Where did the warblers go?

North Jersey, it seems.

While roughly a third of the warblers and other bird species that breed in the United States have suffered declines, several top birders in Bergen and Passaic counties say there have been above-average sightings locally this spring.

At Garret Mountain in West Paterson, one of the top birding spots in the region, bird-watchers have reported seeing as many as 20 species of warblers per morning a few times this month.

Bruce McWhorter, who goes birding at Garret regularly, said the diversity of warblers has been higher than usual, although there are no more of them than last year.

“The one exceptional exception,” McWhorter said, “was a flock of thousands of white-throated sparrows that passed through about two weeks ago.”

Rob Fanning, a top birder at Garret and the Celery Farm Natural Area in Allendale, said: “This may possibly be the best overall year for warblers I can remember at the Celery Farm, and the migration is far from over.”

Fanning reported seeing an unusually wide variety of the tiny songbirds at the 107-acre natural area, with good numbers of birds that are scarce in the spring – including Nashville, Northern Parula, chestnut-sided and black-throated blue warblers.

Hugh Carola of the Hackensack Riverkeeper said that in the Meadowlands, “the migration was kind of straggly at first because of the long cold snap, but we’ve got some really good birds coming in now.”

But despite the bad weather so far, Patrick Scheuer, director of the New Jersey Audubon Society’s Lorrimer Sanctuary in Franklin Lakes, says: “We sure have had more variety this year, including a Cape May Warbler, a black-throated blue and a springtime red-breasted nuthatch.”

Over the weekend, top birders competed in the World Series of Birding, in which the objective is to identify as many species of birds anywhere in New Jersey within a 24-hour time frame. The American Bird Conservancy had designated Saturday as annual International Migratory Bird Day.

The advocacy group reports that more than a third of the 650 bird species that breed in the United States have declining populations, smaller ranges or are threatened by loss of habitat, climate change, pesticides, free-roaming cats and other factors.

“Warblers aren’t doing well,” said Steve Holmer, the group’s director of public relations. “There’s been a significant decline in many species.”

One bird that the conservancy has singled out for special concern is the cerulean warbler, which the group called a “flagship species for songbird declines.” Its numbers have dropped by up to 70 percent in the past four decades.

The bright blue-and-white warbler is a prized sighting in North Jersey because it is seen so rarely here, although New York State birders report that ceruleans have returned in ample numbers to their nesting sites near Bear Mountain State Park this spring.

The appearance this year of an eagle on Kaua’i, an osprey on O’ahu, a harrier on Maui, and reports of peregrine falcons on several islands suggests either that there’s something strange going on, or that visits by these Mainland birds are far more common than most folks know.

Bird watchers regularly make note of the appearance of unusual birds in the Hawaiian environment, and it suggests that the 2,000-plus-mile passage from almost anywhere to Hawai’i is not as daunting for many forms of avian life as it might appear.

Tiny shorebirds do it annually. The kolea, or Pacific golden plover, among the Islands’ most beloved snowbirds, left Hawai’i about a month ago for their summer breeding season in the Arctic. They’ll be back in the late summer and fall, to spend winter where it’s warmer.

Waterbirds like mallards show up with some frequency, although their feats might not be considered quite so impressive, since their swimming ability means they could stop on the ocean for a break along the way.

Most raptors aren’t regular cross-ocean migrators, and many are not able to land on the water and then take off again.

But they make the crossing, and it’s not a new thing. Fossil evidence of prehistoric eagles on O’ahu and Maui County shows they were here before humans were.

Kaua’i’s famous golden eagle arrived unannounced and was on the island throughout the 1970s, until it was killed while attacking a helicopter in 1984.

George Balazs, who is best known for his studies of Hawaiian green sea turtles, reported a Steller’s sea eagle in 1978 on Kure Atoll, on the northwesternmost end of the Hawaiian archipelago. A month later, a similar-looking eagle, and perhaps the same one, was on Midway, 60 miles east of Kure.

In December 2006, “we believe that we had probably two peregrine falcons pass through Midway,” said John Klavitter, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Refuge biologist at the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge. Both preyed on Laysan ducks that have been brought to Midway to establish a breeding population.

One of those birds may have moved down the Hawaiian chain, since one was spotted at Laysan Island later in December. What’s not known is whether it was the same peregrine that was reported early this year on Kaua’i.

Klavitter said he believes peregine falcons show up at a rate of one or two a year at Midway.

Not surprising, perhaps, since peregrine means “wandering” or “nomadic.”

Lying on a padded, sheet-covered table, Abby closes her eyes, relaxes — and begins wagging her tail.

The yellow Lab is getting a massage.

Her owner, Patricia Whalen-Shaw, kneads Abby’s muscles, then glides her hands in a smooth, stroking motion over the area she’s worked.

Pet massage classes are filling up with pet owners, groomers, competitors and others, instructors say. Books and DVDs about the techniques are getting more attention, too.

“I think owners overall are looking for different ways to connect with their dog beyond the traditional walk around the block or play with the Frisbee in the park,” said Lisa Peterson, a spokeswoman for the American Kennel Club who has been a dog breeder for 20 years. “Massage is sort of filling that niche.”

The ministrations are part of an increase in pet pampering, including designer dog clothes and home parties selling canine products. Americans spent an estimated $38 billion on their pets last year, compared with about $28 billion in 2001, according to the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association.

Advocates say massage can help pets relax, recover more quickly from injury or surgery, improve performance in competition and be more comfortable if they have chronic conditions.

Veterinarians caution that massage done incorrectly can harm animals, and they urge pet owners to get their vets’ approval.

Narda Robinson, a veterinarian and physician who teaches at Colorado State University, said she considers massage a great addition to traditional medicine as long as it’s veterinarian-approved.

“Any time you’re using force on an animal, there’s room for an injury there,” said Robinson, who has seen dogs whose backs have been reinjured during massages.

Massage is increasingly used in agility competitions, which require dogs to run an obstacle course at high speed, said Katherine Leggett, assistant coach for an American Kennel Club team. Owners learn massage techniques themselves but also use professional massage therapists; one has traveled with the team to Europe.

“Most of the people I know in the sport do some level of stretching and massage on their own dogs, and it makes such a difference,” Leggett said.

As Whalen-Shaw demonstrates on Abby, the pup at first positions her body to protect her front legs. Eventually, the dog exhales audibly and allows Whalen-Shaw to massage that area as well.

Whalen-Shaw, who teaches massage classes at her farm 30 miles south of Columbus, has been showing students how to work on horses, dogs and cats for about 15 years. She stresses that the techniques she teaches are for relaxation — not medical purposes.

The massage techniques are the same as used on people but with a much lighter touch, she says.

They include making a spreading movement with the palm of the hand and fingers. Or she might knead with her fingers in a circular pattern or press down with a palm or fingers, as if she were pressing down on a wet sponge and then lifting her hand up.

She watches the animals closely during a massage to gauge their reactions. A pet’s resistance — a curled lip on a dog, ears flattened back on a horse, for instance — means she stops.

Pet owners make up about a third of the students at the Northwest School of Animal Massage in Fall City, Wash. The school, founded in 2001, graduates 80 to 150 students annually.

“We’ve been very fortunate to see tremendous growth each year,” said Lola Michelin, director of education.

Kristie Long, a retired accountant from Olympia, Wash., frequently uses what she learned there on her three dogs and the 10 ragdoll cats she breeds.

“It’s kind of a natural thing but to take the classes to really learn what you’re doing, it was wonderful,” she said.

Rules governing animal massage vary. In Utah, practitioners must be licensed to perform human massage first, then complete additional hours of animal training. Washington’s Legislature recently passed a bill allowing people to become certified after taking 300 hours of animal massage training. In some states, massage can be performed only by a veterinarian or under a vet’s supervision.

The International Association of Animal Massage and Bodywork, which has about 600 members, is working to set national standards and develop a certification test for massage practitioners.

“The interest in helping and being of service to animals is just huge,” said Jonathan Rudinger, who formed the group.

The founder of PetMassage in Toledo, Rudinger said that when he first started teaching dog massage about 10 years ago, only a handful of the thousands of people at dog shows were interested in talking to him about the practice.

Now, nearly a hundred students — including some from other countries — take his classes each year. Rudinger also sells about a thousand copies annually of a home-study course.

A weeklong canine foundation class at PetMassage runs $1,400, while a four-day canine beginner workshop costs $550 at Whalen-Shaw’s Integrated Touch Therapy.

Rhonda Cruze, who runs a day spa for dogs in Corinth, Texas, ordered Rudinger’s course about three years ago when looking for services to offer clients in addition to grooming and boarding.

“Once they understand the benefits, I do get a lot of requests for it, to add it on to the grooming service while they are here,” she said.

The increased acceptance of massage reflects the way people’s views of their pets have changed, Peterson said.

“Now that pets are considered a member of the family, owners want to give their dogs more and more of the same things that we humans enjoy,” she said.

After Eric Congdon opened a crate from China and discovered a cat inside, coming up with a name for the furry stowaway was easy.

China the cat had chewed through one of the boxes before it left Shanghai on April 3 and spent at least 35 days on a ship inside the container filled with motorcycle gear.

“I saw something in the container move,” Congdon said. “I turned up the headlights on the fork lift to get a better look.”

That was when he saw the cat cowering in a corner, weak but still alive. Congdon, owner of Olympia Moto Sports in Hendersonville, said he and a co-worker called the county’s animal services when the cat would not let them near.

A co-worker of Congdon’s plans to adopt China, as animal service workers are calling her, if she checks out with a veterinarian. North Carolina law says any animal coming into the country must be vaccinated and quarantined for six months.

“We have to take precautions,” said animal services manager Brenda Miller.

How could China survive for so long on no food and water?

“Usually we say that animals can only survive a few weeks without food and only a few days without water,” said Raleigh veterinarian Michelle Misavage. “The theory is that cats have such good kidneys their bodies adjust to the lack of water and somehow they received small amounts of moisture from condensation.”

On April 26, Minden dog breeders June Holland and Doris Burke got quite the shock when their great dane gave birth to 16 puppies.

Zora was scheduled to give birth to nine pups sometime in May but surprised her owners with almost double the number of offspring.

The expected mother went into labour at 6 p.m. and had her last pup at 6 a.m. Zora has nine black females, two black males, two brindle males and three blue girls to call her own.

“Everyone asks how many puppies we lost, and we haven’t lost one,” said Burke.

It’s a miracle all of Zora’s puppies survived. Zora has taken to motherhood well, tending to all her young ones at all times.

“This is really rare that they all survived. Over 900 people have visited our website,” said Holland.

Mom and dad, Bronson, are happy and healthy tending to their new children

A 4-year-old Boston terrier is one lucky dog after a duplex was heavily damaged by fire in Vergennes Tuesday afternoon.

Firefighters said the fire started in the living room of one of the units near the high school but the cause appears to be accidental.

After nearly an hour of fighting the fire, firefighters found the dog named Toby, who had been in the burning building the whole time.

The five people who live at the duplex were left homeless.

As for Toby, he was checked out and was given a clean bill of health by a local vet.