographer dropped by on Wednesday night, procuring a few photos, including the floor-level view above. At that point, two of the kittens already were spoken for, including Purrl, seen here with Wendy:
They went home with their new family the next night. Now, via Kitty Cornered, we see two of the remaining three were expecting prospective adopters to visit tonight, likely heading off to their “forever home” tomorrow. That would leave little striped Legacy, photographed frolicking with feet:
Wendy and Stephen are fostering through West Seattle shelter Kitty Harbor (3422 Harbor SW), which means if Legacy is indeed the last of the quintet to go, she has to go to a home that already has at least one cat (or could be adopted with another Kitty Harbor kitty – they’re open Saturdays and Sundays, more info, and lots of cat photos, here). They’ll clearly miss their young charges, and still hope to try it again sometime – maybe next year – but they note that foster families should be ready for one thing: Raising a big group of kittens can be a bit costly, in terms of milk and food!
SIDE NOTE – CITY FOSTER-CAT-ADOPTION EVENT IN WEST SEATTLE: The cats you’ll see at Hiawatha Community Center (2700 California SW) tomorrow, noon-3 pm, have been cared for by volunteers who have been helping the Seattle Animal Shelter by providing foster homes. More details here.
The small creatures were represented by guinea pigs Cupcake (right) and Zoe – who joined more than two dozen dogs (no cats in sight, so far as we could see) for West Seattle’s third “Blessing of the Animals” this weekend, this time in the West Seattle High School parking lot next to St. John the Baptist Church.
Blessing some of the dogs in that photo are St. John’s Rev. Peter DeVeau next to (in Franciscan robe) Brother Kris Wilder (the photographer at right was from the Seattle Times [WSB partner]). Rev. DeVeau asked the crowd first, “Happy about the purple tent?” (upper right) – referring to yesterday’s big Washington Huskies win. Then, after a parade, it was blessing time:
(If you’ve missed our previous coverage – the reason this is done this time of year is that tomorrow’s the Feast Day for/birthday of St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals.)
(Photo from Kitty Cornered Facebook page today – 2 of the kittens discover sunshine=naps)
Almost two weeks after our story about the five foster kittens that High Point’s Wendy and Stephen Hughes-Jelen have raised since they were a day old, the kittens are almost ready for their permanent homes. They were born in early August, and eight weeks/two months is considered “ready for adoption.” The Hughes-Jelens are hoping not to have to take them to the Kitty Harbor shelter for whom they volunteered to take on the then-newborns:
We would like to have them all spoken for and adopted without having to spend time in the shelter at Kitty Harbor. It is a great facility here in West Seattle but there are about 80-90 cats/kittens down there and new kittens can get sick easily. It’s just safer if they go from here to another home.
We’ve chronicled their entire life online at http://www.facebook.com/KittyCornered We will be posting video profiles of each individual kitten in the next few days.
If any of our neighbors would like to meet these kittens now, please let us know. They should read the adoption information at http://www.kittyharborseattle.org/adoption-info/ and have completed and submitted an adoption application to the shelter before coming into our home. The kittens have to be adopted in pairs or the adopter has to already have a cat in their home as a companion to the new kitten.
As noted on the Kitty Cornered page, once you’ve applied – which you can also do tomorrow in person at Kitty Harbor (or next weekend if they’re not spoken for yet) – you can go meet The Kittens.
Patty from Highland Park came to the Blessing of the Animals at Providence Mount St. Vincent this morning with her five furry friends, two of whom are regular volunteers at The Mount. They mingled with, and sometimes barked at, more than a dozen other dogs, till Father Lyle began the blessing:
After a prayer and reading paying tribute to pets “for the joy and happiness they bring us,” the Redemptorist priest led a procession through the building – first scheduled stop, the second-floor fish tank – to bless animals that hadn’t been brought down to the lobby. The ceremony is a tradition on or near the Feast Day of St. Francis of Assisi – which is coming up Monday – and there will be two others in West Seattle tomorrow, at Alki UCC (6112 SW Hinds) during 10 am service and outside St. John the Baptist Church (3050 California SW) at noon.
(At 2009 St. John the Baptist “Blessing of the Animals,” Br. Kris Wilder blessing Pizazz the dog)
It’s an annual tradition around the Feast Day for St. Francis of Assisi, patron saint of animals, and again this year, three West Seattle “Blessing of the Animals” events are planned. First, we just got word from Providence Mount St. Vincent about this planned event this Saturday, 10:30 am (after 9:30 am Mass) – gather in the lobby (4831 35th SW). From the announcement: “Participants will convene in the lobby. Father Lyle Konen, CSsR, will be the Mass celebrant and will lead the participants – pets with their owners – throughout the building to bless all of the Mount’s cats, dogs, birds and fish.” And from the WSB Events calendar, St. John the Baptist Church in Admiral will have its annual Blessing of the Animals this Sunday at noon in the church parking lot, rain or shine. From Rev. Peter DeVeau‘s announcement: “The community is invited to bring all creatures great and small for this celebration and thanksgiving for the gift of animals. This is an annual event hosted by the people of St. John’s Episcopal Church.” Minutes after publishing the first version of this story, we also found Alki UCC‘s website notes they’re having a Blessing of the Animals again this year, 10 am Sunday service.
Thanks to Deanie Schwarz for that photo of The Wash Dog giving a free nail trim during the Pet Fest that’s under way right now, till 1 pm, at Arrowhead Gardens (WSB sponsor) – that’s David the Dog Walker helping out, Deanie explains, adding that he has a demonstration coming up around 12:15 pm. Lots of other pet-service providers there, people showing their dogs off in a dog fashion show, and if you don’t have a pet – Ginger’s Pet Rescue has 15 adoptable small dogs there too – like Betty Jane, a dachshund who’s not even 2 years old yet:
Arrowhead Gardens, by the way, is a pet-friendly retirement community, on the southeastern edge of Highland Park (2nd and Olson; here’s a map). More photos later!
By Tracy Record
West Seattle Blog editor
Never a dull moment at Wendy and Stephen Hughes-Jelen’s High Point townhome.
They always have a variety of enterprises under way. For one, they’re companions to Sophia, the Italian greyhound, who’s appeared on the cover of CityDog Magazine. For two, Wendy has a green real-estate practice, and a social-media sideline with multiple blog-format websites (most recently, she’s been producing videos to promote Eat Local Now! – the local-food celebration coming up Sept. 30th).
We could go on, but why bother, when the next thing we’re going to list is so all-consuming: Their current sideline is round-the-clock kitten-raising. Five heart-stealing kittens – with, best of all, webcams. (One’s here; the other’s here.)
On behalf of West Seattle-headquartered nonprofit shelter Kitty Harbor, Wendy and Stephen volunteered to foster the little fluffballs – now six weeks old, two weeks away from adoptability – and decided to chronicle the whole thing online.
Earlier today, we mentioned the happy ending to the search for a West Seattle yellow Labrador Retriever named Toby. Tonight, the story of another West Seattle yellow Lab – which is about to come to a different kind of ending. We heard from Jayson DeMers, who has a website called Cory’s Story at corysstory.com. He explains that Cory is “a 13.5 year-old yellow Labrador Retriever with an amazing story – he conquered canine epilepsy, and his story serves as an example for how all dogs can live happier, healthier lives. … Unfortunately, he is old and at the end of his life. After a heartwrenching family meeting last night, we have decided that the time has come to put Cory down. It will take place tomorrow at 3 pm.” Jayson asked if we could share the word, “so that as many people can pray for him as possible while he transitions into the next life.” Jayson’s website isn’t the only place Cory’s Story is being told – he says his mom Sandra DeMers, also a West Seattleite, has written a book about it that is weeks away from publication. Jayson says that his mom “spent years of her life figuring out exactly how to not only cure epilepsy in Cory, but help him live to be 13.5 years old (far beyond the expected age range for a yellow lab, especially one with epilepsy).” He concludes, “I hope other West Seattleites find Cory’s Story touching and learn from it so that their dogs can live longer, happier, healthier lives.”
Two bits of four-footed news: First, you might have seen signs – or searchers – 
looking for Toby the yellow Lab. He’s been on the WSB Pets page for the past several days, too, and a topic of discussion in the WSB Forums. This morning, we got word he’s been found. Grace, who recently adopted Toby, sends a big thank-you to everybody who helped look, saying they got lots of calls from WSB readers. We also just got word of another happy reunion, this one from a post to the Pets page early today. Hope you never need to use the Pets page, but if you find or lose a pet, it’s been there as a West Seattle-specific resource for almost three years now (e-mail lost/found pet reports, with photos if you have them, to editor@westseattleblog.com).
Also in the canine realm:
That photo’s used with permission from Byron , who posted it on his blog-format site for Textura Design, a creative agency in West Seattle. He photographed the coyote this morning near his Schmitz Park-area home and says he’s seen this one before. (If you haven’t read the advice for coexisting with coyotes, here’s the link we always share; our archived coverage of West Seattle coyote reports, including other photos, is here.)
Dogs and owners are lining up in the shade outside West Seattle Thriftway as the photo shoots continue for CityDog Magazine‘s third annual Cover Dog Search, which visits a few locations around the region before coming up with a lineup of finalists you can vote on. The past two years, the winning Cover Dog has been from West Seattle – first Cohen, then Murphy. (High Point’s renowned Italian greyhound Sophia has been on CDM too.) We’re told they’ll be there today till about 3 pm – bring pet food for a donation drive on behalf of West Seattle Food Bank (which collects and distributes pet food as well as people food)!
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