Growing up, my family had an abundance of cats running amok. These were the days before spaying and neutering were common occurrences. We all know what happens when there’s no protection against the passions of nature, so inevitably we had a feline family much bigger than our own. 

Each time a litter was born, we would keep a few kittens and give others away to neighbors or friends. I remember my sister and I feeding many a kitten with a medicine dropper, making cozy beds for them out of Avon boxes and towels, and nursing those with parasites back to health. She and I also created a pet cemetery in the woods behind our house where we would hold a memorial service and bury the cats or kittens that passed on. 

Giggles, snickers, snorts and outright laughter echoed through the Town of Canton’s Sept. 28 board meeting as an ordinance regarding “pigs as pets” was again discussed.

Although Waynesville aldermen continue to seek a definitive answer on whether or not to rescind the town’s 15 year-old policy of banning pets from festivals, they’ve embraced a temporary measure that may help point them in the right direction.

For decades, urban jurisdictions have enacted animal ordinances intended to sequester the odiferous, unsightly sprawl of animal husbandry outside of town limits.

Daytrippers with dogs are driving demand for an amendment to Waynesville’s pet policy at fairs and fests, but owners might not get the bone they’ve been begging for.

If you stick around in local government long enough, you could find yourself considering the repeal of an ordinance that you yourself wrote years prior — like Waynesville Mayor Gavin Brown.

The stakes were as high as the hopes last weekend as competitors from across North America came together at the Haywood County Fairgrounds to see whose luxuriously-locked little rodent would be deemed best in breed by a discerning panel of judges.

A large-scale rescue effort involving multiple animal welfare agencies resulted in the removal of more than 400 animals from a puppy mill in Clarkesville, Georgia, last week.

By Kristen Hammett • Guest Columnist

As a pet owner, there are many things we do to keep our fur babies safe, healthy, and happy. Vaccinating is one that is very important. Vaccines can save a dog’s or cat’s life.

It was a chilly pre-spring day when Olivia Hickman ventured to the Waynesville Recreation Park, looking for nothing more than an hour or so of play with her 2-year-old son on the wooden jungle gym. But a dog lying on the outskirts of the area soon became the center of attention.