Pushkin loses his fight. and Busters joints seize up.

All the staff read the last blog and John was in for some stick this morning, he will never hear the last of it especially as he made fun of Rhian when SHE got her car stuck in the same place.What goes around comes around! Thankfully he has a sense of humour and is able to laugh at himself which is just as well as everyone else was doing it! I will refrain from mentioning the cabinet he put on upside down- oops I did say I wouldnt mention it.Sorry!
Anyhow on to animal things, I had cancelled a trustee meeting to be held today in Liverpool because the weather was so bad here yesterday, thick snow and blizzards with more supposedly on its way.Guess what - this morning there is no snow, overnight rain has cleared most of it and the sun is shining.
Oh no, my worst fears have been realised - Nell the timid collie recently rehomed has gone missing.I am devastated.It was through no fault of the new owners, they had taken every precaution to keep her safe but the clip on the fastened lead snapped as she lunged forward out of their car. They too are devastated and are searching everywhere for her but they and I know,it is unlikely Nell will come to anyone once she is loose.It is a disaster. I am making arrangements to have our dog trap returned (it has been in use elsewhere) but unless she is seen in the same area regularly this will be of little use.So anyone in the Conway area please look out for a red and white collie running free and if anyone can advertise her please let me know.I cannot bear to think she will not be found and suffer the same fate as poor Ellie .It is just too dreadful to contemplate.
A young black cat has been homed this morning and one of the pups is going next monday.It would be great if the other pup could go also,I hate it when just one is left on its own.I used to take an odd pup or two in the house but now the resident dogs would not take too kindly to such youngsters in their home. maybe another pup will come in to keep him company or better still someone will adopt HIM.
I dont know if I mentioned previously that two horses out on loan were returned.Big Buster(the grey) and Rocky went out to different homes, Buster was returned after 3 years because of a change in financial circumstances and Rocky allegedly due to the carers ill health! This is the beauty of the loan scheme, it is a safety net for both horse and carer. I am always sorry to see them returned both for the horses sake and our own. though in the case of these two animals it is probable that they will remain at the shelter now.Buster who was born with a twisted leg, has become arthritic and Rocky also has become very stiff and footsore.Rocky has ringbone and is laminitic but this is his first bad bout since we first took him in during 2006 . I suspect the carer overfed him because we have never seen like this.Even when we tell people exactly how to care for animals,and check on them also, they do not sadly always tell the truth. Hopefully both horses will respond well to supplements in their diet though a nice sunny spell of weather would undoubtedly do Buster most good. My favourite supplements to use for stiff joints are seaweed,cod liver oil and MSM.The latter is very expensive but has proved invaluable foranimals with joint problems. Years ago we had an old goat in Liverpool (no, not me!") His name was William and as he grew older his joints stiffened up and we put the same supplements in his food, there is no doubt it gave him an extra lease of life and he lived on for several years after the start of this addition to his food. Maybe I am expecting too much with Buster but he is a comparitively young horse and anything is worth a try. If it works then the money will be well spent.If not then we can rest easy knowing we did our best. The two returnees are pictured here the day they returned.
I should have known, having mentioned the need for another pup to keep Elliot company when his brother leaves us, the vets receptionist Sharon has just rung to say an abandoned collie pup has been taken in there. Rhian is picking him up tomorrow .
An email has come through from Netta and Len who have several of our cats in Shropshire. It is sad news, the last cat they took from us has died.Pushkin was one of the difficult to rehome cats this cat loving couple have given a home to and they did all they could to make his life comfortable.If only there were more like them.He was lucky to spend his last year with them.