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Pet Points: Pet owners should practice courtesy

7/22/2016

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Lawrence Gerson, V.M.D.

For community organizations and local politicians, pets, traffic and crime are frequently the top neighborhood complaints.

Pet owners need to be sensitive to the non-pet-owning public. Lawns can be ruined when dogs on long leashes or unleashed dogs urinate in the middle. The high nitrogen content of urine will burn a round spot on the lawn, and once an area has a urine odor, other dogs will claim the spot. I use hedges to limit access by pets that would use my lawn as a toilet.

Every dog owner should carry bags on every walk to clean up solid waste. Not only is leaving pet waste behind rude, but also there is a public health issue with fecal parasites.
Long and retractable leashes can give dogs the freedom to harass people on the street. When passing others, always walk your dog to the outside, putting yourself between a stranger and your dog.

Dogs running free in parks can be a real nuisance, too. “Don’t worry, he’s friendly,” is not reassuring to fearful people or parents with young children. They want to see an owner in complete control of his or her pet. Elderly people or anyone with back or knee problems can easily be pushed down or tripped. They should not have to deal with off-leash dogs. Joggers also sometimes attract unwanted attention from pets. Some dogs lose interest when a runner stops, but a dominant dog may not.
Owners of known aggressive dogs must take precautions to prevent attacks on mail carriers, delivery people and children on their way to school. Neutering reduces aggression, but training is also required to minimize the risk. Low-cost neuter programs are available for people in need, and some focus on aggressive breeds. Hello Bully’s Pit Fix Plus program has spayed and neutered more than 2,500 local pit bulls.

About half of all dog bite injuries happen in the home. Of the more than 4 million bites reported per year in the U.S., approximately 2 million occur outside of the home. Children and men are more likely to be bitten. The Centers for Disease Control has information on preventing dog bites:

   - Never approach an unfamiliar dog, run or make loud noises near one.

   - Do not reach for a dog without letting it smell you first.

   - Never play aggressively with a dog or let children play unsupervised with a dog.

   - Stay calm if threatened by a dog. It is important to not make sudden moves. Avoid direct eye contact and position yourself at an angle to the dog.

Please remember that the need for pets to exercise has to be balanced with the right of the public to not be harassed by dogs.

​
Lawrence Gerson V.M.D. is president of the Point Breeze Organization and a veterinarian at Point Breeze Veterinary Clinic. His biweekly Post-Gazette column is intended to educate pet owners on general topics of interest. Consultation with a veterinarian is necessary to diagnose and treat individual pets. If you have a question you’d like addressed in Pet Points, email petpoints@post-gazette.com. Please include your name and municipality or neighborhood.


This column first appeared in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in April 2016.  Reprinted by permission of the author.

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POINT BREEZE CIRCA 1816 – In Honor of PGH200

7/7/2016

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Sarah L. Law
Author, Pittsburgh’s Point Breeze


One of the first questions I get when I talk about my book is “How did Point Breeze get its name?”
 
One of the earliest accounts of the Point Breeze name comes from a famous early nineteenth century tavern named the Point Breeze Hotel.  Owned by Thomas McKeown, it was located at the crossroads of a country lane (Fifth Avenue) and the Greensburg Turnpike (Penn Avenue).  A natural intersection, the two roads brought countless travelers from Pittsburgh and beyond to enjoy dining at the Hotel or to stay overnight.  Many day travelers from Pittsburgh would travel to the Point Breeze Hotel, have lunch and then return to (now) downtown by evening.  The Turnpike followed an old Indian trail.  It later became known as Penn Avenue.  Surveyed by General George Washington, Penn Avenue served as a main travel artery and earned many nicknames including Greensburg Pike, Forbes Road and my personal favorite, the Great Road to the West.   
 
With a large watering trough for horses, the Point Breeze Hotel (right corner on map) sat on a natural intersection of the Greensburg Pike (now Penn Avenue) and the Fourth Street continuation from downtown Pittsburgh (now Fifth Avenue).  First proprietor, Thomas McKeown built the establishment sometime after 1800.  In his 1901 autobiography, Life and Reminiscences, William G. Johnston left this account of the tavern, “In the following summer (1839), I spent about two months at the Point Breeze tavern kept by a Mrs. Parker.”  Johnston goes on to write, “- The suppers served were.... truly delicious.  Even yet I recall the frogs so daintily cooked and the savory smell which filled the long low dining room where a table groaning with every sort of delicacy was surrounded by guests... I usually spent the afternoons watching the gentlemen play at tenpins; I knew them all and all knew me.”
 
The first migration to Point Breeze occurred in the first half of the nineteenth century.  James Kelly, the Biddle Family and John Murtland were some of the first landowners in today’s North Point Breeze and Wilkinsburg.  In 1835, Judge William Wilkins built his enormous, Greek-revival mansion, “Homewood” near the present day intersection of Reynolds and South Murtland Streets (see photo).  Wilkins' private road from his estate into Oakland was later to become what we now know as Wilkins Avenue. Later, Point Breeze became home to many influential families such as Carnegie, Frick, Card, Westinghouse and Heinz.  Clean air and the social standing of our neighborhood attracted these wealthy families.  By the second half of the century, the city of Pittsburgh was expanding, and Point Breeze was a desirable location for residences.
 
I’d love to hear your thoughts, comments, questions.  Feel free to email me at PittsburghsPointBreeze@gmail.com.  Pittsburgh’s Point Breeze is dedicated to all Point Breeze families – past, present and future.

Pittsburgh's Point Breeze is available online from Arcadia Publishing and amazon.com.  It can also be purchased at the gift shop at the Frick Art and Historical Center
. 


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Detail of the Twentieth Ward, G.M. Hopkins plat map, 1872. From the Archive Service Center, University Library System of the University of Pittsburgh.
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Homewood, mansion constructed by Judge William Wilkins, 1835, near the present day intersection of Reynolds and South Murtland Streets; razed 1924.
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  • About
    • Board Members & Chairs
    • Neighborhood Resources
  • Community Meetings
    • Zone 4 Public Safety Council Meeting
    • 2021 May Community Meeting
    • 2021 March Community Meeting
    • 2020 March Community Meeting
    • 2020 July Community Meeting
    • 2019 March Community Meeting
  • PBO Events
    • 2021 Light Up Point Breeze
    • 2022 Point Breeze Yard Sale
    • 2021 PERENNIAL SWAP
    • 2021 Wine and Cheese at Hankin Gallery
    • Family Fun
    • Scavenger Hunt >
      • Scavenger Hunt 1
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      • Scavenger Hunt 4
  • Donate
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  • Business Listing
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  • ACTIVITIES AROUND POINT BREEZE
    • 2021 Love Your Block - Mellon Park Herb Garden