Dentist Day.

Monday

Andre our lovely Equine Dentist has been today and Morris was his firstclient of the morning.Amazingly he had little wrong with his teeth that a little filing would not help so clearly that is not at the root of his weight problem.Blood tests may be the next step . Morris behaved very well, he really is a gentle creature.(pictured here with Andre and the bottom half of Rosie!)) Also pictured is Big Buster in the "Dentists Waiting Room" looking incredibly bored and unimpressed by the whole business of waiting about. I can imagine him thinking"there is nothing for a horse to do here is there? At least you humans are given magazines to read"

There were no major problems in those Andre checked today, he commented on old Noddys continued good health and thought new horse Sorrell had the most beautiful eyes.We have just been watching Sorrell in the field trotting up and down in that inimitable Arab fashion with her head and tail held high.Stunning to watch, I will endeavour to get a photo of her doing this, I was too late today, by the time I found the camera she had her head down and was busy with the serious business of grazing.Andre has just one pony left to do but Titch Shetland needs a tooth extraction so this will require a Vet in attendance so this is scheduled for tomorrow.

Walking the dogs this morning I have found ragwort flowering - this is very unusual at this time of year.Is there no end to the stuff? It must be down to the occasional warm spells we have been having, the seasons are all out of kilter. I have heard birds singing away in the treetops as though it is a spring morning and even the summer flowering plants which did not do well this summer in my tubs, have finally burst into flower! It is a great shame as they are unlikely to last long with the icy nip in the air.Poor Flowers.

The first starling migrant arrived a week ago and this single bird was joined this morning by several more, by next week there will be dozens more arriving to descend on my bird feeders/tables and I will be buying bird seed like it's going out of fashion.It is one of my biggest expenses during Winter but never, ever begrudged.I know starlings are not popular birds and they are very greedy but they need sustenance as much as the sparrows and finches and other small birds.I just put out more feeders which the larger birds cannot access, that way they are all kept happy and well fed.

Homes have become temporarily thin on the ground for the dogs, there are homes available but for the ideal family pet and not all of our collies are suitable for homes with young children.Taz the GSD also needs an adult home, there have been some enquiries for her but nobody has yet followed up my calls .Nervous Jim is still very shy and he needs a home with another dog from which he will gain confidence,Gel is outgoing and a happy lively collie but he has been returned once so we have to be extra sure that the next home is the right one. That reminds me - the other Jim who was returned for being unpredictable with strangers has gone out to another home with Nell, all reports back from their new owners are indicating that he is fine and they are having no problems with him other than the expected teething problems with a new dog.They are delighted with them both. Sometimes there really is a problem, other times it is simply a case of the wrong people having the dog and dogs behave differently with different people. Strongminded intelligent dogs need someone who can deal with problems and nip them in the bud quickly before they escalate. Not everyone has this ability and many panic and feel the dog is beyond their control.I made a mistake homing Jim, the previous people had been collie owners for years but that can be very different from having a rescued farm dog.My mistake. I had thought wrongly that their years of experience would make for the ideal home. It appears that this time I have made the right choice.

I desperately need a foster home for a young lurcher in the Dog Pound, I had a call today to tell me that he has been joined by another lurcher(a female this time) and a staff.Oh Dear. Its an impossible situation in this area where there is no proper Dog Shelter. It would be wonderful if the Dogs Trust opened one in Gwynedd but they have no plans for such a project I am told.What a shame. I shall keep trying for places for these unfortunate animals.Very often something or somebody turns up just when I am becoming truly desperate.

Tomorrow a lady from a local Tv company is to visit us with the view to assessing whether we are suitable to have a documentary made about the shelter. We must be on our best behaviour! We dont want to become celebrities like those who feature in those dreadful fly on the wall documentaries.I have told the girls to leave their basques and suspenders at home and the men to turn up sober for a change and I have promised that I will try not to be drawn into any unseemly behaviour such as unladylike brawling in the yard. It will be difficult but it is only for a few hours and then we can revert to type once she leaves!