Wordless Wednesday: A Fireworks-free Fourth of July for Cinnamon

I was leaving the Ross Dog Park when I saw
these nice men from Bonneville Power putting up
signs that warmed my little heart. I love you guys!

Bellingham Washington Has a Beer Pub for Dogs!

I convinced them I was of
legal drinking age when we were in
Canada!

The sign said, Paws for a Beer. Now here’s a place I want to go! I wonder if they serve my favorite brand, Budweiser? I grabbed a taste when I was traveling in Canada and thought it was great. Besides, I am a fan of the Budweiser Clydesdales!

Now, I have to be honest here, I haven’t tried any other brands. I hear they have a Tap Trail in Bellingham so you can sample the craft beer scene. Some of the pubs allow dogs. But here’s the one that is just for dogs and their owners.

Paws for a Beer: Fairhaven’s Off-Leash Dog Bar
So my owner was on a writing trip to Bellingham. She took the train into the Fairhaven Station which is part of Bellingham. Just up the walkway from the station, she ran smack dab into a very interesting place.

There was a sign outside “Paws for a Beer.” And the whole place including the large outside yard was fenced. She went up to the gate and was greeted by Amy and Rylan Schoen and their dogs. Mostly she wanted to pet the dogs because she was missing Francesca and me.

So they invited her in and she saw couches and a bar and lots of beer! The dogs were friendly and wanted to play ball. The biggest dog showed her that he could High 5 his owner… now that’s a smart dog!

And then they showed her outside. There were outdoor tables for the owners to have their beer and a fenced area for the dogs to socialize. I don’t think the dogs get to drink beer but there were plenty of water bowls around.

Dog Membership
Paws for a Beer is open to the public and people like my owner can go in any time. Dogs must have membership status. Membership requires certain current vaccinations and dogs must show they socialize well. It’s kind of like Francesca’s Day Care. You have to be a “nice” dog. Owners have to sign a liability release and agree to follow the rules that are posted on the outside of the building.

Paws for a Beer Cares
The owners of Paws for a Beer are active in the community. They support dog adoption and the Whatcom Humane Society. 

But my favorite thing about this place is that THERE ARE NO CATS ALLOWED!

Believe me, if I ever get up to Bellingham, this is the first place I’ll be headed. In fact, I'd like to do a whole article about dog-friendly Bellingham.

Paws for a Beer
The Subdued Dog Bar
501 Harris Ave

Bellingham, Washington

Love, Cinnamon

What's That in OUR Yard? The Birds Nest Saga

A few weeks ago Francesca got in trouble. (What's new, right?) She looked up at the hose reel and saw something amiss. There was a rough and tumble kind of birds nest in the hollow of the reel and something was rustling around in it. She was very curious.

Of course there is a back story to this saga. One day our owner noticed some Juncos bringing straw and leaves into the hose reel. She thought this wasn't a very safe place so removed the "debris" hoping to dissuade the little black-hooded birdies from building a nest. She went to bed thinking everything was taken care of. Imagine her surprise when she awoke the next morning, went outside and saw.... a huge messy Junco nest. Inside, they had made a little round indentation and they weren't going to budge! So she let them be. "Let nature take its course," she muttered.

Junco

So the next day she checked and sure enough there were four little eggs in the nest. And the mother bird definitely was inhabiting the nest.

Back to Francesca's troublesome day. Well, the eggs did hatch and it was those tiny birds making the noise that she heard. She sniffed and it smelled interesting to her. With no mother bird in sight Francesca went up to the hose reel and with one huge bite, she lifted the nest out of the hose reel and was coming around the corner, prancing.... when she ran into our owner.

"Drop that NOW, Francesca," could be heard way over where I was on the other side of the yard. Francesca dropped the intact nest and I guess our owner picked it up and put it back in the hose reel.

A very bad photo of the birds in the nest

The days passed and the birds in the nest got noisier and noisier. The mother and father birds would swoop out of the nest if one of us approached. They were very protective. Our owner is protective too and put chairs all around the nest so we couldn't bother the birds.

So the day came that we packed up and went to our Doggie Country Club for an entire week. We got back yesterday. Francesca and I both went over to where the nest was and sniffed around. We didn't hear or see anything. Apparently the birds flew away when we were gone.... all of them!

I don't know if there is a moral to this story but Francesca should know better than to pick up a nest with live baby birds in it. She's lucky they all lived!

The culprit

Love, Cinnamon

Are Fireworks Legal in Vancouver, Washington?

Want to shoot fireworks off in Vancouver? Well don't even think about it. Save your money.  

It's time to open up the headquarters of Dogs Against Fireworks (DAF). I'm the Executive Director. I've been an anti-fireworks advocate ever since I moved to Vancouver, WA. Want to know why? Apparently people can't understand following the law in this town. Fireworks were scaring me, and many other dogs, for over two weeks around 4th of July and for a few nights over New Years Eve. Something had to change. And, fortunately, we had a sensible City Council that did change the law.

So the answer to the question is... NO! It is against the law to shoot off fireworks in Vancouver, WA. Here's what the city has to say:

In 2015, the Vancouver City Council approved a fireworks ordinance (M-4147) that went into effect in October 2016. This ordinance made the sale and use of consumer fireworks inside the city limits of Vancouver a crime. This is a complete ban that includes all types of fireworks.

Civil fines start at $500 for violation of this law.

To assist citizens in complying with the law, Vancouver Fire Marshal Heidi Scarpelli is encouraging people to visit this useful page to determine if they are inside or outside the city limits of Vancouver. Just because your mailing address is "Vancouver, WA" does not mean you are actually located within the city limits.

If you live outside the Vancouver city limits, other regulations apply. Please be guided by that jurisdiction's applicable laws.

Professional fireworks displays that have been permitted by the City remain legal. Once again this 4th of July, the Fort Vancouver National Trust will host the Independence Day Celebration at Fort Vancouver. This is among the largest fireworks shows in the nation. It is free of charge this year, and includes live music before the fireworks.

Interesting facts from the National Fire Protection Agency

• Sparklers accounted for 28% of fireworks related injuries from June 20 to July 20, 2014
• In 2014, 79% of fireworks injuries fell into the categories of sparklers, firecrackers, re-loadable shells and novelty fireworks.
• Approximately 15,600 reported fires were caused by fireworks in 2013

On Volksmarching in Warm Weather

I haven't gone on a volksmarch yet this year. I used to be a great little volksmarcher and had a long list of walks on my volksmarch log. But I didn't go to walks in the winter because it was raining. Now that the sun is out, I'd rather sunbathe in the back yard then get all hot on a volksmarch.

The river was beautiful.

So Francesca goes. This week she went to La Center where she annoyed the people with little dogs who were waiting for the guided walk to start. Once the walk started, she wanted to be the leader and Joe let her do it! But all too soon, after emerging from the shaded woods, she slowed down and started complaining about the heat.

This is the 5K group at La Center, WA

On the up side, Francesca made a friend on the volksmarch... a little dog. Sometimes they walked together and sometimes they ignored each other.

Here's Francesca on the trail with her little walking friend.

Love, Lazy Cinnamon