The Conejo Valley Guide "Welcome" blog covers a wide range of topics, local information, highlights of local things to do, compilations and other items. Focus is on information relevant to Ventura County and surrounding areas, including Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, Newbury Park, Agoura Hills, Calabasas, Malibu, Simi Valley, Camarillo, Moorpark, Somis, Fillmore, Santa Paula, Ojai, Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Barbara and Moorpark.
The Conejo Valley Guide® "Welcome" blog covers a wide range of topics, local information, local things to do, holiday event compilations, announcements and more.
This particular coyote and a friend I've seen regularly this month in Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa in the northern Santa Monica Mountains. Quite entertaining watching him look for snacks in the rabbit holes. Hope he stays healthy through the remainder of the winter.
Lucky to be at the Reagan Library in Simi Valley this morning to witness the annual release of grazing goats on the hillside west of the Library. What a sight! These seemingly endlessly hungry goats help mitigate fire danger by clearing the hill of dry vegetation.
More on the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum at THIS LINK.
New “The World of da Vinci” exhibit at the Reagan Library May 24 to September 8, 2019.
There must be hundreds of turtles hanging out at the pond area of The Commons at Calabasas, enjoying the spring weather, swimming, sunning and bantering with their koi friends. Quite amusing!
The only other place that comes to mind with this many turtles is Alice Keck Park Memorial Gardens in Santa Barbara.
Let us hope the teenage turtles in this bunch do not become mutant and ninja-like in nature.
All this talk about turtles makes me think about tortoises too, including the 90+ year old Galapagos Tortoise, "Clarence," at America's Teaching Zoo at Moorpark College.
With the name Conejo Valley, I guess one could assume there are a lot of conejos, or rabbits, in our midst. One would be correct in that assumption, at least based on my own experience.
This morning, under foggy, cool, skies, the bunnies were out in force. They didn't seem to be foraging for food, however. They were playing, goofing off, annoying one another.
They looked like they were playing tag. Whatever it may be, they were quite involved in this activity, as I was able to stand there, not much more than 10 yards away from them, camera in hand, capturing some of their frolicking.
Speaking of trails, here's a nice compilation that will keep you moving over the coming summer months. And when you're tired of running around and it starts getting hot, try this list of summer free and $1 movies around Ventura County. Or hop on over to a local gym/fitness facility.
Last but not least...watch out for those coyotes!
The National Park Service estimated that some 70% of the 1,170 acre Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa area in Newbury Park was impacted by the Springs Fire this past May. The impact on wildlife was staggering. With so much of the landscape charred, wildlife is frequently seen foraging around for food...deer, coyotes, rabbits, etc. More on Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa and the Satwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center (thankfully not impacted by the fire due to the efforts of firefighters) at THIS LINK.
Where's the bunny? (Click image for link to larger image in Pinterest)
Where's the coyote? (Click image for link to larger image in Pinterest)
No problems spotting this beautiful King Snake crossing the trail.
And below are some deer caught foraging for food next to the Satwiwa Native American Indian Culture Center on a recent morning.
On a visit to Conejo Creek Park in Thousand Oaks (one of our favorite local parks, next to the Thousand Oaks Library, Senior Center and Teen Center), a family was feeding the ducks. The sheer number of voracious ducks was both amusing and startling! But we survived.
This reminded me of a previous experience observing Turtles Going Wild at the beautiful Alice Keck Memorial Gardens in Santa Barbara.
Cats and Dogs International, CANDi, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to saving the lives of stray cats and dogs through spay, neuter and adoption programs. Recently, CANDi funded chemotherapy for a cancer-stricken dog called Luna.
The Story of Luna from Nuvue Cinema on Vimeo.
Cancún is a world-renowned tourist destination which is lesser known for its vast stray dog population. In Mexico, many workers earn the equivalent of $4 per day and spay surgery is not feasible, costing up to several weeks worth of pay for the average worker. CANDi programs provide the resources necessary to address the stray animal issue in situations where local governments and animal groups are not in a position to help. Thousands of cats and dogs have been spayed and neutered annually as a result.
It was during a vacation in Cancún that photographer Tracey Buyce came face-to-face with the staggering stray dog issue. She knew she had to help and discovered CANDi’s founder, Galati, through an internet search. She was back in Cancún four months later, volunteering at one of CANDi’s twice-annual free spay/neuter clinics, and soon came on board as CANDi's official photographer.
Returning to Bonfil, Mexico with CANDi again in January 2013, Buyce spotted Luna, a neglected and skeletal dog. After gaining permission from her owner to give Luna up, she had her examined and diagnosed with starvation and cancer. Luna is currently undergoing treatment and chemotherapy under the care of Dr. Leon, and CANDi volunteers in Mexico.
Buyce made it her mission to find a loving home for the gentle dog and posted Luna’s story on Facebook. She received a response almost immediately from Jenny Witte, founder of Mamatoga, a parenting website and magazine in New York, wanting to adopt her. Buyce flew back to Mexico to bring Luna back for a homecoming with her new family in Saratoga Springs on March 18th. The touching result is shown in the following video.
Luna Part Deux from Nuvue Cinema on Vimeo.
Visit Luna's Facebook page here. See more of Tracey Buyce's work at www.traceybuyce.com.
About CANDi: CANDi’s mission is to save the lives of stray animals at international tourist destinations through advocacy, education and humane, sustainable population management programs supported and funded by the tourism industry, travelers and pet lovers. Founded in 2006, CANDi is the innovation of CEO and President Darci Galati, an animal lover with 20 years of experience working in the tourism industry. "CANDi’s programs are viable, long-term solutions to animal overpopulation in resort areas that can be copied and applied worldwide,” says Galati, whose organization is supported by the tourism industry, travelers and pet lovers. For more information about CANDi visit www.candiinternational.org.
Conejo Valley Guide covers events, activities and things to do throughout Ventura County and surrounding areas.
