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LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Dogs in a variety of sizes and breeds – from little terriers to larger shepherd and boxer mixes – are waiting to meet you at Lake County Animal Care and Control this week.
This week's available dogs include mixes of boxer, Cairn terrier, Chihuahua, corgi, Labrador Retriever, pit bull and shepherd.
Dogs that are adopted from Lake County Animal Care and Control are either neutered or spayed, microchipped and, if old enough, given a rabies shot and county license before being released to their new owner. License fees do not apply to residents of the cities of Lakeport or Clearlake.
If you're looking for a new companion, visit the shelter. There are many great pets hoping you'll choose them.
In addition to the animals featured here, all adoptable animals in Lake County can be seen here: http://bit.ly/Z6xHMb .
The following dogs at the Lake County Animal Care and Control shelter have been cleared for adoption (additional dogs on the animal control Web site not listed are still “on hold”).
Male shepherd mix
This handsome male shepherd mix is listed as “urgent” because he has been at the shelter for more than a month and needs a new home immediately.
When he originally arrived in the shelter March 17, he didn't really know what a leash was; now, however, he walks like a perfect gentlemen. In the play yard, he comes immediately with food as a motivator.
He has no food aggression towards people or dogs, and allows handling of ears, mouth, paws and tail without any problems. He has avoided cats when tested.
Shelter staff said he would make a great pet for a family with kids, and has a great fun loving personality.
He's in kennel No. 8, ID No. 4560.
Female Chihuahuas
These two female Chihuahuas have short multicolored coats.
They're in kennel No. 3a and No. 22, ID Nos. 4637 and 4636, respectively.
'Cali'
“Cali” is a female Labrador Retriever that shelter staff said is very sweet.
She has a short yellow coat.
Cali already is spaied so her adoption fee will be $71 instead of $161.
She's in kennel No. 6, ID No. 4683.
'Chato'
“Chato” is an older male corgi and pit bull terrier mix.
He's in kennel No. 7, ID No. 4759.
Male Chihuahua mix
This male Chihuahua mix has an all-white coat.
He's in kennel No. 17, ID No. 4591.
Female Cairn terrier
This female Cairn terrier was found as a stray on the Hopland Grade.
She has a curly medium-length brown coat.
She's in kennel No. 18a, ID No. 4755.
Female Cairn terrier
This young female Cairn terrier was found as a stray on the Hopland Grade.
She has a long brown and white coat.
She's in kennel No. 18b, ID No. 4756.
'Snowball'
“Snowball” is a female Chihuahua mix with a short tan and white coat.
She's in kennel No. 19a, ID No. 4705.
'Smokey'
“Smokey” is a Chihuahua in need of a new home.
He is in kennel No. 19b, ID No. 4706.
Female Chihuahua
This female Chihuahua mix has an all-white coat.
She's in kennel No. 23, ID No. 4733.
Female pit bull mix
This female pit bull mix has a short gray and white coat.
She's in kennel No. 25, ID No. 4588.
Female pit bull terrier mix
This female pit bull terrier mix has a short gray and white coat.
She's in kennel No. 29, ID No. 4749.
'Rosie'
“Rosie” is a female boxer-pit bull mix.
She has a short brown brindle coat with white markings.
Her adoption fee will be less expensive due to already being spayed.
She's in kennel No. 32, ID No. 4670.
To fill out an adoption application online visit http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control/Adopt/Dog___Cat_Adoption_Application.htm .
Lake County Animal Care and Control is located at 4949 Helbush in Lakeport, next to the Hill Road Correctional Facility.
Office hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday. The shelter is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Visit the shelter online at http://www.co.lake.ca.us/Government/Directory/Animal_Care_And_Control.htm .
For more information call Lake County Animal Care and Control at 707-263-0278.
Email Elizabeth Larson at [email protected] . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.
For the 26th birthday of NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers are highlighting a Hubble image of an enormous bubble being blown into space by a super-hot, massive star.
The Hubble image of the Bubble Nebula, or NGC 7635, was chosen to mark the 26th anniversary of the launch of Hubble into Earth orbit by the STS-31 space shuttle crew on April 24, 1990.
“As Hubble makes its 26th revolution around our home star, the sun, we celebrate the event with a spectacular image of a dynamic and exciting interaction of a young star with its environment. The view of the Bubble Nebula, crafted from WFC-3 images, reminds us that Hubble gives us a front row seat to the awe inspiring Universe we live in,” said John Grunsfeld, Hubble astronaut and associate administrator of NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters, in Washington, D.C.
The Bubble Nebula is 7 light-years across – about one-and-a-half times the distance from our sun to its nearest stellar neighbor, Alpha Centauri, and resides 7,100 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cassiopeia.
The seething star forming this nebula is 45 times more massive than our sun. Gas on the star gets so hot that it escapes away into space as a “stellar wind” moving at over 4 million miles per hour. This outflow sweeps up the cold, interstellar gas in front of it, forming the outer edge of the bubble much like a snowplow piles up snow in front of it as it moves forward.
As the surface of the bubble's shell expands outward, it slams into dense regions of cold gas on one side of the bubble. This asymmetry makes the star appear dramatically off-center from the bubble, with its location in the 10 o'clock position in the Hubble view.
Dense pillars of cool hydrogen gas laced with dust appear at the upper left of the picture, and more “fingers” can be seen nearly face-on, behind the translucent bubble.
The gases heated to varying temperatures emit different colors: oxygen is hot enough to emit blue light in the bubble near the star, while the cooler pillars are yellow from the combined light of hydrogen and nitrogen.
The pillars are similar to the iconic columns in the “Pillars of Creation” Eagle Nebula. As seen with the structures in the Eagle Nebula, the Bubble Nebula pillars are being illuminated by the strong ultraviolet radiation from the brilliant star inside the bubble.
The Bubble Nebula was discovered in 1787 by William Herschel, a prominent British astronomer. It is being formed by an O star, BD +60º2522, an extremely bright, massive, and short-lived star that has lost most of its outer hydrogen and is now fusing helium into heavier elements. The star is about 4 million years old, and in 10 million to 20 million years, it will likely detonate as a supernova.
Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 imaged the nebula in visible light with unprecedented clarity in February 2016. The colors correspond to blue for oxygen, green for hydrogen, and red for nitrogen. This information will help astronomers understand the geometry and dynamics of this complex system.
The Bubble Nebula is one of only a handful of astronomical objects that have been observed with several different instruments onboard Hubble. Hubble also imaged it with the Wide Field Planetary Camera (WFPC) in September of 1992, and with Wide Field Planetary Camera 2 (WFPC2) in April of 1999.
The Hubble Space Telescope is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope. The Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, conducts Hubble science operations. STScI is operated for NASA by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy in Washington, D.C.
“Everything is clearer when you're in love.” – John Lennon
“Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.” – Robert Frost
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Found in our own ancient lake's 44,000 acres, the Western Grebe is an elegant bird to behold.
Now, in springtime they can be found performing breathtaking mating dances. First, you will hear their distinctive “kree – ee” – a call like no other.
Next you can spy on their romantic aquatic efforts to lure a partner. The black and white birds “run” across the lake for dozens of yards. This maneuver is called “rushing.”
You can find them dining a deux, but instead of a pasta dinner for two at the local eatery they dine on delectable, silvery fish.
After diving under water, one bird comes up with a finny offering in its beak, then feeds it to its mate.
Grebes also can be seen diving for green strands of lake vegetation, which they then offer to their mate as ideal nesting material.
Grebes gather in colonies and build nests with reeds. These floating houses must not be disturbed during nesting time in the spring, as they may be home to between one and seven eggs.
The Western Grebe can be differentiated from another species of grebe found on Clear Lake, Clark's Grebe, by the black cap that extends along and below the eye. The Western Grebe also has a more pointy, longer beak than that of the Clark's.
Western Grebes have a wingspan of about 32 inches, and grow 21 to 29 inches in length.
Grebes are found not only in lakes, but also ponds and marshes. Their habitat includes estuaries and sea coasts in the winter season.
According to ornithologists, there are 22 species of grebes found in the world.
Studies have turned up a relationship between flamingos and grebes, due to around 11 traits that they both hold in common. The traits are known as morphological traits, and have not been detected on other birds.
Kathleen Scavone, M.A., is an educator, potter, writer and author of “Anderson Marsh State Historic Park: A Walking History, Prehistory, Flora, and Fauna Tour of a California State Park” and “Native Americans of Lake County.” She also writes for NASA and JPL as one of their “Solar System Ambassadors.” She was selected “Lake County Teacher of the Year, 1998-99” by the Lake County Office of Education, and chosen as one of 10 state finalists the same year by the California Department of Education.
LAKEPORT, Calif. – On Thursday Mendocino College's first Sustainable Technology construction class to take place in Lake County presented Orphan Dog rescue with a brand new kennel.
The Construction Fundamentals class, led by local contractor and course instructor Glenn Mueller, had as one of its first projects the building of the kennel for Orphan Dog, according to college Sustainable Technology Program Coordinator Jen Riddell.
First Pick Construction, Lucerne Roofing and Trex Building Materials sponsored the project, with Orphan Dog and Mueller donating additional materials and plans, and the students and Mueller providing the labor, Riddell said.
Fancier than the run-of-the-mill kennel, the class' finished product had a roof, windows, blue siding and a small chainlink area.
It also featured a small sign dubbing it the “Hanna Scully Suite,” in honor of Miss Lake County's Outstanding Teen Hanna Scully, who has been a dedicated supporter of Orphan Dog.
She and her mother Pam recently even helped pick up two dogs from Clearlake Animal Control and transport them to the rescue after the dogs had run out of time in the shelter.
Orphan Dog, based on an 80-acre ranch near Lakeport, has – as of this year – rescued 3,000 dogs in Lake, Mendocino and Humboldt counties and found them new homes.
The all-volunteer group, led by Karen Schaver, also is leading the “FIX Lake County” initiative to help stop the high rate of unwanted animals in the county.
Low-income pet owners who need help with spay/neuter services can contact Orphan Dog at http://www.orphandog.org/info/display?PageID=16604 or
Follow the rescue and keep up-to-date on its events and available dogs, or make a donation at https://www.facebook.com/OrphanDog/?fref=ts .
Riddell said the class is next set to head out to the Ely Stage Stop and Country Museum in Kelseyville to help with projects there.
She said the class is a win-win in that it offers building skills while also benefiting the community.
Riddell said the class will be offered again this summer, beginning June 16, and in coming semesters. Visit www.mendocino.edu for more information.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
How to find legal target shooting areas?
Question: A friend used to own property just outside the city limits and we were able to legally shoot our rifles on his property.
Times have changed though and we now need a new place where we can we still legally shoot our rifles and shotguns for sport.
We’re not hunters; we just practice target shooting. How do we go about finding places where we can legally shoot? (Gracie R., Carlsbad)
Answer: Your best bet is to contact the closest Sheriff’s Office that patrols the area where you want to target shoot.
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) does not regulate target shooting nor keep track of all the potential target shooting areas available to the public.
This issue basically comes down to county shooting ordinances and landowner permission. I think you will find most cities do not allow discharge of firearms within their city limits, so contact the local Sheriff’s Office to see what county areas may be open.
For public areas like U.S. Forest Service (USFS) or Bureau of Land Management (BLM) property, contact the applicable regional station or headquarters that oversees the area. Some USFS or BLM lands may have designated target shooting or plinking areas.
They may also have other areas on their properties where target shooting is allowed, but it’s always a good idea to check ahead of time to be sure it is legal with the applicable county as well.
Otherwise, for public and private gun clubs or shooting ranges in your area, you might try www.wheretoshoot.org from the National Shooting Sports Foundation Web site.
I’ve used this site often and they make it easy to find a safe and licensed range in your local area to target shoot or to introduce someone new to the shooting sports.
How to prove the sex of a turkey?
Question: Since only tom turkeys are legal to take during the spring season, how do I prove the sex to an inquiring game warden? Must a wing be left on? A beard left on? Both left on? One or the other left on? (G.B.G.)
Answer: The regulations are intended to require that only tom turkeys may be taken during the spring season, but the law specifically states that the turkey must be “bearded” (a bearded turkey is one having a beard visible through the breast feathers).
In most cases a beard will distinguish the animal as male, but in some rare incidents hens may also have them.
Keep the beard attached to the carcass until you return to your residence. You may pluck the bird in the field, but remember to keep the beard connected to the body.
Toms and hens can be easily determined by their significant head and wing color differences. If by chance you run across a rare bearded hen, even though the provisions of the law may allow you to take it, we strongly discourage it. Spring is the turkeys’ primary mating and nesting period so hens may not be harvested in order to protect their production
Catching fish with baited fish traps?
Question: Is it legal to use baited fish traps in Southern California? I see in the regulations where it refers to the use of baited traps to catch a variety of fish species in the San Francisco area (California Code of Regulations, section 28.75). Is this the only place where this method of take is allowed? (Corey)
Answer: Baited traps may not be used to take fish in ocean waters off Southern California. This is legal only in San Francisco and San Pablo bays, their tributaries, etc., and in the ocean and bays off of Marin, Sonoma and Mendocino counties for a few specified species of ocean fish.
Only hook-and-line or hand may be used to take finfish (per Section 28.65) unless other, specific permissions are provided in regulations listed in the Gear Restrictions section (which begins on pg. 45 of the current California Ocean Sport Fishing regulations booklet).
Spearfishing without a license?
Question: I know it's legal to fish without a license off public piers, but is there anywhere to go spearfishing without a license? (Keith H., Santa Barbara)
Answer: No, there is usually no place you can spearfish without a license, but there are two free fishing days per year, usually around the Independence Day and Labor Day holidays. On those two days, spearfishing without a license is allowed (bag limits and other regulations still apply).
Carrie Wilson is a marine environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. While she cannot personally answer everyone’s questions, she will select a few to answer each week in this column. Please contact her at
CRIMINAL (Rated R)
Kevin Costner, creeping slowly into senior citizen status, still has the action chops.
Only two years ago in “3 Days to Kill,” he was a dying CIA agent trying to reconnect with his estranged family while on one last dangerous action-fueled mission.
In “Criminal,” Costner’s Jerico Stewart is a death-row inmate estranged from reality. Lacking emotions and empathy, Jerico is a treacherously unhinged sociopath incapable of having any moral concept of right from wrong.
But first, the set-up for Jerico’s role in this action picture is the fate of an American CIA operative stationed in London. Ryan Reynolds’ Bill Pope, a dedicated family man, has a beautiful wife, Jill (Gal Gadot), and a young daughter, Emma (Lara Decaro).
The propulsive story begins when agent Pope is tragically killed in the middle of an urgent, top-secret mission.
He’s been tracking the brilliant hacker known as “The Dutchman” (Michael Pitt), who has uncovered while navigating the lawless Dark Web the means to take charge of the entire weaponry of the U.S. military’s Central Command.
An international terrorist, the anarchic Xavier Heimdahl (Jordi Molla), intent on controlling the U.S. nuclear arsenal to advance his own agenda, is in hot pursuit of The Dutchman with his coldblooded henchmen.
The CIA’s London bureau chief, Quaker Wells (Gary Oldman), embarks on a rather far-fetched scheme that requires a maverick neurosurgeon Dr. Franks (Tommy Lee Jones) to find a recipient for the dead CIA agent’s brain.
The idea is to find the one person who might be able to absorb Pope’s memories. The ideal candidate is located at a maximum security prison in West Virginia. Jerico’s childhood brain damage makes him unpredictable but suitable to the medical experiment.
Like a Frankenstein test, Jerico undergoes brain surgery for the implant of Pope’s DNA directly into the synapses of a brain that just might be the equivalent of a blank slate, given the recipient’s lack of human emotions.
At first, the operation appears to have failed as Chief Wells and his crew get nowhere with Jerico. But Jerico, unsure of what has happened to him and in fear of his life, escapes and finds himself on the run.
Jerico’s anti-social behavior manifests itself in a series of violent encounters with ordinary Londoners, and soon he has swiped food, medicine and even a service van for transportation. Unaccustomed to freedom, Jerico’s impulses are completely out of whack.
In a relative short period of time, Jerico experiences flashes of Bill Pope’s memories, leading him to visit the widow and daughter at home. They are naturally surprised that this odd stranger has apparently connected to Pope’s innermost thoughts.
To say the least, Jerico’s strange appearance and odd behavior make the connection with Pope’s widow and daughter even more awkward than Whoopi Goldberg trying to convince Demi Moore that her dead husband is now a ghost with whom she’s in constant contact.
Still, the edge slowly comes off the normally disturbed Jerico such that he starts to have abnormal feelings of empathy, where his emotions are not rooted in pure rage and anger, but instead sympathy and trepidation are taking root in his heart.
As observed by Aristotle, “Memory is the scribe of the soul.” The good memories of Pope have pushed out, albeit only temporarily, the bad memories of a deranged psychotic killing machine. Jerico may be worthy of redemption, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
“Criminal,” for all of its good intentions, does not sink into a swamp of sentimentality, though Jerico becomes increasingly protective of Pope’s family, to the extent that he might unselfishly become heroic in efforts to save them after they are kidnapped by Heimdahl.
After all, the filmmakers are not going to waste Costner’s newfound image of tough guy who could convincingly beat the living daylights of assorted thugs. To be sure, there are plenty of fights, car crashes and gunplay to deliver the requisite amount of mayhem.
The high concept at work here is to create a hybrid of high-octane action mixed with the psychological intensity of a man conflicted by another person’s memories.
In the end, “Criminal” is much less the sum of provocative ideas than it is just pure mind-twisting thriller. The absurdity of the brain swap is a reach too far, but the intense action may prove sufficient for an audience seeking the thrills offered by a robust Kevin Costner.
TCM CLASSIC FILM FESTIVAL UPDATE
The seventh annual TCM Classic Film Festival is just around the corner, beginning on April 28th in the heart of Hollywood.
A few more notable events have been added to an impressive schedule of film screenings and special events:
1. Investigate journalist Carl Bernstein will join the festivities for the opening night’s 40th anniversary screening of the political thriller “All The President’s Men.”
2. Beloved Oscar winner Angela Lansbury joins the festival with a conversation for the screening of “The Manchurian Candidate.”
3. Oscar-winning actress and singer Rita Moreno will introduce a 60th anniversary screening of the cherished musical “The King and I.”
4. Fan favorite Burt Reynolds will not only participate in a sit-down interview about his life and career but will be on hand to introduce a screening of “The Longest Yard.”
The TCM Classic Film Festival, in a few short years, has established itself, with a wide range of films and programs, as the place for film lovers to gather.
Tim Riley writes film and television reviews for Lake County News.