Collections

My dad has multiple hobbies, various collections, lot of material things. I'm a lot like my dad. My brother on the other hand is the opposite - he can't understand what we find in material things. I tried to explain it to him, but I know it's uselss. He comes from the camp of - if it takes space - throw it!

One of the nicest collections my dad has is of turtles. No one knows how he started it, and it's only been ten years he's been at it. But he has a substantial collection now that I love looking at. Turtles are house pets in Israel. Like cats. When I say house pets, it's not like in the US, where they are inside the house. The cats and turtles are outside - all the time. But they typically remain close to one house, since the owners of the house will feed them regularly. They are free to roam where they wish. No one is holding on to them. No collar. No leash. You'd see dogs with a collar, but not on a leash.

Israel is well known for being very pet friendly. What I mean is - pets are allowed to roam around outside the houses without leashes. The way animals SHOULD be! Of course it means you need to learn fairly quickly how to sidestep road blocks and land-mines, but for the pleasure of seeing animals - most people tolerate it.

When we have severe hot weather the radio and tv stations call out on everyone to remember to place a bowl of water outside for the pets. So even if you don't own one, you may put a bowl out so the dogs and cats don't die of dehydration.

The pet I missed the most in Israel is actually not the dog, nor the cat, nor the turtle - but the porcupine. I grew up chasing porcupines in our yard. They are the cutest of the bunch. I used to love to pick them up. You have to know how to do it. You learn to smooth your hand in the right direction so you don't get stabbed. They had the most adorable face.

Today I read some very sad news, that apparently the Israeli hedgehog was growing extinct. It's a darn shame! I mean, com'n - isn't this the cutest thing?

Meanwhile, the turtles seem to be multiplying in my brother's yard, where every vacation there are another three added to the yard.

I'm surprised they live so well together with the cats, but apparently, the cats are just annoyed with the turtles when they eat their food. Otherwise, they're just curious about these odd hard shelled creatures, which apparently don't get scared when pounced on.