Leopold Wolfington

After searching high and low for a dog. I decided that I wanted a puppy. One that I could train and see develop and grow from an early age. This decision was not taken lightly and a lot of thought went into whether it was the right decision. Now I am the proud owner of this bundle of joy and I am positive it was the right choice to make.

Leo is a Rough Haired Border Collie, believe it or not. He is an unusual Blue Merle in colouring as he has little white on him. He has beautiful eyes: one dark brown and the other half dark brown and blue (the blue part also has a splash of blue). As I watch his pupils contract and expand it reminds me of the seashore. His eyes are captivating.

This is a brand new journey and experience for both of us. I hope that over the years we will both teach each other some vital lessons.

One ear up, one down maybe??

Here begins the life story of Leopold Wolfington.

Welcome My Little Snow Leopard.

Leopold Wolfington

Rawr....I'm so startled

another icanhazcheezeburger.com moment

Shocked Hamster

Such a funny video.

November Poster

www.hoperescue.org.uk

Give a dog a home this winter...

Always ones to make me laugh...

For some great images of Alpacas the internet has a whole host of them. 

I always look to Llamas and Alpacas to cheer me up, they are such amazingly, amusing looking creatures.

http://www.iwantalpacas.com/

Tickled me pink for hours this video, 
a must see if you love these fuzzy little guys.

Brilliant Video...with Dogs.

Rescue Dogs Were Used in the Making of This Video

For More info:

http://www.okgo.net/dogs/

Winter Visitors

Last year our garden was thriving with birds of all kinds. I was thrilled with the reception to the food we put out. Here's hoping this year will bring in much of the same.

Of all the birds we played host to my personal favourite, was the smallest of our visitors...the Goldcrest.

I was able to snatch these quick shots before it darted away.

For more information about this little bird visit:

http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldcrest/

The Owl Branch

On a trip to the Small Breeds Farm in Kington, Herefordshire. We came across numerous breeds of Owls. When we came to the enclosure of this owl it took a while to spot him. It said that he was an Eastern Screech Owl.

How amazingly camoflaged he was.

Can you tell what it is yet?

I love looking at the patterns of rugs and finding animals within them...this rug in particular contain two creatures but in exact the same part. It's like an optical illusion.
Can you see the animals in the picture?

Springy Spaniels

I love watching the team work of Doug's Dogs - Taffy and Jess. Jessie being the more sprightly of the two means she catches the ball more frequently then Taff which means they then play a tug of war game so that Taffy can bring the ball back to us. You have to see it to appreciate the true genius of their team work.

But as Taffy gets older, Jessie helps him to slow down so he works enough to tire himself out and then rest while she does the hard work.

Taffy Waiting for his prize - a tennis ball.



Taffy resting in his favourite place...I wander why?

Jess sprawled out after a hard day being a dog.



Jessie Auditioning for Shaun of the Dead :D



Now that's what I call a cat lover...

Animals friendship blossoming between different species is always an amazing thing to behold. Seeing how they bond together, you can never quite believe your eyes.

Once such relationship I stumbled across was Koko. A female Gorilla with a great maternal interest in kittens. To see such a magnificently, large beast cradling such a tiny, delicate one reminds you of Lenny in 'Of Mice and Men', when he 'breaks' his pet mice and can't understand why they won't wake up. Loving is one thing but handling such a fragile creature with care is a great skill-one Koko seems to possess.

There is even a book and DVD about Koko and her love of Kittens and Cats called 'Koko's Kitten'

For more informatin about the magnificent Koko visit:

http://www.koko.org/world/

Battersea Dogs and Cats Home - Stamps, issued March 2010

For their 150th anniversary: what a great way to celebrate the work carried out by the people who rescue, care for and rehome these wonderful animals and the time, money and effort that goes into assuring the safety and happiness of these animals. 

http://www.battersea.org.uk/150th_anniversary/events/special_stamp_issue.html

These cats and dogs featured on the stamps are ex rescue/residents. 

Pixie

 Tigger

Mr Tumnus

 Button

 Tia

 Leonard

 Casey

 Herbie and Tafka

 Boris

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1256994/Dogs-cats-abandoned-Battersea-home-photogenic-stars-new-Royal-Mail-stamps.html

It's a great thing to know that each of these animals now have a safe and loving home. A great deal of work goes into saving each and every one of these animal. So personally I would like to shout a great big 'Thank you' to those who make it possible for these animals to return to safety and away from the uncertainty that these animals were facing. 

For your own set visit : http://www.royalmail.com/portal/rm/shop;jsessionid=M20RAGKSKSWHQFB2IGEUNZQUHRAYUQ2K?catId=9300091&pageId=shp_prdlist&category=cat88970008

Tradegy of stag Emporer being shot

I was so sad today to read the news that the stag known as The Emporer of Exmoor had been shot dead.

He was thought to be one of the largest wild animals in the UK and was a truly magnificent red deer.

He was shot by a client visiting the area just to have a trophy to take home with them.

I appreciate that deer stalkers have to shoot some animals to control the population and stop them dying from a worse cause such as starvation, but they usually shoot weaker animals or a cross section of the population and not a stag in the rutting season.

I find it hard to understand why someone wouldn't rather admire an animal in the wild in all its glory rather than having it's head displayed in a grotesque way on their wall.

Fireworks

With bonfire night and New Year's Eve coming up it is worth making sure you are prepared for the firework season which can be a source of fear for many animals.

Here are some tips to make fireworks less frightening for your pet:

Dogs

• Walk dogs during the daytime to avoid times when fireworks are likely to be set off
• Keep your dog securely inside at night with windows and curtains closed and some music or the TV on to muffle the noise of fireworks outside
• Try to ignore your pet when they are showing signs of fear (i.e. don't punish or fuss them) as this is likely to reinforce the behaviour and make things worse in the long run
• Make sure your dog is microchipped so if they do happen to be outside when a firework goes off and they run away they can be brought back to you more easily.
• Talk to your vet if the problem is very bad as they may be able to prescribe medication, refer you to an animal behaviourist or suggest a pheromone diffuser, which disperse calming chemicals into a room.
• Have a play area in one of the quieter rooms of the house where you play with your dog, so they associate it with happy experiences and they can then go there when they are scared to distract them.

Cats

• Shut your cat in at night, so they are only outside during the day
• Keep windows and curtains closed and some music or Tv on to muffle the noise of fireworks outside
• Try to ignore your pet when they are showing signs of fear (i.e. don't punish or fuss them) as this is likely to reinforce the behaviour and make things worse in the long run
• Make sure your cat is microchipped so if they do happen to be outside when a firework goes off and they run away they can be brought back to you more easily.
• Have a place in your garden (e.g. a box or maybe a small dog kennel) and in your house (e.g. in or on top of a cupboard, under the stairs) that your cat can hide in if it needs to. Don't try and tempt your cat out of their hideaway as this may stress them out even more.

Small Animals

• If your pet lives outside cover most of their cage, hutch or run with blankets or towels, so that one area of their living space is better sound proofed and blocks out the flashing lights. Make sure your pet can still see out though, so they don't feel too closed in and also so they have adequate ventilation.
• Make sure they have lots of bedding to hide in.

Do you have a pet rabbit?

If you own a rabbit and live in the UK then you should fill in the survey that the RSPCA is currently doing through their website.

They are launching a campaign to improve rabbit welfare and want to gather as much information as possible about pet rabbits and their owners before they decide the best way forward.

Being a rabbit owner myself I have already filled it in and it only takes about 10 minutes, so it's an easy way to help out and you also can opt to be entered into a prize draw for supplies for your pet rabbit and you can download a free rabbit screensaver once you've completed the survey.

Click here to take part in the survey: The Great Big Rabbit Survey

Hurricane Rescue Story

I found this lovely story on an American website about animals found in a town which had recently been hit by a hurricane

The story begins with the rescuers finding this dog 'Ralphie' that someone had already taken under their wing but weren't equipped to adopt

You wouldn't have thought anyone could survive this wreckage but the dog below luckily did

Here she is in the car and then joined by Ralphie below

Instant friends!

Two more dogs found

A cat climbs in the car looking for shelter

So much for cats and dogs not getting on!

It's lovely to see how animals can come together in a situation like this