| Sedgewood Club looks much as it did in 1928
To enter the club and its environs - 92 homes, two lakes, a clubhouse, golf course and tennis courts squeezed between two New York City reservoirs - a visitor travels over a wooden bridge spanning Sedgewood Creek. Sweeping trees offer a natural arbor canopy. "This is a wonderful piece of paradise, one that is so tranquil and an hour or so from New York City," said Mary Ann Smith, a retired nurse-administrator whose grandparents bought a home here more than 50 years ago. Now her adult children and grandchildren call it their weekend respite. "So much has happened here - and yet so little, too," she said. In Putnam County, where many residents complain of too many super-size suburban homes and strip malls with chain stores and restaurants, this nearly 80-year-old club offers a glimpse into the county's recent past and a view that some things don't have to change.
An open letter to pit bull-defenders
All it says is "I'm stubborn enough to own a dog that is inclined to attack and sometimes requires a pry bar because its jaws lock so tight on its prey. I can't afford homeowners insurance because of this risky dog. No neighborhood will allow me in. And I owe thousands in animal-control fines." That is how pit bull owners should be perceived. Unfortunately, it's quite the opposite. Pit bulls were already glorified by rappers. Now the suspicion that Falcons quarterback Michael Vick is a heavyweight in the dog fighting world and possibly linked to as many as 55 pit bulls found at his home only fuels the cool dog perception. Watch pit bull breeders cash in on No. 7. Despite the deadly costs. Of course, not all pit bull breeders and owners are involved in dog fighting.
Dealing with scents on the job
DEAR CARRIE: I have extreme allergies and have received varying degrees of support from co-workers. I had an allergic reaction to a dozen roses a co-worker received. Without being asked, she accommodated me by relocating them away from our work area.
I didn't have much luck with a new co-worker, though. She knows that her strong perfume makes my throat itch and my head hurt. But despite that, she has continued wearing it.
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New Web scam: Free puppy, you just pay for shipping
Puppy scams are popping up in Arizona online and print classified ads, where the seller appears to be local and offers free English bulldogs or Yorkshire terriers. But when contacted by e-mail, the seller says he or she is in Africa on a religious mission and promises to ship the dog overnight for a few hundred dollars. After getting the money, the seller never ships a puppy.
A similar scenario is playing out in other states and countries, prompting consumer warnings Tuesday from the Better Business Bureau and the American Kennel Club. .
YOUR WHOLE PET
In the next Your Whole Pet, I'll take a look at how to get a pet from ethical sources. In the meantime, when checking out a breeder, be sure that you can meet the puppy's mother and see where the puppies are being housed. And if the only test you have to pass to get the puppy is whether your check clears or your credit card charge goes through, that's a pretty good sign the breeder doesn't have the puppy's best interests at heart -- or yours. The following companies donated services, tests, medications, food and products to help the Oklahoma puppy-mill dogs: MWI Veterinary Supply, Fort Dodge, Purina, Bayer, Merial, IDEXX Laboratories, Antech Diagnostics and DVM Pharmaceuticals. Christie Keith is a contributing editor for Universal Press Syndicate's Pet Connection and past director of the Pet Care Forum on America Online.
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