A well deserved rest ...... ?

Well we will certainly see. During the course of the year we take two weeks off, one at Christmas and the first week in August. The plan is to do very little, take days out, sleep, garden and enjoy the sunshine (assuming it's still shining next week). Today is pretty much the day to get all those lose ends tied up and to be honest - it ain't gonna happen LOL but we will see, I can always sneak into the office at some point during the course of the week as it's much easier to get things done when you don't have to continuously answer the phone. Not many people know, as I've never really made it public, but I suffer a condition known as CFS, it's a mild form of ME so not quite so debilitating but it does mean that when I crash, I really crash. I've had it for quite a few years so have learned how to manage it but it's very easy to do too much without realising it, which is not too difficult when you have as much to do in a day as I do, it means though that I tend to pin everything on this week off in the hope that I will be fully charged and rearing to go at the end of it - the problem is that at the end of the week all the work has piled up and the first day back tends to wipe me out again which makes the rest pretty pointless which is one of the reasons why we don't actually go away on holiday, but it is really nice to wake up in the morning and not HAVE to actually get out of it LOL - there's nothing quite like watching day time telly in bed is there? I'm getting the tattoo finished on Sunday and have lots of plans for my garden so lets hope the nice weather holds out for just one more week - ppppplllllllllleeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaasssssssssssssssssseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee ;o)

Morning Peeps

Well I finally bit the bullet and had the big tattoo done on Saturday, it needs a little bit more work but after 4 hours I'd really had enough, it didn't hurt until the last half an hour but I am thrilled to bits with it. It depicts Rainbow Bridge, 10 paw prints for my own dogs that are waiting at the bridge and the pebbles are (as you know) representing rescue dogs that are waiting. There's a background to go in and the bulldog head that was already there needs going over again once it's all healed, it's a little sore today but no pain, no gain as they say

At the bottom of my garden I've got a magical fairy garden, yesterday I bought a solar fairy sitting on a globe that glows different colours - you should have seen Hilda trying to work it out, to say she was experiencing a combination of curiosity and total fear really summed her up - watching her stalking it was hilarious!

It shouldn't happen at a vets BBC1 22 July 2010

Well, what did you make of it? Personally it came across to me like another docu-hatchet job as apart from the inflated invoices which I've talked about before and will talk about again in a mo, the footage of cruelty appeared to be straw grabbing trying to sensensionalise the odd occassion when something went wrong. I'm not saying that spinning a cat round by it's scruff whilst giving an injection is right (and that vet was struck off), nor am I saying that the joking of the cat who was fighting back when his Pre-Med had worn off is acceptable. I'm certainly not saying that striking a dog after major surgery is normal, but nor is it common and the poor Red Setter fighting to catch his breath was very upsetting indeed but if that's the worst they can come up with then things really aren't that bad, I was expecting real cruelty on a major scale but what I saw was sensationalised errors made by trainee staff that should never have been in that situation in the first place.
However, when it comes to money the new "branded" vet "business" does have some serious let downs. It was pretty much admitted that if an animal was brought in limping, rather than go for the rest and anti inflammatories and see what happens they would jump straight in with thousands of pounds worth of tests - that has been going on for a while and we see a huge difference in the vet bills that come through rescue with those that have come from a rural old fashioned vet and those that come from the big "chains" such a MediVet and VetsNow. The new rule that you must pay BEFORE the animal receives treatment is also on the increase and I'm not at all suprised that insurance claims were being falsley lodged in order to gain as much money as possible from one single treatment.
The vet profession has certainly changed over the years, especially in the last 5 years as many of the rural vets have been taken over by big businesses and I've talked before about how animals are held to ransom pending full payment which is most definately wrong and bearing in mind all vets take an oath to treat all animals the money really shouldn't be the first priority, in fact I think it's illegal to do so under RCVS rules (maybe someone could clarify that for me).
So let me know your thoughts on the programme, if you missed it I guess it's on iPlayer so take a look at see what you think

Life, Death and Holidays

Our new arrivals story started yesterday morning with a phone call at 20 to 2 in the morning from a distraught owner who was frantically trying to arrange something for her bulldog when her friend who was looking after him told her he no longer wanted him. So after many hours of tears and conversations with the local volunteer, dear Alfie arrived, very bewildered but OK and pleased to be able to settle down in his bed with a bowl full of food.
Sunday sees our lodger move out and my daughter move back in. Mark has a new flat to move into but I can see it being a very long day and if you read the story in the paper about the boy killed on the M23 at the weekend, that was in fact his cousin so there's lot going on in his family right now and another house move is probably the last thing he needs.
As for me, well my annual week off looms ever closer - for the first week of August I will, as usual, be in hibernation, only contact me if you absolutely have to LOL

Calm Memories

What a lovely weekend, despite the fact that the pub we ate at on Saturday night caught fire and in true British tradition everyone ignored it and carried on eating, until someone shouted "the store rooms on fire" to the bar staff who then promptly disappeared leaving a customer to grab the fire extinguisher. Diz had only just said to me he could smell burning plastic but thought it was a vain attempt at starting a barbecue. Once the drama was over everyone carried on like it had never happened - God bless the Great British Public LOL

Sunday was peaceful, time spent between gardening and studying saw the beginnings of my pond area begin to take shape, can't say I'm looking forward to digging it though!!!!!

Diz sorted through some old paperwork that he found in a box in the cupboard and in amongst piles of pedigrees dating back to the early 1970s was some old rescue paperwork. A letter from Liz Heslop dated May 1980 welcoming a new volunteer to the fold and the original sign over forms and home check form - to be honest they are not that much different to what we use now and to me was really fascinating to see how things were at the very beginning. You can take a look at the memorabilia which is listed on ebay (the money will go to Bulldog Rescue, Diz listed it under the wrong account) and see full size copies of the letter and the forms.

YOU GOT THAT FRIDAY FEELING?

It's Friday already, my day sick has thrown me into confusion (not that I usually have any idea what day of the week it is anyway). I've got 3 days off in the kennel now with help coming in today, Saturday and Sunday and the inflatable Gerbil that is fondly known as Blossom has gone in to a foster home in an attempt to house train her. There's a few new dogs waiting to be listed which I will try and do this afternoon or tomorrow so if you are a regular to our Homes Needed page make sure you check it out.
If you are not yet a member of Reggie's Den Face Book club be sure to join, we are running a series of special offers just for our Face Book members to check it out, you can find the link at www.reggies-den.co.uk
Have a great weekend, it's meant to get warmer again so keep an eye on those bulldogs

What a difference a day makes

Where's the Summer gone? It's blowing a gale force wind here today!!!!! Thankfully all is still standing and I had the forthought yesterday to get Jason to take the Gazebo down before it decided to visit the land of Oz!!
Yesterday was a bit of a time waster, I didn't feel right Tuesday night and woke yesterday to the most horrendous stomach ache, the initial plan was just to take the morning off but I didn't feel better all day so spent most of yesterday sleeping - I know I often wish for a day in bed, but it just goes to show that you have to be careful what you wish for LOL as today is going to be spent chasing my tail trying to catch up. It was nice, but I am sorry to anyone that couldn't reach me yesterday, there's a number of messages for me to sort through so please bear with me as I work my way through them

Lets hope the St Swithin's theory is wrong or we are in for a pretty rough Summer.

St Swithin's Day, if thou dost rain,
For forty days it will remain:
St. Swithin's Day, if thou be fair,
For forty days 'twill rain nae mair.'

Much is written on the threory of St Swithin's day, most notably that

"St. Swithin, bishop of Winchester, was a man equally noted for his uprightness and humility. So far did he carry the latter quality, that, on his death-bed, he requested to be buried, not within the church, but outside in the churchyard, on the north of the sacred building, where his corpse might receive the eaves-droppings from the roof, and his grave be trodden by the feet of the passers-by. His lowly request was complied with, and in this neglected spot his remains reposed till about a hundred years afterwards, when a fit of indignation seized the clergy at the body of so pious a member of their order being allowed to occupy such a position; and on an appointed day they all assembled to convey it with great pomp into the adjoining cathedral of Winchester. When they were about to commence the ceremony, a heavy rain burst forth, and continued without intermission for the forty succeeding days. The monks interpreted this tempest as a warning from Heaven of the blasphemous nature of their attempt to contravene the directions of St. Swithin, and, instead of disturbing his remains, they erected a chapel over his grave"
How, then, did the popular notion about St. Swithin's Day arise? "Most probably, it was derived from some primeval pagan belief regarding the meteorologically prophetic character of some day about the same period of the year as St. Swithin's. Such adaptations, it is well known, were very frequent on the supplanting throughout Europe of heathenism by Christianity. Many of our popular customs and beliefs can indeed be only satisfactorily explained by tracing them to such a source."

So Pagan or Christian, looks like we are in for a rough ride LOL



Source:http://www.thebookofdays.com/months/july/15.htm

The holidays are coming .....

And with it comes the deluge of calls from people who need their dogs picking up urgently because they are going away, like, now!!! There will be a rush of foster cases during the last couple of weeks of July and then come August things start to settle a little as the kids are off school and looking after the dog becomes a little easier. The phone hasn't stopped yet this morning, there certainly is no rest for the wicked LOL
I've had confirmation of the Seminar in October, there will be a maximum of 10 tickets reserved for bulldog people that will be on a first come first served basis so if you are hoping to come it might be an idea to let me know, I should have an idea of the ticket price within the next few days.

New Week, New Start

Not only is it a new week but it's a new moon so it's an excellent day to draw a line under any bad stuff and start completely afresh. Bad stuff certainly became the theme of the weekend following the tragic death of a bulldog in transit to her new home on Saturday afternoon. What made it so upsetting for all involved was that the dog wasn't hot or distressed she simply died in her sleep. It was very difficult for all concerned to come to terms with and many hours has been spent on the phone trying to make sense of it. In reality, there is no sense to be made; it's a risk we all take, but I just wanted to use this tragidy to relay some basic rules when transporting dogs, especially bulldogs, especially in the Summer months.

If you have air conditioning, keep it at a constant cool temperature and keep the windows shut, if you don't have air conditioning then please do not travel any dog on a hot day unless you absolutely have too - waiting until later in the day when it is much cooler and safer. Open windows are fine until you get stuck in traffic and that when you can no longer control the interior temperature of the car and an overheating situation could occur.

One of the biggest misconceptions when travelling dogs is that you need to stop frequently, you don't! I can't stress this enough because each time you stop, get the dog out of the car, walk it around in the sun and put it back in the car you are unsettling the dog all over again. If you need to stop for a wee or a coffee feel free to offer your dog a drink but don't feel the need to take him out for a wee too unless he really needs to go and if he's settled then just leave him alone.

The following was written for rescue volunteers transporting dogs to foster care, but it may be useful for the general public to have access to it also - please feel free to read it here

The evening became a little less stressful though as my daughter's birthday brought about a small party in the garden, and as the night drew on and the bottle of wine I was drinking grew lighter the awful events of the day were finally fading into a blur. The party went ahead with no hitches or hiccups and as someone had brought some chinse lanterns we had great fun letting them go and watching them travel for miles in the skies above Midhurst - sorry to anyone that found one Sunday morning with the ravings of a group of kids scrawled over them - well I say kids, Katie was 22 on Saturday but I guess when you reach my age anyone under the age of 30 is a child LOL

My PowerPoint presentation is finished and I'm actually rather pleased with it, I've never used PowerPoint before and was suprised at how much fun it was. So Sunday I sat in the sun for most of the day studying from my AMTRA training manual and hoping enough of this information stays in my brain for me to actually pass the exam in October.

Have a great week and please look after your bulldog.

Another Scorcher

Today is goig to be hotter than ever so please be extra careful with your bulldogs. Page 81 of the Bulldog Bible tells you what to do if your bulldog overheats and there's info here too but it's best to play it safe and keep him inside with the curtains closed and the fans running, I've not had any calls yet from anyone losing their bulldog to the heat please don't let your's be the first victim of the Summer.
I spent most of yesterday learning how to use PowerPoint - oh it's so much fun LOL. I've been asked to do a 20 minute presentation in October about Bulldog Rescue for the Southern Newfoundland Activies Group alongside Labrador Rescue, Newfoundland Rescue and a general all breed rescue. Tickets will go on sale soon and there's hopefully going to be about 20 reserved for Bulldog Pet Owners so keep an eye on this blog and I'll let you know when they go on general sale (I could really do with the support too LOL). It's going to be in one of the Kennel Club Meeting Rooms in Warwickshire on Saturday 9th October so pencil that in your diary now!
And if you're wondering why on earth I'm putting that together now when I've got until October to get it sorted, it's because I've finally booked my SQP exam for the beginning of October so I need all the spare time I can get between now and then to cram as much swatting in as I possibly can.
Stay safe

Rise but no shine

Well the weekend had to catch up with me soon or later, yes I overslept this morning - I really couldn't get up and now I am up, feel like shite. Every night so far this week has been a late one, home check Monday, dog introduction Tuesday and a home check last night I don't feel like I've slept for a year. Both homechecks were very successful though so that's two more dogs with a forever home and poor old Oscar who arrived here on Monday looking very sad and sorry for himself met his new girlfriend Tuesday and will be set to leave once he's recovered from his neglect issues later next month. I'll try and keep a diary for him once I've got some photos and bring you up to date with his story.
Lots of you have asked after Mabel, well, she's still very pale but eating normally and back to her old grumpy self. My gut feeling is that there's a problem somewhere but I think it's going to be a while before we find out what that is. She's looking very thin but now her appetite is back hopefully that will rectify.
Well, I'd better get a rocket under me and get to work, ho hum - another busy day I'm sure as I plan to get some rehoming done today

Sun, grass and sores

Hilda's latest favourite past time is to rub herself upside down on the short brown grass until she's bleeding! She's been doing his now for about 3 weeks and is a series of healed, creamed and bleeding sores all around her neck and shoulders. This time of year often sees an increase in skin problems, some of it's allergies to the grass, some of it is scratching from being so hot and if your dog only ever suffers problems in the Summer it can usually be kept under control by treating each sore spot as it arises. I do know that many people give anti histamines during the Summer but unless your dog is really suffering I do worry about that. Bathe each sore spot with salt water, pat dry and then apply sudocrem - if you see the area has healed or is starting to heal after 48 hours than this will work for your dog, if the areas start to spread and you find that you can pull chunks of fur out like you were plucking a chicken then a short course of anti biotics may help as this is a sign that the area has become infected. I know that many vets love to prescribe steroids for skin problems and I can't stress enough that this really should be a last case resort because long term use of steroids can lead to other problems, one of the dogs we recently rehomed has just suffered a bout of pancreaitis which the vet has presumed is due to the long term use of steroids.

Food can be a great contributor to skin problems, anything with a lot of colouring or a protein level of more than 24% is a definite no for dogs with sensitive skin, feed something along the lines of James Wellbeloved, Arden Grange or Burns as these foods tend to have less fillers (ie: crap off the abatoire floor), for some dogs feeding a fish based food such as James Wellbeloved White fish and rice or Burns Fish and Potato is helpful, but be wary of allergy test - they will simply tell you your dog is allergic to pollen and dust mites - neither of which you can do anything about and are usually a total waste of time, effort and money.

Malaseb is another vet fave, I just noticed that's being sold at £20 a bottle!!!! The big problem I have with baths as a treatment for skin is the simple fact that bathing dries the skin, makes it flaky which makes it itchy - try not to over bath your dog it can often prove to be counter productive and for what it's worth Medichems Sporal D shampoo (available from http://www.reggies-den.co.uk/) is just as good, if not better.

I think one of the main issues is the fact that vets not only feel the need to make money out of every dog that walks through the door (especially the pedigrees) but also that they have to be seen to be doing something. You really don't always need the pills and potions they prescribe, salt water, sudocrem and decent diet is often all you need to get you through the summer and an anti histamine reserved for really bad days or for dogs with a genuine allergy to pollen.

Earth, here I come ... with a thump

Monday morning, my pet Bristolian, as she became fondly known, is back in Bristol, the alarm sounded again this morning and there's dogs to feed and shite to clear ... my 48 hour holiday is officially over!!! To be fair I had 12 hours more than last year as I stayed over night this year, thanks so much to Peter and Bev and Dawn who made that possible, especially Peter who's recovering from surgery and probably could have done without my problems this weekend! Dizzy coped very well on his own and did tell me that Jason was an absolute star - thanks to them too for allowing me to disappear for a couple of days, it was just what the doctor ordered.

It is strange though being back in surroundings that were normal for you when you were 17 but not quite so normal aged 43, when someone asks if you've seen their husband/boyfriend/friend and they are described as fat, bald and tattooed - it narrows it down to most of the men on the site as most of the people there are in their 40s now.

We spent Saturday catching up with old friends, Ali from our scooter club was having her hen do at Camber and they looked like they were having a fantastic time, complete with cardboard Elvis. We spent most of the evening in the Soul room and even entered the dancing competition, we didn't win (or come anywhere near winning) but i did get further than Debbie, dressing up as we would have done all those years ago - complete with false eyelashes was the funniest thing I've done in a long time, our chalet was stroon with make up and clothes just as it would have been back in 1982 when were there for the first time on holiday with our parents. Camber Sands formed a very special friendship and all these years later we are still good friends, Godmothers to each others eldest daughters and despite the miles between us have remained increadibly good friends over the years. Our annual pilgrimage to Camber Sands scooter rally looks like it's going to be a regular event so that leave 364 days until my next day off.

Midhurst 2 Bristol 0

The Bristolian landed safely and my living room now resembles a teenagers bedroom! I've just popped into the office whilst she's in the shower (she'll be in there for hours) to get things up todate before we head off to Camber Sands tomorrow. Thanks to everyone that sent Mabel get well wishes, she has proved to be a real mystery - despite still being increadibly pale, all her blood tests have come back normal. She has eaten today though and seems a lot perkier so we have absolutely no idea what is wrong with her, time will tell no doubt, but for today she's fine and currently fast asleep on the sofa bed making the most of it being empty no doubt.

Good news and Bad News all in the space of an hour

Today sees the launch of the annual calendar competition. You have 20 days to get your photos in so pop yourself along to the competition web site and get snapping!

Do you remember Claire? Here's a little reminder

Well I had a little visiter this morning .... Guess who this is ...

Can you beleive it's the same dog????????????? Sadly the visit was breif as I was on my way out to the vet with Mabel who's not been very well, nothing I can put my finger on but she's lost a lot of weight recently and her appetite over the past few days has been zero. Her colour is appaulling and she's taken to hiding in the corner so they've taken some bloods and the vet has warned me to be prepared for the worst, keep your fingers crossed but she is 9½ - of course I'll keep you posted.

So back to work as I eagerly await the arrival of the whirlwind that is called Debbie.