COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL APRIL 5, 2017
7A
A word from the
Editor
Dogs under construction
Construction safety offi -
cer, Pearl, wears a pink hard
hat while keeping work sites
in compliance with rules. She
monitors workers safety, and
when they are injured, she ap-
plies fi rst aid or calls 911. She
is a purr-fect multi-tasker as a
fl agger doing traffi c control,
guiding pedestrians, keep-
ing cars from colliding, all the
while supervising construction
materials; steel beams being off
loaded from trucks, cranes and
zoom booms.
During coffee breaks, Pearl
walks her two Chihuahuas, Bil-
ly and Pepe.
"My boss and the crew like
dogs," said Pearl. “One advan-
tage of having dogs on sight is
that when the offi ce is empty
Billy sounds his high pitched
bark-alarm when anyone enters.
Billy was my birthday pres-
ent. I found him on a dog adop-
tion sight, used GPS, and drove
1 ½ hours into the boonies for
him.”
Pepe, born in Oregon, was
fl own into Vancouver, Cana-
da on Christmas Eve. A lady
picked him up, then for some
unexplained reason, a day later,
dumped him off in a humane
shelter's parking lot after clos-
ing time.
“My friend fostered Pepe
for a week,” said Pearl, “then I
puppy-sat him while she was on
vacation. All the little guy want-
ed to do was hide. When my
friend returned to pick him up,
Pepe was sitting beside me, and
he squished into my side. It was
obvious that he wasn't planning
on leaving and he didn't!"
One day after work, her son,
Duncan, the dogs, and Pearl
were at a “Bark Park” when they
saw a crowd of people watching
a man trying to untangle a fl ap-
ping, upside down crow entan-
gled in fi shing line, from a tree.
Always ready to respond to
an emergency, she offered to
climb the tree. Duncan said,
“No! The bird will peck you to
death.”
Pearl, raised on a farm, knew
how to handle birds, so she said,
“Give me a boost up.” And up
she went.
At fi rst the frightened crow
pecked at her, but with her
knowing touch, he relaxed,
as she helped him. The other
crows, in the nearby trees, were
cawing up a symphony, but
none interrupted their buddy’s
rescue mission.
This was no easy task. While
untangling the bird, Pearl gen-
tly talked to it. The fi shing line
was wrapped tightly around a
branch and its right foot. Using
her “on the spot” safety skills,
she bit the line, breaking it, and
released its foot. The bird would
not put any weight on his sore
leg, so Pearl gently massaged
his leg and foot.
“His leg was loose and un-
responsive to my touch,” said
Pearl. “I worried it was broken
or that the circulation had been
cut off too long and died. After
the massage, he immediately
gripped my fi nger with the right
foot. The crowd and I were ju-
bilant that
it just need-
ed rest and
massage,
which
is
good for all
of us!”
Before
the beau-
tiful wild-
black bird
fl ew away,
Pearl kissed
it on its
head. She
then opened
her hands.
The crow
spread his
wings and
fl ew away.
“I was
thrilled,”
said Pearl.
“Imagine
rescuing a bird! Undeniably,
discarded fi shing lines harms
animals. I have seen a deer
struggling entangled in a wad of
line by its horns and right foot.
I trained my children to pick up
pop cans, plastic drinking pop
can holders, and plastic bags,
because discarded garbage
starves and kills land and sea
wild life.”
Pearl has two confessions,
“Pepe does the ‘grandpa dance.
He stands up on his hind legs,
tucks in his three chins, and
does a weird wiggle reminding
me of dancing grandpas at wed-
dings. And Pepe has a thing for
Victoria’s Secret! He eats my
underwear! Life with animals
never has dull moments!”
TIPS
“At work, I keep my pockets
full of a variety of dog treats.
It is a win-win situation. I’ve
learned the pet parents and dogs’
names, the crew love dogs, and
the dogs love the treats!”
Share your pet tips and tales.
angelscribe@msn.com
“Follow” Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales
on Facebook.
https://www.facebook.com/
PetTipsandTales
Humane Society for Neuter/
Spay Assistance Program. (541)
942-2789
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happenings at the state legislature and how the laws it passes
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gun adhering to our century's-old commitment to cover North
Douglas County as well as Lane County and we no longer use
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