I got a doggiemail invitation to a Sonoma area Walk on the Wild Side. I like these events that include us dogs! The bio about the guide for the walk makes me giggle though: She "has cultivated a passion for plants . . . As a child she developed a very personal connection with the yarrow, nettle, and raspberry. [Ouch!] . . . It is her joy to introduce people to the ordinary weedy plants that are always under foot."

I always watch what's under foot. And since my recent back surgery, I watch carefully.

In other reading, I pawed across a wine blog entry titled "Mothers against Cork." Why would mothers be against the little chewy things that my buddy Jack corgi and I like so much? The blog subtitle tells us "Opening Wine Should not be a Chore." Oh howl, that's funny!

I had to show "Mothers against Cork" to dog-ma. She read, then scowled and said, "This was written by Jim Gordon of Wine Enthusiast. Not someone I usually think of as lame. He's a good writer." What got dog-ma's back up is how Gordon referred to his own mother, making her sound like she's got one foot in the grave and the other on a banana peel.

Gordon said, "[Mom] started trying to use it [the two-handled corkscrew], but she couldn’t manage. Her grip is not as firm as it used to be, and she couldn’t get the screw started with one hand while trying to steady the bottle with the other. When you think about it, this is a very tough job for an elderly person."

We don't want to think about it. I'm a 10-year-old boy doggeh, and I'll bite you if you call me "elderly." Walk on the wild side of bottle opening: Just dig the darn corkscrew in, turn it, and pull.

Gordon's blog entry seems to be just another corked plea to end the use of cork as a wine bottle closure. It hit a little nerve with dog-ma. She went on and on about it. In part, she said, "I'm still not sure what all the anti-cork crowing is about, especially given that other closures are unproven and today's cork suppliers do massive QA and QC to avoid cork taint. . . .

"You can pull a cork out easily if you're shown properly and have the right opening device — not one of those silly two-handled things! A wine bottle's only hard to open when the cork is dried out or welded into place."

Woof? I have more to learn about human behavior. I don't see why you would waste time welding a wine bottle closed or getting tangled up in a raspberry bush.

This morning I saw a glaring gray haze and smelled smoke as soon as dog-ma opened the back door. A 4,000-acre wildfire, sparked by dry lightning, is burning in Napa-Solano area, 45 miles southeast of here, just east of Highway 29 wineries in Napa Valley. The night of June 21st, a woman who lives on a Napa ridgetop said she watched the fire "come down the road toward our home." They sat in their living room as the "wall of flames" roared past their house.

The fire season is taking off here like crazy. What's made it intense is hot dry weather and thousands of dry lightning strikes that ignited fires all over northern California this past weekend. In addition to Napa, Solano, and Santa Cruz counties, fires are going in Mendocino, Lake, Humboldt, Trinity, and Shasta counties. The wind kicked up and carried the flames and smoke something fierce. By the evening of June 21st, smoke was drifting in the window where I sit at my computer. By the next morning, all I could see of Sonoma County skies was a brown orange haze in every direction.

Fortunately, a marine layer of moisture slowed down some fires overnight. I'm getting used to the almost constant sound of helicopters, prop planes that drop flame retardant, private planes, and other aircraft being staged from Sonoma County or based at the nearby Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County airport. (Yes, named after Snoopy's late, beloved dog-pa.)

The next story won't be easy to stomach: In the midst of all these fires and smoke, I am reminded of the news about two dogs up in Redding, California. Named Little Bit and Freckles, they lost their lives last week in a house fire . . . caused by a smoldering cigarette.

I'm never going to get over that unless I think about something good — like this story in the Redding Record Searchlight: When the chimney of a north Redding house was blown up by a lightning bolt, at home were a mother, her three young children, and their two cats and two dogs. The loud explosion crumpled the chimney to its base and also blew bricks into the neighbor's yard. The dogs and cats? They were fine, and so were their people. They all "rode out" the storm in the family van.

This family's survival story gives us a new concept to chew on: How can we turn the family van, car, or truck into a well-equipped temporary animal shelter!?

Are you a dog headed for wine country? Read on.

The real poop about dog-friendliness here: It's not easy in summer for a dog traveling in California wine country. Where you gonna hang out and stay cool? . . . You can't go in restaurants or farmer's markets, and relatively few wine tasting rooms. There are very few places that'll let you inside with your guardian/owner. Yet you could die from heat stroke waiting in the car.

I gotta pawse a second to 'splain about wine tasting rooms. If I were the manager or gift buyer, I wouldn't want rowdy dogs wagging merchandise off the shelves. And if I were a winery patron, I wouldn't want to run into big rowdy dogs in crowded tasting rooms.

So what's a friendly dog in wine country to do?

First, get to googly pawing. Find dog-friendly wine tasting rooms, not just dog-friendly wineries — there's a difference. Also look for wineries that have shady outdoor spots for us dogs. Don't forget to look for special dogstinations — you know, dog events like Bark in the Park, Graton Day festival Pet Parade, and Healdsburg Dog House Halloween parade. Always make sure you've got your dog bytes right though: Contact wineries, inns, and events to confirm their dog policies!

Second, make a plan for how you're going to stay cool. That means all day long in summer. Don't worry about evenings; it cools off before sunset. How about getting a professional dog walker, doggy daycare, or dog spa visit along your travel route? (Consider a single-run kennel 'cuz you might get overwhelmed by strangers.) Tell your people to see about advance reservations and other requirements!

Third, pack everything you need to stay cool: your water bowl, plenty of water, your leash and outdoor tie-down, cooling bandana neck-scarf, Body Cooler Pet Mats, Pet Wrap Vest, shade umbrella, and a stack of big towels. Towels soaked in cold water can help you and your people stay cool. Remember, too, to pack your food, treats, travel ID, toys, emergency contacts, vaccination records, and other regular stuff.

Fourth, get a good doggie seatbelt harness. I wear my Ruff Rider Roadie harness and wouldn't do car travel without it. Forget the dog crate! You'll suffocate inside that thing in the summertime here!

Fifth, tell your people to sit-stay flexible. Be prepared to change the itinerary on super-hot triple-digit days. We have only a few in a row, then it cools off again. On the hottest days, head for wineries and recreation spots in the cooler Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast.

If you get desperately hot on the wine road: Ask your people to stop and buy bags of ice to arrange close to you — not directly on you!

Remember, even with ice and cooling mats, you cannot survive long alone in the car. If your people park in the sun instead of the shade, you're done for. Warning: You're taking a risk if you even try to stay in the car, so just don't let your people leave you there.

If you have an emergency of some kind: Your guardian/owner should speak up! Go talk to people at the winery or restaurant or wherever, and get them to let you go inside with them while they take care of the emergency!

You doggehs have more traveling suggestions?

Night of the summer-solstice full moon in the Valley of the Moon . . . Dog bites of domestic, washed-rind cow's milk Muenster cheese accompanied by intense, fruity, young Sonoma Valley Cabernet sauvignon. <sigh> I got to taste only the cheese. But I hear that the bottle was a nice guerrilla vino from wine writer and former Gundlach-Bunschu guru Lance Cutler.

Many palate-educating and palate-educated humans and four-footeds have pawsed in areas around the Valley of the Moon. Jack London's dogs and the author himself pawsed to write his 1913 novel The Valley of the Moon. The late M.F.K. Fisher, author and esteemed pioneer of the culinary memoir, is perhaps the most cherished Valley human. She lived in Glen Ellen and liked cats, you know.

Fisher wrote about "receipts" a lot. That's old school for recipes. A very old term. For me, good recipes are woofable heaven. But my paw-point here is that, to recognize good recipes, you've got to have an educated palate. You get one by trying new things all the time. A young cat, says my vet Dr. Jordan, is very in need of having her pussin palate educated by eating a variety of foods. I think this applies to all of us, pets and people, but it's crucial for cats.

Pawse here. Read that quote again. Think about how smell conjures up memories. The more I sniff, the more I want to sniff everything. But I dog-gress.

I like what author Joan Reardon, expert biographer of Fisher, said of Proust's writings on nostalgia: "In pursuit of vanished time, he found a transfiguring moment in the taste of a madeleine dipped in a cup of lime flower tea."

In purr-suit of vanished time. Eee . . goosebumps.

Ms. Reardon has extensively researched nostalgia and gastronomic writing. She reviewed a nice book entitled The Future of Nostalgia by S. Boym. Reardon wrote, "Harvard professor Svetlana Boym says that the word was coined in 1688 by the Swiss doctor Johannes Hofer to identify the homesickness of Swiss soldiers who reacted physically to the hearing of certain folk melodies and the eating of rustic soups while on missions away from home."

Ah, food and music!

Back to feline palates. There are ways to prevent pussins from being overly fussy eaters. One way to entice pussin to the table that we understand now, thanks to Dr. J, is to make sure to educate the young palate by feeding a variety of good foods. Another way is by making sure the food is FRESH and species-appropriate. Woof? Big concepts. What I've learned from cats — experts would agree with this —is that they're responding to instincts that help nurture and protect them. Cats are merely expressing their need for SAFE, FRESH sources of protein and other nutrients.

I'm sure cats would rather eat the way they did back in the day: whole-prey dining. . . . Ain't that nostalgic? By the way, we dogs have different intestinal ecology than cats do. A cat's digestive system and instincts render her unable to tolerate stuff that we dogs inhale without a first or second thought. I think Ms. Fisher would say, "A pussin always displays good taste."

The last word goes to a recipezaar blog groupie: "MFK Fisher's The Art of Eating contains her most famous 5 novels in one! Anyone who loves food should try and get a copy, it's paperback. My cat scratched the index pages to shreds. . . ."

I went for a check-up at Dr. Jordan's office today. I was happy to see Dr. J. It made me feel good that she's pleased with my progress. I overheard her and dog-ma talking about my foot placement and leg movement, but I'm not going to worry about it as long as I'm getting around.

Dr. J told me I look great. I don't think she meant my hair style. But Kyrana, one of my favorite vet techs, really liked my shaved-back hair style. She called it a reverse mohawk. Dog-ma laughed when she heard this and said she calls it that, too.

We believe the reverse mohawk should become one of dog grooming's trendy summer styles. It's sure a cool cut for wine country summer. . . . "Get yore revmo on and go tastin' some fine wine." But of course you don't have to remove as much hair as I had to for my back surgery.

I didn't set out to make a political statement with my reverse mo, but it could be interpreted that way. Today's mohawk styles come from the practice by warriors of the Mohawk Nation, whose hair was grown long and cut only when they went off to war. The cut style was to leave just a narrow strip about three-fingers' wide down the middle of their scalp from their forehead to the nape of their neck. If the original Mohawk style was about going to war, then I guess the reverse mohawk symbolizes keeping the peace.

To be safe, watch out you don't get a bad sunburn trying to be political or cool. If you're post-op like me, that'd be a bad thing, as would getting chilled sleeping in a cold spot at night or in the A/C.

My dog-ma says she grew up near Mohawk Nation territory. She remembers that they're one of the Iroquois Nations and are known as "keepers of the Eastern door." I hope nobody minds my spin on their warrior hair style.

I've been going to blog about what to do when disaster strikes . . . then I read the news about the Iowa floods and the northern California "Martin fire" — near Bonny Doon Vineyard.

Re. the Martin fire: "Todd Stosuy, the manager of Santa Cruz Animal Services, said [they sent] out all their Animal Control Officers into the field, go door to door, and see if everyone is okay. What Todd said they needed at this time is people to care for all the evacuated animals at the Santa Cruz Fairgrounds and they will divert some of the volunteers to some of the other temporary holding areas. They are also in desperate need for all types of feed for horses and livestock and dogs, cats, etc."

Thirty Martin fire evacuees spent one or more nights at San Lorenzo Elementary school, and fifteen slept in their cars. Most people in their cars wanted to be with their pets — their lucky pets. Another lucky pet is Molly-Moo, a cat rescued from the fire by Animal Services' Stosuy (just after she'd given birth to a litter of kittens, by the way).

How many unlucky pets are there in Iowa, where thousands of people have had to evacuate terrible flooding?

I realize how much we all need to prepare BEFORE disaster strikes.

Imagine, animal friends, you're home with your family one minute, and the next, you're home alone in a terrifying situation: Your guardian/owners have been forced to evacuate — or worse, they're no longer with us — and you've got little food and water. You've got to get out of the house before you starve. Maybe you've got to get out immediately because everything's on fire, or because your home is disappearing under rising flood waters.

If you're not prepared for emergencies like these, you're sh** out of luck.

You're aware of what can happen from the news during and after the Katrina disaster. You remember how hard it was to witness the initial suffering and death of people and animals, then in the aftermath how hard it has been to stomach news about homeless pets, lost pets, and adopted pets caught in legal battles over ownership rights.

What lessons have I gleaned? For starters, let's dash through a few impawtant points today: Microchipping (collars and ID get lost and even thrown away) . . . guardian/owners networked to outside help for pets (have PET GODPARENTS!) . . . written proof of pet ownership and attorney-in-fact for pet care . . . copies of your photos and all pet records (local vets not available during disaster!) . . . phone numbers and web addresses for local animal shelters, humane society, petfinder, pet rescue orgs, relatives, friends . . . survival kit at hand and paw!

As a dog, I can only take a small bite out of all this. But you people out there can make all the difference. Please.

I don't drink wine, but my dog-ma teaches me wine lingo. Most people who live and visit here drink wine. When I say "here," I mean appellations and sub-appellations around Sonoma Valley and Sonoma Coast and the Russian River Valley and Alexander Valley and Dry Creek Valley and Napa Valley, "that other valley."

Here are grown and crafted great reds: Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Syrah, Malbec, and of course Pinot Noir. And lots of others like Barbera and Mourvedre. . . . Then there are the great whites: Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, and of course Freestone Fogdog Chardonnay. And some other whites like Muscat and Rieslings.

I know more about wine and winemaking than most dogs. Not that I'm the Jancis Robinson of the dog world or anything, but I do do my homework, so to bark.

I drink a little beer. It helps me when I have muscle spasms. My dog-ma will search for a lovely pilsener like Blue Paddle, or a pale ale like Mendocino Brewing Company Blue Heron, or sometimes Rogue Brewery HazelNut Brown Ale. According to Rogue's Brewdog, their ales are made with "coastal free range water." Woof?

People in winemaking are often beer aficionados who know more about beer making than the average bear. Try asking 'em when they're not being bears, like when they're bored from working long harvest hours hand-sorting grapes or doing punch-downs.

Or go to the annual Sonoma County Harvest Fair and change the subject from wine to beer. You can change the subject to anything you want by the end of the winetasting day. You can even sneak in with me, a Welsh corgi, and your dog, I bet.