SA Amigo by Digital Publisher

SA AMIGO CONTRIBUTORS

Editor In Chief Rudy Lopez

Outreach / Staff Writer Erika Mariani

Operations / Staff Writer Heather Templeton

Bilingual Correspondent Gisela Gutierrez

Photographer Christy Savarino Cover by Christy Savarino SA Amigo is a bilingual pet magazine created in San Antonio, Texas. SA Amigo is a publication of Any Pet Can. To find out more, visit www.saamigo.com If you would like to advertise in our magazine, please contact us at: www.anypetcansa@gmail.com

Opt To Adopt! October is National Adopt a Shelter Dog Month. Adopting allows animals to have another chance at happiness and allows you the chance to save a life.

Con tantos amigos peludos que ya están en los refugios listos para volver a casa y ser una parte de su familia, no hay necesidad de gastar una cantidad excesiva de dinero para comprar un perro o un gato. Además, cada animal adoptado es una vida salvada. ¡Más animales adoptados significa más espacio en el refugio que no mata de nuestra ciudad y menos animales en las calles! Si bien hay un montón de criadores responsables por ahí, la compra de un animal de un criador puede llegar a ser una inversión de riesgo. ¿Qué tipo de condiciones de vida los criadores no proporcionan a sus animales? ¿Qué tipo de problemas de salud tiene el cachorro o el padre? ¿El perro tiene todas sus vacunas y vacunas? Si va a gastar arriba de cientos de dólares en un cachorro, usted quiere estar seguro de que su cachorro va a estar con usted durante mucho tiempoCentros de adopción alivian tantos miedos causados por las incertidumbres de la compra de un criador. Los animales en los centros de adopción pasan por extensas evaluaciones de salud. Las condiciones de salud se describen totalmente en la delantera. En el mo-

Photo: Shaun with Mark at The Animal Defense League of Texas

mento en que su perro o gato está listo para adoptar, ya han sido esterilizados, castrados, ¡y con microchip! Su costo de adopción pequeña no sólo va a los servicios prestados a su animal, sino que se remonta al refugio para permitir aún más oportunidades de salvar vidas. Sal ahí fuera y adopte hoy. Recuerde: ¡no compre, adopte! ¡Apoye a su Centro de Adopción local!

From Top Left to Bottom Left: Brenda and Paraic Mulgrew, Urza, and Mishra of Knight Watch Games.

ishra takes a good look at me as I walk in. I’m taken aback by her sheer size and beauty. She walks up to me with a confident grace while I offer my hand for her approval. She greets it with her nose as she looks back at me again, silently giving me the ok to pet her thick coat of fur. It’s official, I have now been welcomed into the Knight Watch Games community. I am now the newest

member in an ever-growing community created by Paraic and Brenda Mulgrew.

chairs pulled from an actual Danish Castle!

“These two long tables represent the Walking into Knight Watch Games is truly a common tables from medieval times, unique experience, as evidenced by my very “Paraic explains, “In ancient times, you’d sit in order based on class. The people with the first interaction with one of the two gentle highest standing would sit closer to the giant huskies who occupy the store on a noble’s table. The noble’s table would be daily basis. Upon entering Knight Watch reserved for the most influential people. We games, I quickly forget that I exist in 2016 use this structure as a way to give our San Antonio, Texas. I am instantly gaming tournaments a fun twist. The better transported from the south Texas desert you do, the higher up the table you move into a world of swords and dragons, up.” complete with 2 huge common tables, accentuated by a table for the nobles with 5

over 100 neglected Huskies,“ Brenda explains. “He was in very bad shape when we adopted him, but as you can see, he’s living the life right now.” Urza has the scars to prove his hardships, but with love and attention, the Mulgrews were able to help transform him into the peaceful and happy sleeping giant he is today.

The little details made into every part of the design of Knight Watch Games highlight the amount of care put into it by the Mulgrews. The visual setting also represents a call-back to the chivalry of Medieval times. “Chivalry is alive here, “Paraic explains, “we make sure that everyone feels included and feels like they belong. We foster an environment of good manners.” Setting plays a large part into what makes Knight Watch successful. There’s an excitement among the patrons of Knight Watch that’s contagious.

you’re passionate about, they feel that energy and passion too. We’ve built a community that people can lose themselves in and be a part of. We’ve been overwhelmed by the sheer amount of support given to us by our customers. People have donated so many things to us. Every contribution means a lot. It’s something very special. When we opened Knight Watch, we didn’t know what to expect, but I knew that if we gave people something we were passionate about, they’d see that passion and come together. This has worked out more than we could have ever dreamed of.”

“I fell in love with this place from the moment I walked in,“ one customer tells me. “Ever since I discovered Knight Watch, I’ve been telling all of my friends that they have to come here and see how awesome it is. I really want to help Knight Watch succeed.”

Urza is taking a nap in front of the armory. He hardly notices us as we enter a room containing a large assortment of medieval ware, from pirate shirts to leather armor. The selection is incredible, and as Paraic further explains, is the only such collection I walk with Paraic as he gives me a full tour of its kind in the United States. Urza can of Knight Watch Games. We go from the relate to being one-of-a-kind. Prior to his grand hall to the retail space full of minialife with the Mulgrews, Urza lived in a tures, books, and board games, and into the world of neglect and abuse. “We rescued two private rooms, the Renaissance Room him in Arizona from a property that had and the Dark Ages Room. Both private rooms are decorated with authentic tables, cabinets, and coats of arms and feature state of the art technology for full immersion. I realize how much passion he has in creating a world for people to fully lose themselves in. The key to creating this world of immersion, Paraic explains, is to establish a strong community and foster its growth. “When people see that you are doing something 6

Not many places of business in San Antonio have dogs roaming the storefront, let alone two Huskies. “There were some reservations about the Huskies while we were getting everything in place,“ Brenda explains. “They are in integral part of our store. They’re our mascots, but even more so, they are family. There was no way we were ever going to do this without them.” Mishra and Urza’s presence adds to the unique experience of Knight Watch Games, but what is equally impressive is their calm demeanor. With Huskies being a popular breed because of their appearance, it could be easy to initially overlook the amount of work required to have a large-breed dog. “Yes, huskies are big dogs,” Brenda explains, “You really need to put in time and effort into caring for them and exercising them. Another important thing to do is be confident in yourself as their leader. The relationship is very similar to that of a parent and child. If you exercise your dog and set good and fair boundaries with them, they will be well-balanced and happy” Our final part of the tour concludes with the Sci-Fi room. The room itself is pulled straight from the Star Wars Death Star. Space-themed tables provide an appropriate setting for starship tournaments. “We are creating new events all the time,” Paraic

says, “We have weekly game sessions and tournaments. We also have a Ladies Knight Out that gives women an opportunity to learn games in a fun and relaxed environment. We are continuing to create more events and are working to get more and more people included in this community of gamers.” As I have walked throughout the entire store, I notice that Mishra and Urza are always nearby. The fact that the Huskies are never out of sight is quite symbolic of the influence of the Mulgrews on this store. The influence and care they’ve put into every single detail of the store can be seen everywhere. After our interview, Paraic and Brenda resume their regular duties of giving game tutorials, laughing with customers, and sharing their passion with a community that has truly embraced them. The story of Knight Watch Games is not only a story of a community coming together to help each other, it’s also the story of a community coming together to provide a gift to the people willing to bring it together. Paraic and Brenda have seen growth both in their store and in the customers that frequent it. Paraic tells us, “When you see people start off maybe in a bad place, then over time they grow and become better just by being here and being a part of something, that’s really special. It’s so much more than running a game store.” 7

16350 Blanco, Ste 116 78232 210-888-1051 WWW.KNIGHTWATCHGAMES.COM

Hours of Operation Sunday 12:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m Monday: CLOSED Tuesday-Thursday: 12:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. Friday: 12:00 p.m. - 12:00 a.m. Saturday: 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 a.m.

SPAY-NEUTER ASISTANCE PROGRAM Serving San Antonio/Bexar County 210.673.7722 www.snapus.org

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s humans, we use our senses to take in information. The information we gather helps us to understand the world around us. According to philosopher David Hume, perceptions are divided into impressions and ideas. Our impressions are what we see, hear, and smell. It is from these impressions that ideas are created.

While humans and animals share the same basic senses, it pays to be mindful of some unique sense characteristics dogs have. Dogs have an incredible sense of smell. You may have witnessed a dog lifting a leg or have been an unlucky victim of an arching golden stream down your jeans. What you may not know is that, for dogs, urine contains an entire blueprint of information. It's used as a biological marker that communicates things like social conﬁdence, age and sexual readiness. Artwork by Tzarina Regina

“I bark therefore I am”

s importante tener en cuenta el efecto que nuestras decisiones tienen sobre los animales. Una de las decisiones más comunes que cometemos a diario en cuanto a bienestar animal es decidir qué comer. Si bien es importante estar atento de lo que comemos, también debemos preguntarnos si estamos dando un vistazo más profundo a todo lo que consumimos a diario más allá de los alimentos. ¿Qué tipo de maquillaje estamos comprando? ¿Qué hay en la ropa que usamos? La lista de preguntas sigue y sigue, pero con tal de que estén plenamente informados y conscientes de nuestras decisiones, podemos tomar decisiones que conduzcan a mejores condiciones de vida para todos. 9

Having a dog around can also be beneﬁcial for our health. Since dogs are keenly aware of our scent, they have been known to detect health problems in humans, such as snifﬁng out cancer and predicting seizures. While episodic memory in dogs remains a debate, it is apparent that dogs use their senses to predict what will happen in the world around them. Ideas, along with impressions, are what Hume says make up the total content of our mind. Most dog lovers would agree that a dogs abilities are remarkable!

SA AMIGO Spotlight

Christy Savarino

This month on the SA Amigo Spotlight, we talk to Christy Savarino, owner of Christy Savarino Photography, about her love of animals and what inspired her to start her own pet photography business.

Tell us about what inspired you to start Christy Savarino You mention that you’ve loved animals since your early Pet Photography. childhood days. What did you learn about animals growing up? After I received my Associate’s Degree in graphic design, I wanted to find a way to combine my talent and the things I learned that all animals require love and attention. I I studied with my love of animals. To me, photography learned a lot about what responsibility means by and design go hand in hand. I had always received watching unfortunate things happen to other animals. compliments on pet pictures I had taken and even had Having dogs growing up, you learn that It takes time to people ask me, “Where did you get those photos taken?” work with them. You have to recognize that if you don’t These were questions about my own photos! Since I love care for them properly, they will develop a lot of health animals, it’s only natural for me to strike a conversation issues and become unhappy. Also, rescue dogs and mixed with other animal lovers out there. Eventually, people breeds are awesome! Just because a dog is a rescue dog, began asking me to take pictures of their dogs and that’s doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t have every opportunity to how it all got started. I wanted to help people capture be as happy as a fully bred dog. Some of the best dogs I precious moments of their pets so that they could keep had growing up were mixed breed rescue dogs. these special moments with them for a lifetime. 10

Speaking of rescue dogs, tell us about your work with Z’s Rescue and Relocation. I started taking pictures for Z’s Rescue and Relocation back in 2015. The rescue was started by a veteran, Lance Ziebell, who wanted to go the extra mile in order to help animals. I needed practice with photographing different types of dogs, so I went to Lance and asked him if I could take pictures of all the rescues. In exchange for helping me get the experience I needed, he would get pictures of the dogs to help with the adoptions. Immediately, we saw Z’s adoption rates increase because of the pictures. I love hearing about the rescue dogs’ success stories. There are so many amazing dogs out there, and knowing that I played a small part in getting them adopted really means something special to me.

Do you have any favorite types of sessions? My favorite sessions would have to be my Pet Cake Smashes! I love being able to celebrate their birthdays just as much as we do ours. I mean, why wouldn't you want their day to be special? I normally do studio sessions with unique setups for each dog. For the final touch, I throw in an organic cake, perfect for your pet, and I just let them have at it! What message do you have for the community? Pets need love and attention, especially puppies! I What are some of the secrets to your success when think the key to good pet ownership is being preit comes to photographing dogs? pared for having a pet and all that entails. You have The most common thing I come across is that peo- to care for them and give them all the care necesple are hesitant about their dogs taking pictures be- sary to let them live long and healthy lives. Also, all cause they believe the dog will not make a perfect pets deserve a chance to be successful. People photography model. What I really focus on is taking have some preconceived notions on certain dogs, the time with my clients to put them in a fun, safe, especially pit bulls, as being mean or aggressive, but and comfortable environment. Safety is always my from my own experiences, some of the sweetest dogs I’ve come across have been pit bulls. Love and top priority! The key is to put the dog’s need first care for your pet, and share that love and enthusiand make sure they’re comfortable. Once that’s asm with everybody! set, you have a great model! 12

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