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Rick LeCouteur
Inviting young readers to marvel at the wonder of nature's creatures
Rick's Blog
#bunyipsbooksbeyond
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When Screens Replace Sunlight: A grandfather’s lament (#410)
There’s a particular kind of silence that falls over a grandfather’s heart. It’s not the quiet of a Sunday morning or the hush of a sleeping house. It’s the stillness that comes when you ask, “Would you like to go for a walk?”and the answer is a distracted, “Maybe later, Grandpa,” without eyes ever lifting from a glowing screen. The Promise of a Walk Grandpa pictured these walks. Hands held. Sticks in hand. Pockets filled with rocks. Leaves that had to be treasures. He imag
Rick LeCouteur
1 day ago2 min read


Can Animals Be Persons? Lessons from philosophy & science (#409)
As a veterinarian, educator, and author, I’ve often reflected on how we define the moral boundaries of our relationship with animals. In...
Rick LeCouteur
3 days ago4 min read


Gotta Love Spiders: Seeing the world through eight eyes (#408)
It’s a quiet autumn evening. You’re watching TV when a shadow scuttles across the rug. A large house spider, Tegenaria domestica , on the...
Rick LeCouteur
5 days ago3 min read


Say It Like Taylor: “Like,” You Know? (#407)
It slips into our sentences almost unnoticed. “She was, like, exhausted.” “And I was, like, what just happened?” We hear it everywhere....
Rick LeCouteur
Oct 73 min read


The Littered Path: The moral weight of a floss pick (#406)
Every morning on my walk, I pick up trash. Not out of compulsion, but out of quiet disbelief. The worst offenders, and the most...
Rick LeCouteur
Oct 53 min read


In Memoriam: Jane Goodall 1934-2025 (#405)
This week, the world lost one of its most luminous champions for wildlife, nature, and hope. Dr. Jane Goodall, pioneering primatologist,...
Rick LeCouteur
Oct 33 min read


Carl Sagan - Part 3: The future of humanity & the pale blue dot (#404)
I wrote this third part of this series because Carl Sagan’s legacy isn’t only about the tools of skepticism or the politics of science....
Rick LeCouteur
Oct 13 min read


Carl Sagan - Part 2: Science, politics, and leadership in the age of misinformation (#403)
Carl Sagan never lived to see the current presidency, but his writings anticipated many of the tensions that have arisen during 2025....
Rick LeCouteur
Oct 13 min read


Carl Sagan - Part 1: Wonder, skepticism, & baloney detection (#402)
Carl Sagan continues to matter. In an age when misinformation and pseudoscience can spread faster than truth, his voice reminds us of the...
Rick LeCouteur
Oct 14 min read


A Floating Intrusion: When a ship becomes an eyesore (#401)
Sydney Harbour has long been defined by two icons. The curve of the Opera House sails and the steel arc of the Harbour Bridge. These are...
Rick LeCouteur
Sep 102 min read


Words for a Best Friend: When memory fades, love remains (#400)
Alzheimer’s disease is more than a medical diagnosis. It is a thief, silent and merciless, that robs people not only of memory but of...
Rick LeCouteur
Sep 52 min read


Go Where You’re Scared: Permission to be new again (#399)
When painter Alex Katz was asked, late in a career most artists would envy, if he still worries about new work failing, he laughed and...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 313 min read


The Exam Room Reset: Cole in the middle (#398)
On that morning in 1996, the exam room at the UC Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital was already full before the black Labrador...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 264 min read


The Hummingbird Feather: A message and a memory (#397)
Today I found a hummingbird feather while sweeping in the garden. I almost missed it. It was so small. Then I noticed the iridescent...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 233 min read


Corporatizing Vet Care (Part 1): Oligopoly or Opportunity? (#396)
This is Part 1 of a series of blog posts regarding corporatization’s near-term shocks and long-term stakes. Corporatization isn’t...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 213 min read


The Day the Mice Went Dark: The NCI Mouse Repository shuts down (#395)
The NCI Mouse Repository is gone. Here's what we lose and what should happen next. On July 1, 2025, the National Cancer I nstitute (NCI)...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 184 min read


An Opinion on Vet Care Through 2035: Specialists, corporates & costs (#394)
TL;DR (Too long; didn’t read) From 2026-2035 specialty care will keep expanding, corporate ownership will remain influential (and more...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 184 min read


Dopamine Demystified: Movement, motivation, meaning (#393)
If you’ve heard that dopamine is the brain’s feel-good molecule , you’ve only got the movie trailer, not the full film. Dopamine is less...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 173 min read


Teaching Vet Med Like It’s 2025: Why 2010's methods don’t belong (#392)
Vet school lectures are seldom attended by Gen Zers, who prefer to learn via digital platforms in their own time Fifteen years ago, I...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 163 min read


From Data to Wisdom: A veterinarian’s guide to smarter decisions (#391)
Modern tools and timeless judgment shape better patient care. In veterinary medicine, clinical decision-making is rarely about a single...
Rick LeCouteur
Aug 134 min read
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