Not Quite as Cute as a Heartwarming Story About Puppies, But Still....

When was the last time you heard someone name their puppy after a planned real estate development?

The black rosecomb rooster that walked into Janie Owen's Somerville backyard seven years ago, crowed from a magnolia tree, and immediately started keeping watch over her cat suddenly disappeared on May 7, leaving the 57-year-old woman and many neighbors desperate for his return.

"I miss him; we all miss him," Owen said of the bird she named Reston, after the Virginia town where her parents live. "He's a good bird. He's a member of the family, a member of the whole neighborhood. We want him back."

Awwww. You've got to admit: Calling a rooster Dranesville wouldn't have quite the same ring to it.

Fowl Play, or why does the RA hate cute furry feathered critters?

First, the Reston Association came for the gophers. Now they're doing something that, quite frankly, sounds like it might violate indecency statutes with the geese -- some perverted practice called "goose egg addling."

Addling is a term used for rubbing oil on eggs in an effort to keep them from hatching. It is widely done as a form of humane population control for resident Canada geese.

Geez, a pagan/phallic May pole ceremony here, a good old-fashioned goose addling there, and all of the sudden, Reston is starting to look like Berkeley, ca. 1969! You'd think the open-minded folk who first came to Reston during that storied decade would be all over that, but apparently not.

Dave Janiga of the Wildlife Rescue League said last week that he has fielded some phone calls from Reston residents who say they are concerned that the procedure is being done too late in the development cycle, and others who have witnessed Reston staff remove entire nests.

“My concern is that some people who live on Lake Audubon have seen nests that sit for long periods of time with eggs in them before they are attended to, and some told me they are seeing entire nests being removed by Reston Association staff. I am concerned that some of those eggs have developing geese in them and that they are removing the entire nests and destroying them from time to time,” he said.

What's good for the goose is... oh, never mind.

Everyone Loves Puppies, Pt. 2: Yeah, but do they give away free cars?

Armstrong Elementary School's student-run TV broadcast managed to scoop Oprah and Ellen on the heartwarming story of Cinnamon, an Afghani dog adopted by a U.S. serviceman when his tour of duty there ended. Turns out the first stop on the obligatory book tour for 44 Days Out of Kandahar wasn't those effete cultural snobs at The New York Review of Books or even Entertainment Tonight -- it was Armstrong Elementary.

We've said it before, and we'll say it again: People love puppies.

Caddyshack 2: Why Does the RA Hate Gophers?

Ah, Reston's gardening plots. Perhaps the finest example of the planned community's communal, Earth-friendly spirit. Except maybe for the pesticides and the gopher assassinations.

Of the four garden locations, the site at Lake Anne is the only one that is not completely organic, Greenberg said. Gardeners at all other plots are forbidden from using any pesticides or fertilizers containing chemicals.

First, we learned that the RA is condoning the napalming of tree stands, now this? Which makes us wonder: What kind of hell-spawn pests are menacing the good people of Reston's beloved tomatoes and carrots and whatnot?

She said sometimes moles, groundhogs and other animals get into the plots, so RA has been looking at adding a nesting area for red-shouldered hawks.

We have a simpler and more effective suggestion:

Man Bites (or at least gives chest compressions to) Dog

Even heartless cynics like us can't help be moved by a good dog rescue story.

During a visit to Lake Anne near Reston, Va., with his family, police officer Lance Hamilton administered mouth-to-snout resuscitation to his dog, Bailey, after the dog was injured near a dock. The dog was injured while in the water as he fetched a ball.

So, all those warnings about not drinking, wading, swimming, or even looking too closely at the algae-clogged water are true! But back to the canine drama unfolding as we speak:

Hamilton held the dog's mouth closed and breathed rescue breaths through the snout while uncle Greg Dunphy gave chest compressions, reviving Bailey after about a minute.

Of course, you realize the actions described in the above paragraph are illegal in 23 states. But that's not important right now! We need to get back to the Tale -- or is it the Tail? -- of Hope!

An electrical problem on the dock was found soon after and fixed before anyone else could be injured... Russell Porter, chairman of the Citizen's Advisory Committee, said Hamilton "indirectly saved humans and that's why we thought it'd be nice to give him an award from us."

We've said it before, we'll say it again: Everyone loves puppies.

Meet Your Neighbors: Weird Animals

One benefit of all that green space: bizarre freaky animals.

This, apparently, is an emaciated coyote that someone photographed wandering around their backyard. Of course, Reston being Reston, here's what one person had to share about the experience:

Whatever it is ... it leaves droppings on my sidewalk and I have to scoop it up so my neighbors won't think it's my dog!

First things first! Another contributor had this to share:

Maybe you should contact the Reston Zoo and see if they've had any "escapees" lately.

And speaking of escapees, here's a cute 'lil critter that was discovered wandering around Reston a few months back. Owning alligators has been illegal in Virginia since 1991 (except for "educational purposes" -- whatever that means), but you can still buy 'em in Pennsylvania. That, and fireworks, too. Plus, they've got outlet malls!

Maybe we should do the Keystone state's tourism commercials.