6 GROUNDCOVER NEWS MEET MY PET PAL overcast and drizzly, I can tell she's depressed. When it's sunny, she jumps around doing figure eights. It's like night and day. How did you get your pet? I have to plead the fifth on this one; long story short, I rescued her. Tell us a few things about Baby Girl. She is a blue-nosed pitbull and weighs as much as two coyotes. Speaking of, she is a hunter! She kills raccoons, coyotes and squirrels. But I’ve never seen her fight anything. She really is a service animal at heart. She likes other animals but just gets excited when she sees them. Baby Girl is young — only 33 months. But I’m only going by the look of her teeth. I’ve had so many dogs — ever since I was a kid. There’s only been a few months of my whole life that I haven’t had a pet. There is something special about Baby Girl — I would cry my eyes out if I ever lost her. We’ve been through a lot of stuff together. We survived the winter sleeping outside; we kept each other warm. Mutual body heat! A dog in cold conditions can intentionally increase its body heat, by literally three or four degrees. One time I had to kick her off because we were creating a whole weather system inside the tent! What rewards do you get from having a pet? I have had anxiety and depression for as long as I can remember. Having a pet fights those symptoms. Even when I’m alone, I’m not alone because I have Baby Girl. And it's mutual. She spent the first year of her life locked in a kennel. I think she has something similar to anxiety too, and we help each other out. Her emotions are very related to what the weather is doing. If it's What is challenging about having a pet while experiencing homelessness/ poverty/ economic exploitation? Here’s a perfect example. I had to walk to Meijer to get some food (a couple miles one way). I have her trained to get in the cart. When I get to the store, I take off my coat, put it in the bottom of the cart, and put her in the cart. I was at the deli, and the deli clerk got in my grill and said the animals are not allowed in the cart. I told her I take Baby into every store in the cart. The clerk insisted that she could be in the store, but not in the cart. That didn’t make sense to me, I wanted a real reason. I told her I was going to buy my meat somewhere else, and apologized to the other customers for taking up their time. I’ve also had a few problems with Baby getting on the bus. They ask you, “Is this your pet?” And if you do not respond “She’s a service animal!” they won’t let you on. I feel I shouldn’t have to say it at all. But I get questioned all the time. MAY 19, 2023 meet my pet pal: JEREMY & BABY GIRL A column on why those experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity have pets and why it is important to support that. In general, people tend to project human emotions onto animals. People have told me I shouldn’t have Baby Girl. An animal has no idea that it’s homeless. She had a quarter pound of beef jerky, just yesterday! That’s why I play music for a living – I can take my dog to work with me. What is something our readers should know about Baby Girl if they see you both on the street? She’s friendly! You’re always welcome to come say “Hi.” She’s my emotional service animal, but she can brighten anyone's day. I’m the guy with the hat and the dog. Come see us play music at State and North University! Kona's right light Earth Day is everyday for me. It was disgraceful that Allen & Odile Haber canceled ‘Earth Day’ because of the weather — how ironically absurd, but not the true reason or excuse. For any more info on that you would need to ask them. When you’re living in the elements, changes are evident in the direct effects on your living condition. As a homeless person, making a natural connection to the Earth is essential for survival. Wherever I might be camping, I am to be responsible for maintaining good stewardship of the Earth and its contained life that I’m treading on. I share a great respect for the Earth MARKONA LOVE Groundcover vendor No. 590 and all she does for us. Still, I load up on excessively packaged products, paper towels at the supermarket and straws at restaurants. So, I admittedly am a hypocrite, but I am aware and reaching for perfection. I share this with many other Homeless. As I live in the elements, changes are evident in the direct effects on my living conditions. To me, we are acting like "arrogant cosmic tourists" on this planet. Would you just throw trash on the floor of somebody else's house you're visiting? If I’m stationary, I’m looking for trash to pick up. I can’t help myself. It's a habit I encourage. I don’t look to judge someone else, I look to myself to do the right thing — there’s the trash, there’s the trash can. It feels irresponsible of me to not pick Kona, Quaker parrot. see KONA page 10
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