Wildlife Rescue Series!

I was housesitting for J&S in Toronto when Craig Rintoul of BookBits came by to interview me about Crow Medicine. I shovelled snow for the first time in my life that week … and the second, third, fourth and fifth times as well. Anyway, the front walk was clear when Craig arrived.

I’d expected him to show up slinging bags of big, black, bulky audio recording equipment, child of the ’70s that I am. Instead, he pulled out what looked like an MP3 player and said, “Okay, ready?”

I have to thank Craig again for doing such a careful and compassionate read of the book, and for making the interview experience (always a bit nerve-wracking for me) so much fun.

No animals were harmed in the recording of this interview, although apparent evidence to the contrary may be heard near the top of the clip. That’s just Jiggy and Pixel, two wily grey tabbies and the house’s real owners, announcing their presence to their adoring public (you).

Enjoy!

Craig Rintoul of BookBits interviews Diane Haynes in Toronto about her latest book, Crow Medicine. Click here to hear their conversation!

If you’ve already read Crow Medicine, then you know bugs and the stuff that kills them play a pretty big part in the story. If you haven’t, then I’m not going to spoil the surprises!

But here’s some great news for anybody who’s ever worried about what exactly that huge list of chemicals on your mosquito repellent actually means and whether or not they’re good for you and your animals at home.

Back in 1996, a company called EcoSMART Technologies Inc. contacted the University of British Columbia (UBC) with a research problem for them to solve (lucky ducks!). “They had this product that killed insects but they didn’t understand how or why it was working,” says Dr. Murray Isman at UBC.

Dr. Isman and his researchers tested the products and developed them for use as insect repellents. They also came up with ideas for the future, including using similar products for agricultural purposes.

EcoSMART’s new product line contains essential oils of rosemary, clove, thyme and peppermint — all things you can find in an aromatherapy store! The products will be available at American Wal-Mart stores this spring (okay, I can’t believe I named the W-store in this blog, but hey, if they’re the only ones carrying this stuff, then they get the mention!). No word yet as to when they’ll be available in Canada, but you can count on me to let you know!

- Flory Morales

rhet-o-ric [ret-er-ik] — the art of influencing the thought and conduct of an audience; the undue use of exaggeration or display; bombast.

Questions of animal welfare often come down to a war of words between industry or government, and animal rights groups. The battle takes place in the media, and the media don’t always do enough to cut through the rhetoric on both sides and tell the story that lies behind the words.

I’ve been calling myself an animal welfare activist for about six years now, and as a writer — and particularly as a writer for young people — I think it’s part of my job to be as informed as possible about the issues I’m addressing. For me, that often means being able to hold two or more viewpoints in my mind at once, so that I can write about an issue fairly, and not make my readers’ minds up for them. That has led to looking deeper into things like zoos, hunting and meat-eating in order to be able to see more clearly, and speak or write more truthfully.

The Canadian seal hunt is a situation that can polarize people like few others, and is so controversial and emotional that many otherwise rational and compassionate people prefer to ignore it. The 2007 hunt commenced this week, and as someone who has responded passionately to it in the past, I decided I wanted to say something about it here.

But in digging in to do a little research, I discovered a site that is so articulate and so balanced that I’ve decided the best thing I can do is direct you there. Canada’s broadcaster should be commended for giving this issue space, and the journalist(s) who assembled the piece congratulated for giving fair voice to all sides.

To learn about the issues involved in Canada’s seal hunt, start here: The Atlantic Seal Hunt - FAQs. And then keep going. Dig deeper. And once you know what your opinion is, learn something new, and question it again.

Postscript: In a strange twist of fate/cause-and-effect, global warming is causing the ice floes to break up earlier than usual, setting seal pups adrift at sea. The pups cannot yet swim, and are drowning. Hunters may not meet their quota of 270,000 seals for 2007, because there may not be that many left to kill.