Winds of Change: With Valley temperatures topping...

Winds of Change: With Valley temperatures topping 90 degrees and winds gusting Monday, county firefighters thought about calling an early start to the fire season. . . . “We watch the weather patterns,” Capt. Steve Valenzuela said. “Two or three days of high winds, low humidity and high temperatures can dry the fuel out very quickly.”

Hot Spot: The region’s unseasonal spring has already turned Antelope Valley fields considerably drier than they were at this time last year. . . . “We’ve already had grass fires up there,” Valenzuela said. “Those fires travel quickly.”

‘Pal’imony: Insisting that “there is a sick individual out there,” Carol Johnson, above, urged a Los Angeles City Council panel to recommend a $5,000 reward for information on the killing of her mother’s pug dog in Encino (B1). . . . The panel agreed, though it is still uncertain whether Pal was skinned alive by a human or a coyote.

Waiting Game: Tight end Pat Fitzgerald starred at Valley College and then at Texas, but the pros winced at his relatively small size. . . . So the 6-2, 228-pound senior had to watch the NFL draft on television for six rounds before getting a call from the Buffalo Bills. He said: “Just as I picked up the phone, my brother smacked me on the chest and pointed at the TV screen and my name flashed up there. It was a total shock.”

Tonight: William Shatner hosts the “Star Trek Goes Country” kickoff party for his Hollywood Charity Horse Show at 7:30 at the Cowboy Palace Saloon, 21635 Devonshire St., Chatsworth. No cover. Information: (818) 341-0166.