Hi Brad, You're so right. Reading suggestions on GW is a big help, and one can learn a lot from people who grow really rare plants, like CP's. Think I mentioned, I didn't know CP/Venus Flytraps bloomed. Our local conservatory keeps CP's in a large aquarium, but last time I visited CP's weren't flowering..They are interesting to watch though. Brad, I WISH I had that book. LOL, you're right...Little Shop of Horrors..One day that movie was on Cable. An old version..B-Grade, badly made movie. lol. I can't recall much about the movie, except a guy own a store, maybe a plant store, and got hold of a plant that ate people..lol..Too funny. Swallowtail sounds right. Wings are black edged, yellow centers. So far, haven't seen a ST this year. Oh, you'll love your Butterfly Bush..What color flowers? I had white over 10-years, '17-yr Cicada's killed it,' and still have a dark purple BB in the back yard. BB attracts Butterflys, bees and a little insect called Moth-Hummingbird. The first time I saw this insect I thought it was a Hummer...boy, was I excited. I started a thread here on GW, and found it wasn't a hummer, but a moth-hummer..Don't know if they're related or not.. Its wings flutter exactly like a Hummingbird. They're tiny, maybe 1-2" tall. Of all BB color flowers, I think white is most fragrant and attracts a larger number of insects. Mine were bought at HD, too. lol. As babies. So, you prune now? Doesn't pruning halt flowers? Big decision is an understatement. Coco, 'little dog' is very lonely w/o his big brother. On the other hand, he's very selfish, lol. He has quite a few stuffed animals, which we call his babies. Coco never liked sharing. Even w/Sam. lol So, if I get another dog, I fear Coco will think he/she is his baby, and won't want me to touch the new little guy/gal. Training might be impossible. Sam gets credit for house training Coco. Coco watched Sam go out back..When Coco grew a little, I took Coco out back. He was so tiny, I feared he'd find a way outside the fence. Even though I took Coco out, he was only doing what Sam did, if that makes sense. lol. Then, Sam and Coco went outside together, under my supervision. Coco weight about 5 lbs, Sam was 172. I worried Sam would step on Coco. Too protective??? lol Did you get a chance to browse Black Jungle? Toni

Debbie, you will know better the next time, so try not to feel too bad. Just about everyone here got into this not really knowing how involved it would become. As Jane said, some of us have learned the hard way and try to help others from making the same mistakes. I still feel bad about my first ever nest of bluebirds. I lost 9 day old babies to a raccoon -- every bluebird box I had ever seen was on a wood post, so that was what I put mine on. The owner of my local bird store even told me to do it that way! It was an awful lesson for me - I learned the hard way that raccoons can climb a wood post as easily as we walk on a sidewalk. Then I learned about poles and baffles and there have been no more raccoon losses. We probably all have failure stories to share. Let us know how the new nesting goes. Good luck ~ Malinda

Hi! I mainly post on the Wintersowing, Cottage Garden, and Carolina Gardening forums but I always have to come look at the furbaby pictures. We are owned by six cats and two dogs. Oldest is Sadie, who was brought to us by our late kitty Cromwell on Sadie Hawkins Day in 2000. We took both of them to the vet to be fixed, but Sadie had been a shady lady and oops, it was too late. Cromwell (lost to heart failure 2005) Sadie (Mama Sadie aka Shady Lady) We were going to find good homes for the babies, but by the time they were old enough, they were family (and very close family - my husband and me and six cats in a one bedroom apartment). Teddi,Dave, Sofi, and Buster We finally found the house we wanted and moved it and moved in, so we were able to stretch out a bit, lol. Three years ago, we adopted Einstein, our little parking lot kitty, whose purr was bigger than he was. In 2005, I decided it was time for a puppy. I hadn't had a dog since my snoodle, Belvedere, who passed away in 1990. I scrolled the sites of all the area shelters and rescues, and DH and I visited many, but no luck until I found this picture.... We went hoping one of them was still available. Both were there and we of course couldn't break them up. The latest members of our family, border collie/dalmation sisters Maggie and Molly.

So glad he made it back home. Lulu was chipped but there was no registration. The man who had her when she was surrendered to the shelter hadn't even checked her for a chip. The shelter and rescue say a search was done and exhausted, but I also know they didn't want that man to have her because he hadn't cared for her. I didn't want to take a chance on thinking she was mine and then have another owner show up, so I searched myself and verified that the microchip people couldn't trace any records. Sometimes they can trace to a vet or breeder who bought that chip, but even that can be a needle in a haystack. When you register, you need to name your vet. PetLink is the network for reporting microchip numbers and they will release the vet's name, so the vet will be the person contacted. I was told they may not give out owner's contact info for security reasons, but I don't know if that would be the case if that is all they have. I just wouldn't want to take a chance and would want to make it as easy as possible for someone to find us. I put Lulu's microchip number on her collar tag (ex: MC123456789) hoping someone without a chip reader could figure that out. Hope we never have to test it.