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Barley is an avid harvester of apples and corn
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Quad-Citians show off their pets in Creature Feature, appearing Sundays in the Your Home section and Mondays in the Neighbors section. This story was submitted by Richard and Joan Hamilton of Hillsdale. If you want to share your pet's story, email your submission to features@qconline.com and attach a photo in JPEG form. Or, send a story and photo via regular mail to Creature Feature, Features Department, The Dispatch/The Rock Island Argus, 1720 5th Ave., Moline, IL 61265. Haven't seen the story you submitted in Creature Feature yet? Keep looking! Submissions are being used in the order they have been received, and we have quite a backlog. Barley is a 6-year-old yellow Labrador retriever. She is our house pet and is not used for hunting. When we lived in Ontario, Canada, in 1995, we bought a Lab from a local kennel. Barley is our third Lab from that kennel. Her name was chosen because of her yellow color. We have always had Labradors. Barley is our fifth. They are very "people-oriented." Barley sleeps in the house on a large dog bed, which she shares with Cinder, another Lab. Both dogs prefer being in our company inside and outside. We believe their presence in our yard helps to keep deer, raccoons, squirrels and rabbits away from the flower and vegetable gardens. Living in the country provides Barley with opportunities that never tempted our other Labs. Late summer and fall awakens urges to pick apples from low branches, which she thoroughly enjoys eating. She stands on her hind legs to reach the apples, and also retrieves fallen apples to eat. She brings them back to the house, where she munches on them. She also loves fresh corn. She wanders into the cornfield and picks an ear off the stalk and comes home with it. She peels the cob and eats the corn off of it. She will do this once or twice daily. We figure she affects crop production by a bushel per acre! Barley's retrieval instincts are satisfied by chasing a tennis ball, which we heave with a chuck-it ball launcher. She watches closely as we heave it and runs very fast and tries to catch the ball as it bounces in the air. She will leap up to reach it. If you ask her, "Do you want a treat?," she will go to the garage where treats are given. She then watches to catch the tossed treat. She knows the word "eat" means mealtime. She is fed in the morning and late afternoon and will go to her dish when asked if she is ready to eat. She is definitely a wonderful pet. 
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Today is Tuesday, May 21, the 141st day of 2013. There are 224 days left in the year.
1863 -- 150 years ago: On Monday the 11th inst. on Center Ridge in Mercer County,some citizens got out their cannon to celebrate the taking of Richmond. The gun wasoverloaded and burst. No one was injured, but one 30-pound piece went though thesecond story of a house.
1888 -- 125 years ago: The old folks concert at the Harper Theater last night to benefit St.Luke's Cottage Hospital, attracted a large audience.
1913 -- 100 years ago: Unless depredation by vandals in Rock Island parks is halted,special policemen will be assigned to night duty to protect the flowers and other property.
1938 -- 75 years ago: Station WHBF has received a special citation from Washington forits participation in Air Mail Week, which was observed this week throughout the nation.
1963 -- 50 years ago: A 10-year high in employment in the Quad-City area was reachedat the end of the last quarter, according to an industrial employment barometer releasedtoday.
1988 -- 25 years ago: Pee Wee teams will be able to play baseball and softball as usualon Diamond Three at Dorrance Park this summer, but after that, the ball field is doomed.County crews have put the diamond back in shape after heavy trucks marred the playingfield earlier this spring. Illinois Department of Transportation crews drove onto it to makeborings for the relocation of the junction of Illinois 84 and the Port Byron-Hillsdale road.
(More History)