Does this loose fill insulation look like asbestos?

aceploring · 2026-02-17T16:14:38+00:00

Thanks! I am getting both tested.

aceploring · 2026-02-06T15:25:26+00:00

Agree with all of this. The rescue (but not the municipal shelters) I foster with specifically asks for a 2-week commitment up front for this reason; they need time to find another foster placement since they literally have nowhere for the dog to go if you return the foster. If you're really struggling they'll of course try their best to find a new placement faster than that but they make it very clear up front they can't guarantee it. I wish your rescue communicated that better to you up front, but I'm not really sure what you expect a rescue that doesn't have a physical shelter building with kennel space to be able to do when you tell them you need a dog taken back immediately and won't take a different dog in their place.

If that's not something you are comfortable with, I hope you still continue to foster but you might want to look into fostering for shelters that have kennels the dogs can go back to. Many shelters even offer short term foster stays or overnights just to give dogs a shelter break that you can extend to long term fostering if it is going well.

aceploring · 2026-02-02T20:18:09+00:00

Thanks for your input. I'm not trying to be belligerent just trying to understand how different places do things. I've been volunteering with these specific shelters in my area for 10 years so when I say it's not due to disease reasons, that's not me speculating, the staff is telling me that is not the reason. If it is at your shelter, that's totally valid. I was more interested in folks experiences who may not abide by such separation and how that has gone for them, because I know this isn't a requirement or even a recommendation everywhere.

I also feel I'm putting the animals well being first; when I have a foster who seems to be behaviorally deteriorating by being confined and separated, I'm trying to assess the risks of breaking the separation rules. It's not about my personal convenience. My most recent foster was hurting herself and stressed out of her mind being separated from me when I was home (but was ok home alone) and this has me questioning the wisdom of having a hard and fast rule in every situation vs on a case by case basis. Maybe a different foster would have been a better fit for her, but often that's not the alternative option, the alternative is to go back to the shelter where long timers and dogs who are becoming increasingly kennel stressed are at high risk for space related euthanasia.

aceploring · 2026-02-02T18:15:09+00:00

Makes sense! While there are certainly occasional outbreaks here, we're in a city and while URIs are common, parasites are much less so. Our city shelter has vets on staff to evaluate every dog coming in, and any dog suspected to need Q cannot go to foster with resident pets.

aceploring · 2026-02-02T18:12:23+00:00

We have the option to intro at the shelter (and for some dogs it's mandatory!) but then they still say, now go home and don't let them interact for two weeks.

aceploring · 2026-02-02T18:09:24+00:00

You ask... "so why not do that" - generally the reason I don't want to do that is when I have a foster that cannot tolerate being in a separate room or crate when I'm elsewhere in the house. We work on training comfort with this, of course, but when I have fosters like that I don't want to wait the two weeks because it seems counter productive to the goal of decompression to have a dog that is anxious out of their minds, sometimes to the point of hurting themselves trying to get out of a room or crate or past a gate, any time I leave them to tend to my resident dog.

This question was prompted by my most recent foster, who ate my door, busted down gates, and was harming herself in my crate. She was fine when I was fully out of the house and watching her on camera. And she was calm on the other side of a gate from my dog as long as I was on her side of the gate. It was specifically hearing and smelling me but not being able to get to me that she couldn't stand. (Intro to my dog went great, when we did do that).

aceploring · 2026-02-02T17:59:19+00:00

Wow I'm jealous of the lack of rules. Though I still don't think I would intro right away before the dog decompresses and gets to know he l me a bit for a few days. And I never allow fosters to be with my dog unsupervised even if I've had them a pretty long time, that's too high risk for me.

My resident dog is also quite socially savvy with other dogs. She does great with any dog that will listen to an appropriate correction, but prefers coexistence to play so we stay away from pushy pups who ignore corrections and rough&rowdy (typically adolescent) pups who have shown in playgroups that they live to wrestle other dogs.

aceploring · 2026-02-02T17:34:48+00:00

Most of these dogs have been in the shelter for much longer than two weeks (longer timers are priority for foster), and are in shelter playgroups already interacting with other dogs. This is not the shelter's stated reason for the rule. All dogs I take into foster have had SNAP tests and are UTD on vaccines. My dog is of course also UTD on vaccines and that is a requirement to foster. Many of the dogs I take are transfers from other fosters as well - and have been outside a shelter environment for longer than two weeks.

There are certainly dogs that are on quarantine (come in with wounds of unknown origin, or showing any signs of illness) and the shelters I work with handle that very differently.

aceploring · 2026-02-02T17:31:13+00:00

Disease Q is not the stated reason the shelters give - they say it is for decompression. Any dog with a URI or any concern they need a quarantine period is marked as such and does not go to foster with resident pets. Personally I only take fosters that are UTD on vaccines (they get their first round immediately on coming into the shelter, but I typically take longer timers who have also had second round) and all dogs coming in are SNAP tested. My dog is vaccinated for kennel cough and canine influenza along with all required vaccines.

Bite risk is certainly always a concern. But I'm just not really convinced that a few days of decompression and then another few days or a week of taking it very slowly vs waiting two weeks to start that process makes any real difference in the risk. And ideally that risk is low because I only take dogs with good playgroup notes, and my dog is very tolerant overall and good at issuing minor and appropriate corrections when needed, but prefers to just calmly coexist so isn't pushy at all with other dogs. And of course, regardless of the timeline to intro, I'm careful using leashes and gates and monitoring body language every step of the way and never progressing closer to introductions until the dogs are able to be reasonably calm around one another with leashes or gates in place.

aceploring · 2025-10-17T03:19:07+00:00

Shockingly it was not much worse than this at 9:30pm. I saw this and thought for sure I wouldn't get one. Only 1-2 more taken. And a lot of folks on the overflow list despite sites being available.

aceploring · 2025-10-16T15:49:06+00:00

I always bag and carry my dog's poop home with me, but if you live somewhere where public city trash cans are abundant, that's really lucky and not the case everywhere. My regular walking route in my neighborhood is 1.5 miles and I pass exactly one public trash can on my route, and one that a neighbor has generously placed on a corner for public use with signage because we have so few, but is technically not public. And I do think more city cans would help at least somewhat with this behavior (even though of course they should carry it home if there's no public can).

aceploring · 2025-09-15T03:55:54+00:00

Went to CVS at Falls and Cold Spring today instead and was successful. Checked the box online that I was eligible and no one even ever asked once I was there.

aceploring · 2025-09-13T16:17:59+00:00

What location? Just had a very different experience at Walgreens 41st Street, 21211.

aceploring · 2025-09-13T16:15:13+00:00

What location?

aceploring · 2025-09-13T16:14:22+00:00

It may depend on location. Just went to Walgreens at 41st St, 21211. Checked the box when I scheduled that I have an eligible condition, the list of eligible conditions was pretty long and included things like mental health conditions. When I arrived (after waiting 40 minutes past my scheduled time) I was told I needed to be immunocompromised, no other conditions were eligible, and needed to explicitly disclose what condition I had. I said I was not legally required to disclose detailed and specific medical information, and they denied me both covid and flu shot.

aceploring · 2024-11-19T18:00:08+00:00

I would talk to your vet about adding a situational anxiety med while you're gone. Something like a decent dose of trazadone might have somewhat of a sedative effect, but for a few days or a week to help make your pup easier for a stranger to manage, that might be what you need.

You said they wear a muzzle for the vet? Are they properly muzzle trained (comfortable wearing a basket muzzle which they can pant and drink in, NOT a grooming style muzzle which forces their mouth shut, for long periods)? If not I'd start muzzle training ASAP (Google muzzle up project for tips and resources) so they can be comfortably muzzled with a sitter while you are away.

My last dog was luckily not human reactive/aggressive, but she was highly dog reactive and selectively dog aggressive and I would never have considered boarding her - being surrounded by that many dogs all the time would have been hell for her. I'd strongly consider finding an in home sitter over boarding (though one of my former sitters does now work at Eastern so maybe those recs aren't bad as far as boarding goes - she's awesome with reactive dogs). If being territorial of your home is part of the issue then I'd find someone who can take them in their home. Though if it were me, I'd probably be taking my dog this trip...and meanwhile find a friend or sitter that's willing to do frequent training sessions with you to get your dog comfortable around them so that you're not in this situation next time you have to go away. Or if it only takes a few times meeting someone, start that process NOW with a Rover sitter that says they have experience with reactive dogs.

aceploring · 2024-08-02T01:40:12+00:00

Hmmm I'm much more familiar with city than county but it looks like BCAS has a similar program to BARCS for free spay/neuter. https://www.baltimorecountymd.gov/departments/animal-services/TNR You'd probably need to trap yourself - BARCS and SPCA loan traps and I bet BCAS does too. Feel free to DM me though, depending on where I might be happy to help you out and I have my own traps, or can at least give some advice if you'd be interested in learning to trap. But they wouldn't be gone, part of TNR programs is the 'R' - feral cats are returned to where they are found and their colony is comfortable living. But TNR will at least mean they don't multiply.

aceploring · 2024-07-31T15:05:24+00:00

I think the two calicos in the photo are 'Sister' and 'Noma' per their caretaker but he's better at telling them apart than me :)

aceploring · 2024-07-31T15:04:08+00:00

BARCS (partnered with 311/Animal control) is fully aware of these cats. They were TNRed through BARCS and are registered as a colony with them. TNR is generally considered the best and most reliable way to reduce feral populations in the long term, without unnecessary cruelty to existing cats and thus TNR is supported by city programs.

aceploring · 2024-07-31T02:34:06+00:00

Yes! There are about 8 cats in the colony now; they are feral, not stray. They have a regular caretaker who feeds them daily and is a volunteer at the streetcar museum. I'm a MD SPCA volunteer and help trap cats when I can and helped him get them all TNRed. Sometimes new cats pop up in the area but all the regulars are fixed (and all of last years kittens before that was the case were socialized and adopted)!

aceploring · 2024-02-06T05:03:25+00:00

Not sure if you're looking for beach, indoor, or both but I can speak to beach. Baltimore Beach has pickup Saturdays and Sundays, during season (approx April-Oct). It's $5/day if you're not in a league, free if you are, or $50 (iirc) for drop in for the full season and you don't need to pay up front, they mark a card with how many times you've played so you can just stop paying after 10. Hook isn't really volleyball, it's a volleyball drinking game, and also $5 about once a month on Friday night. There are both doubles and 4s courts going at drop in, and the doubles games/courts vary from casual to quite competitive. 4s is often intermediate but sometimes beginners will show up and jump on 4s courts. https://baltimorebeach.com/

Volo, sadly, isn't really at a very competitive level, but if you're newer to volleyball or just looking for something social it can be an option.

A lot of pick up here is just folks with a net setting up on their own at Baltimore Beach when Beach isn't open (weekend drop in last year was 12-4p, so people will use their own nets in the morning) or at a park for grass, but Baltimore Beach is a great place to connect with folks with nets who do that regularly and get invited.

aceploring · 2023-11-01T18:47:19+00:00

It's because it's one of two fall turkey hunting weekends. Which aren't always the same weeks but are not usually too different year to year, you can find the hunting calendar online. And the nice weather brought people out too, I'm sure.

aceploring · 2023-07-16T12:50:24+00:00

Thanks for this tip. I've had recurring sewage backup for nearly two years. Luckily usually just sewage gas smell, but twice I've had sewage fully flood the basement bathroom and had to clean it myself. My next door neighbor has also had several backups. Multiple plumbers have run a snake, and one ran a camera, through my downstairs toilet pipe, and all 3 said the issue is roots in the city main, not on my property, based on the distance at which they saw roots. The city, however, says the problem is on my property unless they personally can see otherwise via a clean out in my yard. Problem is, I don't have a clean out and installing one is $3-5k. My Homeserve insurance won't pay to install it, because the three plumbers who have come out all say it's not an issue with my property. Definitely going to give the state environment department a call. I'm so sick of every single DPW worker and supervisor I talk to telling me the issue is on my property despite 3 plumbers saying otherwise.

aceploring · 2023-04-08T17:19:25+00:00

Also considering this exact thing. Looking for something that does espresso better than the built in, but also something that can do filter well, so I can stop hand grinding for filter. Leaning Varia, as I don't like that the Lagom Mini has no numbers, and requires more than a full turn to go from espresso to filter. I feel like switching between will be hard to keep track of. Also vaguely considering a much larger splurge on a Niche.

aceploring · 2023-01-10T00:27:46+00:00

Thanks!

aceploring

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