Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Best Practices for Handling Off-Leash Dogs in Central Oregon

How do you deal with encounters with off-leash dogs in areas where they aren’t supposed to be?

As a dog parent, there’s no better feeling than watching your dog run free, doing dog things and living their best life. These small freedoms are incredibly important to our dogs’ physical and mental well-being. We’re so privileged to live here in Central Oregon, where ample opportunities to give our dogs this freedom abound. However, […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

The Art of Fish Keeping

Local fish shop, Aquatopia, offers insight into starting and maintaining an aquarium

A fish may not be the most traditional pet, but it can be the ideal option for those wanting a low-maintenance animal while also looking to dip their toes into a new hobby. The act of fish keeping can be therapeutic, a creative outlet or just an aesthetically pleasing activity. “It’s one of those hobbies […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Parking Lot Birds

Enjoying the natural world doesn’t have to require a lot of time or effort

If you want to set the burdens of the world aside for a few minutes by watching beautiful birds, you can hike up a mountain or drive to a remote lake or forest. Or, you can simply head to a parking lot. Take, for instance, the now-empty parking lot at the former Costco in Bend, […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Central Oregon Pets 2025

It’s not just humans who live the good life in Central Oregon! The pets of the region like to have a good time, too.

A quick glance at this page and you can clearly see that the staff of Central Oregon Pets (aka the Source Weekly and our wonderful contributors) are parents to a pet or few. Our furry and usually* four-legged friends mean the world to us, and we know that feeling extends to so many in our […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Confessions of a Cat Junkie

When describing the two rambunctious, one-year-old cats that we recently adopted, I’ll borrow the best of Faces album title: “Good Boys… When They’re Asleep”

The two brother cats, formerly known as “Fluffy” and “Mousecatcher 2000,” are now named Mack and Mo. We brought them home in early February. They had been residing in one of the exam rooms at our veterinarian’s practice, relocated from a horse ranch in the Los Angeles area (before the fires). They were the last […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Central Oregon Pets 2024

It’s not just the humans who live the good life in Central Oregon! The Pets of the region like to have a good time, too.

For the team at Central Oregon Pets (aka the Source Weekly), it’s our favorite time of the year! Nearly every one of us is a parent to a pet or two, and we love sharing the love—and the stories—of local pets. Inside this edition of Central Oregon Pets, let your heart melt with Richard Sitts’ […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

A Film About the Pets of the Camps… and CAMP

Companion Animal Medical Project featured in new documentary, premiering March 24

Central Oregonians may have gotten a glimpse or two of the encampments dotted around Central Oregon, from Dirt World between Bend and Redmond to China Hat south of town. But in a new documentary, viewers get an up-close-and-personal view of the places where people live on the literal margins — with a focus on not […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Your Latest Lunch Date: Alpacas

Alpaca Picnics offers an engaging lunch date, a unique bonding activity, a romantic getaway or a serene escape from the hustle of nine-to-five daily life

They’re very kind to the land,” Amanda VandenBosch says about the camelid cousin to the llama, the alpaca. VandenBosch has dedicated her life to spreading knowledge and experience about the alpaca’s sustainability, and yes, their unique healing powers. “Alpacas are very calming,” she explained. “We always say to people, especially when having picnics, ‘take a […]

Posted inSpecial Issues & Guides

Kitten Season is Nearly Here!

Volunteer foster homes are always in demand

The kittens are coming… This ominous fact rings true when kitten season rolls around, running from mid-spring to early fall. Or, as Lynne Ouchida, director of Community Partnerships for the Humane Society of Central Oregon, puts it, “from Easter to Halloween.” That’s a lot of kittens and they all deserve loving homes. That’s where volunteer […]

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