By Kevin Chiri

I always tell my new reporters that there are two things which guarantee good readership-animal stories or baby pictures.

Lately it seems we’ve had a bit of a run of animal/related stories.

Of course there was the infamous “cat shot with arrow dies” story a couple of weeks ago. Man did I get some response to that one since we had quite a time figuring out whether to run the picture of the cat with the arrow through it. In the end, I decided to put it on page 2, since I knew how many people wanted to see it, but I put a front page “Viewer Discretion Advised” box with the story.

I have to admit I laughed about that whole thing for a couple of days-of course not about the poor cat which died. But I was laughing about how I finally decided to put the picture in the paper.

I had many people tell me “you better not run that picture in the paper!” But almost every one of those same people also followed it up by saying, “but let me see the picture.” So I knew most of our readers would be curious to see the picture.

In the end I think I came up with a fair way to run the whole thing, giving a warning to those who didn’t want to see it on page 2, but still getting it in for those who wanted to see it.

If you check today’s paper, we have a story about the man who apparently shot the cat, as he turned himself in to the Sheriff’s Office. The man said he accidentally shot the cat and has now offered to buy a new cat for the owner, and donate $200 to the St. John Animal Shelter. The owner of the cat has decided not to press charges.

But I digress-and man do I do that easily.

The second animal/related story we had recently was a front page item about the bald eagles at Belle Terre Country Club which have been noticed swooping down over the ponds, and snatching up the ducks for their dinner. Being a protected animal, there is nothing that can be done about that. I suppose it is nature operating at its finest.

I was told another story from golf course owner Tim Duhe about a couple which said an eagle had taken away their small dog.

Now-as Paul Harvey would say-“Here is the rest or the story.”

I’ve now gotten further confirmation about the eagle situation out there from Carolyn Patrick, a local attorney who I know through our business associations.

Carolyn mentioned to me this past week that she too, has had a problem with the eagles.

Carolyn said she and her husband have lost “a couple of cats,” and they have other neighbors in the area who have said the same thing. Of course Carolyn said she lives right on the golf course.

The main incident she related to me was about a beautiful, white Himalayan cat she had. One day the cat didn’t come back into the house and she went outside looking for it. All she found was a bunch of white fur in her garden area.

She said that she and her husband have noticed several eagles in the area, including one which just landed on the ground near a pond by their home. She is sure the cat was taken by the eagle, and she said they had one other cat which also mysteriously disappeared.

So the word is out about those eagles. They may be beautiful, but you better not let any of your small animals run loose in that area. Chances are they might quickly disappear.

Care to hear one more animal story?

You don’t want to hear it? Oh yea, I forgot. It’s my columnŠ.so listen up to my animal story.

One thing I noticed quickly after moving here over three years ago is the abundance of hawks and owls all over the place.

I live in Garyville, so of course we’re a little more out towards the woods than you folks here in the big city of LaPlace.

My wife and I exercise together during the week, and after doing our weight work at the house, take a nice walk through our neighborhood. It’s so interesting to see these large owls just sitting on sign posts, or many places close to where we are walking.

But of course everyone has seen the multitude of hawks which sit on the telephone lines as you drive up and down Airline Highway. When I first got here I was amazed. “Hey look at the hawk!” I would tell the kids. And after a while, I realized it wasn’t such a big deal.

I think any of those birds are just beautiful animals, so it really bothers me to see how many of the hawks you see killed on the side of the road when riding up and down Airline. I’ve had the birds swoop down in front of my own car during the night, so it’s easy to see how they get killed. But it’s all just a shame since they are such beautiful birds.

Anyway, just wish there was a way that could be avoided since I love the multitude of wildlife we have in this area, especially the birds.

Are you still kicking around ideas about what kind of food you will have for either of the big holidays coming up later this month?

Here’s an idea to make your life a little easier.

Laura Anthony, our advertising director here at L’Observateur, told me she had recently been getting ready for what is a wild time she has at Thanksgiving.

Apparently Laura enjoys a little chaos since she is the host site for a very big family gathering at Thanksgiving. Even though she said all of the 35 people who make it to her house for their family Turkey Day event bring a dish of some sort, apparently she has the main responsibility for getting the turkey and ham.

But this year she ordered a smoked turkey from Wayne Jacob’s Smokehouse and Restaurant on West 5th Street here in LaPlace. She said it was the hit of the day.

Wayne’s has plenty more you can order for Christmas or New Year’s so you might want to consider letting them do the cooking there.

Laura said the smoked turkey was the best she ever had, and it only cost $38 for a completely ready-to-eat bird.

Keep it in mind, and give them a call at 652-9990 if you want to order anything off their extensive menu that also includes gumbos, pies and side dishes.

Kevin Chiri is Publisher of L’Observateur and can be reached at (985) 652-9545 or at kchiri@bellsouth.net