Category Archives: Fang & Claw

Take The World in A Love Embrace



Rare images of a close companionship between a male black bear and a female gray wolf almost never seen in the wild. Such interactions are exceptions rather than the rule. In the wild:
Competition Is the Norm:
• Bears and wolves generally see each other as competitors for food and territory. Wolves might attempt to harass a bear to protect their packs or food, while bears may steal food from wolf packs.
Rare Exceptions:
• In unusual cases, individual animals may form bonds due to special circumstances, such as being orphaned or raised in proximity to one another. These relationships are more likely to occur if the animals are young and grow accustomed to each other before typical competitive instincts develop.
Observed Instances:
• Wildlife photographers and researchers have occasionally documented unique, friendly interactions like in the photos, but these are considered anomalies. Such relationships may develop in regions where resources are abundant, reducing the competition between species.

It’s a striking reminder of how nature can surprise us with unexpected relationships.


Seven and One

The Mayor of Dogtown

The mayor of Dogtown died last night,
breaking the whole city’s
he art.

The morning is still, and the trees lean in,
listening for steps that will not come.
How will they know he’s gone,
these creatures of the faithful now?

Their eyes trace an empty park bench,
as if waiting for an answer
only we will hear—
we, in the fold of yesterdays,
bound to all that is passing.

They race onward, unbroken and becoming,
carrying something of him in the scuff of leaves,
their joyful, endless present—
while we hold to the stillness,
to the memory,
of a smile echoing across a field.

Open Letter to A Puppy: Richard Harris


My little ones,

I have some hard news. Richard Harris, Trouble’s dad, the mayor of the dog park and the first regular you ever met there, died in his sleep last night. He was 58.

He died after doing his second-favorite thing: cooking for friends. He made dinner in his new pizza oven, dined, laughed, shared his love, said good night and was gone by 4 a.m.

His favorite thing was Trouble, his 12-year-old rescue that taught him to love dogs. He used not to, but said that when he met Trouble, he knew he was in it, because he was head over heels.

From that moment, he became the smiling face of the Sepulveda Basin Off-Leash dog park. He walked dogs there for 20 years under the business name Sitters O’ Critters, and seemed to remember the name of every person and pup he ever met.

If you were a regular at the park, you knew Richard, along with his daily query: “Whatchu doin for lunch? I want something delicious.” A park regular called him “the Great Connector” of people at the park, who became a community — bound by his love of dogs, the park, and the palpable chemistry of that combination.

Born in Hawaii but raised in Pittsburgh, Richard was an eight-year military veteran and served in the Gulf War before civilian life. He could have lived a cubicle existence, and knew how to invest.

But he would say he could never give up a life with dogs, dog people, and the California sun. 

Every day, he’d show up in a crapped out Scooby Doo van with at least a dozen of his charges, each of which got their own crate for safe passage. You two would greet him daily, barking hellos to his squadron of fur and fang.

I can’t tell you what the park will feel like tomorrow. Surely empty. Some of your friends may not be back. I know one of mine won’t.

But Richard would never forgive us if we didn’t show up, didn’t love on the fur babies, didn’t marvel at the Cali weather and canine frenzy that brought us together in the first place.

So let’s try keep it together tomorrow. Better than dad did today. 

Afterwards, we’ll get something delicious.