Mountain Views News          Saturday, November 9, 2013

A10

JUST FOR BEST FRIENDS

 Mountain Views News Saturday, November 9, 2013 


PET OF THE WEEK

100 MULE MOBILE 
ART PROJECT DRAWS 
DUE ATTENTION TO LA 
AQUADUCT’S 100TH 
ANNIVERSARY

PULIDO: ANIMAL ID #A4645982

Happy Tails

by Chris Leclerc


Looking for a fantastic new pet? Look no further! Peludo 
(A4645982) is a charming five year old neutered male 
Norfolk Terrier who was discarded at the Baldwin Park 
Shelter on October 24th because his former owners moved 
and made no provision for their dog. Volunteers cannot 
understand how anyone could abandon a grey dog like 
Peludo! Weighing eighteen pounds, he walks okay on the 
leash and knows some of his basic commands. Great with 
other dogs, Peludo is a well-behaved dog that is a fantastic 
playmate for children. He adorable and cuddly, and is an 
absolutely outstanding indoor pet for anyone in any living 
situation.

To watch a video of Peludo please visit:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=2TKWHQ0zA5I

To meet Peludo in person, please see him at the Baldwin Park Shelter, located at 4275 N. Elton, 
Baldwin Park, CA 91706 (Phone: 626-430-2378 or 626-962-3577). He is currently available now. For 
any inquiries about Peludo, please reference his animal ID number: A4645982. The shelter is open 
seven days a week, 12 pm-7 pm Monday-Thursday and 10am-5pm Friday-Sunday. This is a high-
intake shelter with a great need for adoptions. For more information about Peludo or the adoption 
process, contact United Hope for Animals Volunteer Adoption Coordinator Samantha at Samantha@
hope4animals.org. To learn more about United Hope for Animals’ partnership with the Baldwin Park 
Shelter through its Shelter Support Program, as well as the many dogs of all breeds, ages, and sizes 
available for adoption in local shelters, visit http://www.unitedhope4animals.org/about-us/shelter-
support-program/.

If you ask any Sierra Madre 
resident what the hottest topic 
in town is these days, their 
reply will likely be, in a single 
word, “water”. For the first 
time in our beautiful burg’s 
history we are experiencing 
the lowest level ever of the 
wet stuff in our well, forcing 
us to switch from the luxury 
of drinking cool, clear water 
straight from the tap, to 
turning on the faucet and 
wondering if what’s coming 
out could be some tainted 
form of khaki-colored Kool-
aid.

Being the privileged hillside 
village dwellers that we are, we 
have become spoiled by the 
seemingly never-ending flow 
of drinkable water we’ve had 
access to for so many years, 
and now that the well is running 
dry, it seems some folks think 
we are the only ones dealing 
with the quandary of an on-
going drought. Well, I just want 
to say that we should consider 
ourselves very fortunate to have 
had the well water we’ve been 
blessed with for so many years.

Mother Nature is no respecter 
of persons. If it rains, it rains 
and if it doesn’t rain, well then 
it just doesn’t rain. It’s as simple 
as that. Nature takes it’s course, 
and we humans must learn to 
adapt regardless of what we’d 
like to think we are entitled to. 
Perhaps it takes a drought for 
some people to learn how to be 
more conservative with their 
water use, and I’ll tell you what, 
when it comes to such a basic 
necessity as water, Nature can 
be a very effective teacher.

Limited water resources in Los 
Angeles and the surrounding 
southland cities has been an on-
going issue since the beginning 
of history, and if left to nature, 
would have prevented the 
development of what has now 
become a sprawling metropolis. 
If not for a project that changed 
the water demographic for a 
large portion of California 100 
years ago, who knows what LA 
would be like today? It could 
still be a massive desert valley 
tucked between the Pacific 
coast and the slopes of it’s 
surrounding mountains, with 
nothing but palm trees and a bit 
of other sparse plant life to color 
it‘s landscape.

When William Mullholland 
was hired to head up an epic 
aquaduct project designed to 
channel water from the Owens 
Valley, the Sierra Nevada‘s 
natural catch basin, to the sandy 
San Fernando Valley in 1913, he 
soon became friend of many at 
the receiving end in the south, 
but a potential foe to those 
who lived in the north, at the 
point of intake. As countless 
gallons of water began flowing 
south from what was then a 
rich natural land mass covered 
with numerous farms, orchards, 
natural springs and lakes, the 
transformation of that area into 
the dusty, dry saline desert it is 
today was underway.

At the same time, the constant 
southward flow of fresh H2O 
gradually morphed the San 
Fernando Valley into a highly 
populated urban dwelling 
riddled with imported trees, 
grass and shrubberies that 
would never have survived in 
that area’s original indigenous 
environment. Talk about 
trading places!

And so, many land owners 
in the Owens valley were un-
knowingly out foxed by the 
undercover tricksters who 
talked them into selling their 
land, and outnumbered by 
the thousands of westward ho 
migrants settling in the south 
who decided quenching their 
thirst for urban development 
was more important than 
recognizing nature’s unforgiving 
lust for balance. However, at 
the end of the day, Earth will 
always have it’s way on whether 
it sustains us, and it would 
behoove we humans to come 
to grips with the fact that we 
are a major integral part of that 
process.

It’s been 100 years since the 
LA Aquaduct was constructed, 
creating a lifeline for growth to 
Los Angeles and it’s subsequent 
suburbs, but the sentiments of 
what that meant for those who 
lived in the Owens Valley and 
it’s country-sides have definitely 
not dried up and blown away 
like the vitality of their land 
has. Generations have come 
and gone, yet those who know 
the history still hold fast to 
their feelings that the natural 
ecosystems of the Owens 
Valley were compromised by 
the channel that took the water 
away from their natural area to 
allow for urban development in 
LA.

In spite of the differences in 
opinion regarding the impact 
the aquaduct system has had, 
whether good or bad, one 
thing most people can agree 
on is that it was a remarkable 
on-taking and it earned it’s 
rightful recognition not only 
in the modern day engineering 
industry, but as a landmark 
event in California’s history 
books. As an avid animal lover, 
the thing I find most intriguing 
about the origin of the aquaduct 
system is the major part that the 
mules played in it’s construction 
and apparently I among many 
who recognize the importance 
of that fact.

Lauren Bon, granddaughter 
of the late publisher and 
philanthropist Walter 
Annenberg came up with the 
idea to organize a 100-mule trail 
ride that would start from the 
in-take location of the aquaduct 
in Lone Pine, and finish where 
the aquaduct ends in LA, near 
Griffith Park. The excursion 
was given the title, 100 Mules 
Walking the Los Angeles 
Aquaduct, and dubbed by 
some as a “mobile art project“. 
It’s purpose is to memorialize 
the 100th anniversary of the 
aquaduct system, and to remind 
it‘s beneficiaries to appreciate 
the water it has delivered to 
them over all these years. Most 
importantly, however, the ride 
is meant to bring recognition 
and show appreciation to the 
pack of willing, hard-working 
mules that ultimately made the 
project possible in the absence 
of modern construction 
equipment when it was built 
back in 1913.

The 100-mule caravan is 
scheduled to arrive in Griffith 
Park on Monday, November 11 
and after marching 240 miles 
over the course of about 27 days, 
I imagine all parties involved 
will happy to finally relax and 
reflect on their very long yet 
very meaningful journey along 
the entire length of the Los 
Angeles Aquaduct. Kudos to 
those who joined in on the 
march, and to Lauren Bon for 
organizing a memorial event 
to honor such an important 
historic landmark and for 
reminding us all that without 
the mule, it could never have 
been built. This is yet another 
example of how important 
animals have been in bringing 
we humans from where we were 
a hundred years ago to where 
we are today. Appreciate the 
animals for all they do for us, 
and above all, love and let live!


LOOKING FOR A BEST FRIEND??

Courtesy of Eastern California Museum


So is Speckle! She is approximately 6-7 
years old and weighs 8 pounds. She can 
be shy at first when she meets people, 
but has blossomed from all the attention 
she receives from shelter volunteers. She 
has a mellow temperament and is a bit 
independent. After she gets to know you, 
she is comfortable hopping up on your lap 
for more attention! She gets along well with 
other dogs and loves going for walks. She 
would be a good companion for a senior 
or couple and is eligible for our ‘Senior for 
Seniors’ discounted-fee adoption program. 
She is spayed, up to date with all routine 
shots and ready to move in. Please consider 
making Speckle part of your family!

She currently resides at the San Gabriel 
Valley Humane Society located at 851 E. 
Grand Avenue in San Gabriel with her 
roomie. We are located off San Gabriel 
Blvd., north of Mission and south of Las 
Tunas. 

To arrange a ‘Meet and Greet’ with Speckle (aka….. SG10038), please stop by any time from 
10:00am to 4:30pm Tuesday thru Sunday. 

Her adoption fee is $120 which includes her spay surgery, a microchip, first vaccinations and 
a free wellness check-up at a participating veterinarian. Feel free to call us at (626) 286-1159 
for more information on Speckle. 

See our website at www.sgvhumane.org for information and photos of all our available pets.