Summer is almost over, and it’s Back to School time! Send your students off to the halls of education looking and feeling great. Rainbow has a great selection of Western styles for every student in the family – and their teachers! Find fun Tees, cute boots, shorts and jeans, and plenty of accessories (socks, caps, belts and jewelry) to make returning to the classroom easy. Fall gear such as sweatshirts, vests and jackets are arriving in your local Rainbow store now, so that you’re ready when the cooler Fall weather shows up!
What else makes back to school better? How about a new Hydro Flask to keep that water cold, or that cocoa hot? Hydro Flasks come in a huge variety of sizes and colors, perfect for packing up a lunch or after-school snack. Before we know it, the days will be shorter and everyone can use a handy Nebo flashlight in their backpack. And keep those pups from missing their playmates too much with a stuffed Kong toy, or a entertaining puzzle. Check it all out at Rainbow, in Ukiah, Lakeport or Middletown!
The Redwood Empire Fair is in the books and it was a wildly successful one for the 4H and FFA junior exhibitors this year. The Livestock Auction brought in a record-breaking $1,135, 791.50 and of course Rainbow was there, bidding and supporting the agricultural community in Mendocino County. Many of these young exhibitors put their earnings towards a college fund, other reinvest it back into their herds or flocks and all of them learn sportsmanship, animal husbandry and life-long lessons that will carry them into the future. Rainbow is proud of our youth.
More Fairs are coming up! It is Lake County’s turn over the Labor Day weekend – August 31 – Sept 3 – as the Lake County Fair celebrates Ag by Lighting Up the Lake County Fair. Rainbow will be there too, supporting the young showmen-and-women by bidding and buying. And then don’t miss the Mendocino County Fair and Apple Show in Booneville on September 22 – 24.
Cat lovers put a lot of effort in to keep their feline friends healthy and happy. But what can we do to help feral cats in our communities? Feral cat colonies can become a problem – too many kittens and cats, diseases, starvation, sanitation – but all can be improved with some help from dedicated community volunteers. Trap, Neuter, Return (TNR) is the first step to improve the lives of feral and stray cats. (What is the difference, you ask? Stray cats are tame pets who are lost or abandoned. They are accustomed to contact with people and may be reunited with their families or adopted into new homes. Feral cats are the offspring of lost or abandoned pet cats or other feral cats who are not spayed or neutered.) TNR can significantly decrease the population of the colony in a fairly short amount of time. Trapping ferals can be a challenge that takes practice, patience and persistence. There are organizations that can help by providing the traps, some advice and helping with low or no cost spay options. One local program is Spay Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP) based in Mendocino County. Animal shelters sometimes offer help for feral cats too. Learn more about the benefits of TNR, and how to become involved in your community, in this very thorough article from The Humane Society of the United States; An Overview for Caring For Free Roaming Cats. The article also has advice on providing appropriate shelter, organizing a community cat team, and dealing with neighbors and local officials. A little effort goes a long way in controlling feral populations and improving the lives of homeless cats.
As Fall approaches, our list of chores changes. Leaves will fall, weather will knock down limbs, gutters must be cleaned, drainage ditches need to be cleared. Fall chores become easier with the new lines of battery-powered equipment from Stihl and Husqvarna! Battery powered blowers, chain saws, and trimmers are powerful, quiet and don’t produce polluting emissions. Learn more about the new battery powered options in the Outdoor Power Equipment department at your nearest Rainbow store. Educated staff can answer all your questions, whether you are a professional landscaper or homeowner.
Trivia – Enter to win a $15.00 Rainbow Coupon! All correct answers go into a random drawing. Our July winner is Shari Rosenblad with the correct answer that the new showmanship clinic presented in July was about showing Dogs.
The August question is, Which Fair’s Junior Livestock Auction set a new record this year?