Leeor D

I was coming up to a stop sign on an incline. There was snow out so I had set drive to a lower gear (2). I was no more than about 15mph and slowing. I had to push the accelerator to finish my roll to the stop sign. When I did, I heard a very deep growl, what sounded like the engine, not the transmission. When I accelerated to get onto the road, the car sounded completely normal.

What does a deep growl like that generally mean when the car doesn't normally make that kind of sound? It almost sounded like the diesel engine from a pickup but I don't remember seeing or noticing any other cars going past me on the road. I had just come off a highway so could it have been a truck in low gear that I didn't notice?

Okay. This may be complicated and I understand that there are no easy options but here goes.

I recently moved back into my mom's house due to the recession and the following job loss. She has two tea-cup poodles. To be completely honest, I don't like dogs and these little yapping things really irritate me to no end.

My mom coddles them all the time. They are both female, both from the same litter but the one tries to be dominant over everybody (hasn't worked with me as she found out very quickly) and isn't snuggling up to my mom but 'guarding her property'. She does this with food as well.

I believe the problem comes from the one dog. She pees everywhere and it's making me crazy. Personally I would throw the dogs outside and leave them with food and appropriate shelter there but obviously this is not an option. My mom is no help either because, as I stated above, she coddles them and allows them to do whatever the hell they want.

Is there something I can do to help alleviate the problem? If my mom can tolerate the dogs peeing on the carpets in the living room than so can I but when that little yapping animal peed on my bed and pillows that was the last straw. I need help before I lose my mind.

Hello, fellow cat owners!

I have three cats and I'm in the process of moving. Two are male, one is female.

I've moved the boys to their new location but have kept the female in the location I'm moving out of. I figured I'd give her a break from the boys because they get very rough with her sometimes and she seems generally stressed when they're getting rambunctiouss.

Anyway, since I've moved the boys, she wanders around the apartment making a low-pitched moaning sound, almost like a cry.

Could it be that she's lonely? She's only ever made a sound similar to this when she's brining up a hairball but 1) she's not bringing up hairballs and 2) she's only started this since I moved the boys.

Could it be that she's grown attached to the other two despite the problems they seem to have?

I have a 2002 Toyota Corolla. I've never had problems with the braking system at all. I had the brake pads and shoes replaced at a Firestone which used OEM parts. No problems. My dad, upon hearing that I'd had a real mechanic install brakes for what he considered a huge amount decided that he would have his mechanic install 'the best' pads/shoes. Now, they make an aweful squealing noise, usually when I first start the car (e.g., they get quite once they get hot) or when it's wet outside (especially when it's wet). I just want to note that I have no problems with actual stopping ability -- the car is able to brake normally save for the noise.

I've had the mechanic look at it twice and both times he said there's nothing wrong with them. I've looked at them myself and haven't seen anything out of the ordinary (no abnormal wear and tear, no glazing, etc.).

Is it possible that the 'top of the line pads' are just too high-end for my economy car? Usually cars that make this kind of noise are in poor condition but mine is not -- it's actually in very good shape. Frankly, it's humiliating when I brake and it sounds like my car is about to fall apart and I'm wondering if replacing the brakes with OEM pads/shoes will resolve my problem...