Paddys new coat is a Pony rug!

We had visitors today who expressed interest in giving Lewis a permanent home so they are bringing their dogs to meet him over the next few days. He is having another bath today and thanks to the treatment the mange mites are gone and he is non infectious now so is able to mix with other dogs. It would be great if he could go now before he ends up becoming a permanent resident

I know I said no more animals to be admitted but yesterday I noticed that there was a cat being advertised for a home on Freecycle and this disturbed me because I do not believe pets should be advertised amongst the washing machines and household goods etc being given away free. I sent an email to the person advertising and offered to take the cat here rather than have him given away to anyone who responded. I have noticed other pets being given away in this manner so if anyone agrees with me that this is not acceptable please contact Freecycle and make your complaint heard.Pictured here is Nemo the cat, a handsome animal but who has yet to be neutered before he can be adopted .

We had a bit of a fright this morning, the old tortoishell cat was missing, she had seemed very settled and I thought she would not wander away so a susual I opened the catflap for the cats to have the freedom of the shelter duiring the evening. This morning she was gone but she was found asleep in the amongst the hay in the horse trailer. Today she has not left the conservatory all but I will keep an eye on her for a few more days before I allow her to come and go as she pleases.When cats are adopted, new owners are always told to keep them indoors for at least three weeks to allow them to adapt to their new environment otherwise they may go missing before they have this settling in time. For some reason the oldies we keep here seldom seem to need this period of adapting, they almost always make themselves at home immediately.Old Jimmy Ginger was one of the feline geriatrics who did prove to be a problem, he was always disappearing and was constantly being returned from neighbouring homes but even he has settled here now. He is not keen on other cats which was why he wa s unhappy at first but he now sleeps on a sofa in the cattery passageway and he has this to himself which suits him fine.At the grand age of 17 he was unlikely to find a home(not impossible but unlikely) with his dislike of other animals.

I have had some lovely emails from people who have our pets and some are featured on success stories on the Freshfields website but I am going to collate a few to put on the blog in the next week; with so many sad stories around it is always good to remember the happy things and those animals enjoying the Good Life now.

Paddy now has a made to measure day coat and a very posh new outdoor rug which is in fact a horse rug which was donated.It was probably for a shetland pony but it fits Paddy beautifully as you can see. I am taking him to the vet tomorrow or Friday because he always has runny poo and he is on ultra expensive food(Burns chicken and rice) so he shouldn't have this problem.He is fine in himself but I would like him checked over anyway.He hasn't seen a Vet since I first had him and it might be a good idea for them to check his back(fused vertebrae) whilst I am there. Speaking of this, there is a 7 weeks old German shepherd pup in a dog pound with a similar condition so am considering offering help there.Apparently one of his back legs is almost useless. I will have a word about him with my Vet when I take Paddy in. At that age I cannot possibly allow a pup to be destroyed unless there is no hope of a quality of life for him in the future.

So much for stopping admittances! It is so hard when one hears these stories.My heart always rules my head.