Animals

Inaugural Mexican-style rodeo draws hundreds to Richmond

An inaugural Mexican-style rodeo drew hundreds of spectators to Richmond Sunday to watch a dusty spectacle of raging bulls and courageous riders. “Jaripeo Expatacular” was held in a packed lot off of Giant Road, bringing together horseback riding, Mexicali cuisine and bull riding.

#myRichmond photo contest winner, Ellen Seskin, discusses the inspiration for her winning photo

Ellen Seskin said she must have gotten the photo bug from her dad, a newspaper reporter who captured moments for a living. After a few nods of glory from friends, Eskin started to get serious about photography while in college at UC Irvine. Now married and with a 27-year-old son, Seskin continues to be apart of a family full of talented folks. The Seskins have been living in Richmond for 30 years. Her husband, a musician, and son, a talented…

See Ruger bite, Richmond’s canine cops in action

Ronin pounced first, snapping his powerful canine jaws into Officer Mike Brown. Ruger came next, leaping into Brown, knocking the man down with a single strike. The crowd of mostly parents and children was riveted. Brown, a Richmond police officer, was okay, thanks to his training and protective suit. The fierce demonstration came thanks to the Richmond Police Department Canine Unit, which put its prowess on display for a session at the North & East Neighborhood annual picnic in Wendell…

A new spotlight of conservation on the Bay

An international treaty recently recognized the San Francisco Bay estuary — California’s largest wetland — as a “wetland of importance,” but while conservation groups called the news a victory, the designation won’t directly halt development that has threatened the area for years. The 1,600 square mile region is home to hundreds of species of plants and animals, including many that can’t be found anywhere else, such as the endangered salt marsh harvest mouse, San Francisco garter snake and the Delta…

Wading with the oyster catchers

Point Pinole is perfectly silent except for the squawks of birds flying overhead and the occasional cringe-inducing crunch under foot. The low tide exposes a muddy stretch of shoreline, the rocks red and Martian-like under the setting sun. Despite its fleeting resemblance to the Red Planet, the question here isn’t whether there’s life, but whether there could be more. There’s plenty of living things at Point Pinole – just look closely at the rocks at low tide or turn over…

Getting Tom Butt’s Goat

Richmond City Councilmember Tom Butt makes no bones about the fact that he keeps a menagerie on the 5 acres that surround his property in Point Richmond. For a decade, Butt has shared anecdotes, sometimes humorous, sometimes sad, about his various goats, sheep, dogs and bees on “Tom Butt’s e-forum,” an electronic forum where he also posts articles about more pressing matters of concern to his constituents, such as preserving historic railroad crossings and investigating the Chevron fire. Perusing these…

Richmond rabbits hop to new homes

The House Rabbit Society is a no-kill shelter in Richmond. They save rabbits from around the area from being euthanized. When you walk in, it neither smells like a shelter, nor looks like one. With carpeted floors and bright open enclosures, it looks more like a rabbit hotel.